Summary

Anyone who came to Las Vegas for the sole purpose of seeing genuine innovations in pre- press systems was undoubtedly disappointed. However, to be honest, no one expected revolutionary inventions, as the current state of development of pre-press systems permits only evolutionary developments. The announcement that IBM and Kodak/Atex had entered into a partnership in order to closely coordinate "the activities of the Kodak-EPPS Group (Atex) and the IBM Media Industry Marketing Division", as it was put officially, caused a sensation. For most visitors, this came as a great surprise, and therefore was a major topic of conversation at ANPA/TEC 90. In the press sector, the interest in Las Vegas, as also before at DRUPA 90, was focused on keyless offset printing (Anilox-Offset) with 4-Hi towers (4 + 4 printing). This time, -how- ever, the press that was demonstrated in daily production originated from a Japanese manufacturer, i.e. Toky Kikai Seisakusho, or TKS as it is also known. Besides a highly compact design - only 5.24 m height of the 4-Hi tower-that is operated on only two levels - it contains a foamed polyurethane roller instead of an engraved anilox roller whose cell structure carries out the same function but is more precise and durable because its cells always "grow back again". In addition, the driven pan roller enables adjustment of the ink density, and the ink is constantly regenerated in the circulation system. The manufacturers of mailroom equipment this year once again occupied the largest stands. The stagnating Amegican newspaper industry sets great hope in its post-press divisions, from which it expects an especially favourable ROI (Return on Investment). Will help arrive in time? As in previous years, this Special Report may be regarded as a preview of the Congress- Expo IFRA 90 that is scheduled to be held from 15 - 18 October 1990 in Barcelona.