Cenveo Q2 Report
Cenveo, formerly Mail-Well, reported a net loss of $2.1 million for the quarter, and $18.6 million for the six months, or $0.04 per share and $0.39 per share, respectively. Sales for the quarter were $409 million and $833 million for the six months ended June 30. Last year, the net loss for the corresponding quarter was $2.3 million, or $0.05 per share, on $408 million of sales and for the six months ended June 30 2003, net income was $0.4 million, or $0.01 per share, on $835 million of sales. Cenveo's net loss for the six months ended June 30, 2004, included a first quarter charge for early extinguishment of debt of $17.7 million. Full story.

Consolidated Graphics Acquires Electric City Printing
Consolidated Graphics Inc., Houston, acquired Electric City Printing, a full-service sheet-fed and digital printing company serving the South Carolina market. "This acquisition is an excellent example of a key element of our growth strategy -- expanding our market leadership position through strategic acquisitions of high-quality commercial printing companies with an impressive and loyal customer base and a dedicated team of talented employees," said Joe R. Davis, chairman and CEO of Consolidated Graphics.

Bowater Reports Q2 Loss
Bowater Inc., Greenville, S.C., reported a smaller loss for the second quarter of the year ending July 30, even as newsprint shipments declined. The loss of $1.3 million, or 2 cents a share, compares with a net loss of $25.7 million, or 45 cents a share, for the same period in 2003. Excluding items such as gains related to asset sales and foreign currency changes, the company said its net loss was $14.9 million, or 26 cents a share. Sales increased to $788 million in the second quarter from $664.1 million a year ago. For the first six months of the year, the company lost $33.8 million, or 59 cents a share, compared with a loss of $97.4 million, or $1.71 per share, in the first half of 2003. Sales grew 15 percent to $1.5 billion from $1.3 billion the same time last year.

International Paper Evaluates Specialty Paper Unit
International Paper said it was considering options for its specialty paper business which makes lightweight packaging papers and pressure sensitive papers used for food, industrial and consumer hygiene products. The company said it will continue to operate its Industrial Specialty Papers Business during the evaluation. The unit includes facilities in Wisconsin, Ohio, and the Netherlands.

BST PRO MARK to Launch Print Management System
BST PRO MARK, Elmhurst, Ill., will present under a new name its print management system at Labelexpos America 2004 in September. BST PREMIUS digital combines features of BST Genius, BST Genius LEX and BST Genius digital plus. It uses a high resolution digital camera and sophisticated software to perform automatic print defect detection, color monitoring, bar code verification, double camera operation and register pre-setting on Flexo CI presses, according to the company.

Hospitals Move Toward Paperless Age
Hospitals are trading their once-scattered medical charts, file folders, X-rays and other documents for a unified electronic records system accessible with a few keystrokes. Thanks to Paul R. Edwards, CDC, president of FormStore Incorporated, Fenton, Mo., who provided this story to DMIA's principals-only broadcast email system. Full story.

Return Your 2005 Buyers' Guide Proof or Listing Form
Manufacturers and suppliers: Print Solutions Magazine is editing its 2005 Buyers' Guide, which will be published in October. If your company was listed last year, you will receive a proof of that listing in the mail. If your firm wasn't listed last year, click here to download a blank form. Fax your completed proof or form to (703) 549-4966 by Aug. 11, and email digital logos and/or product photos to Andrew Brown, assistant editor. Print Solutions' 31,000 readers include distributors of business forms, labels, commercial printing, tags, promotional products and other printing. The Buyers' Guide is your opportunity to let distributors know what you offer. For more information, call Print Solutions at (800) 336-4641.

Clean Release Cards are Answer
A company encouraging people to join clubs for golfers, hunters, gardeners and other hobbyists lured would-be members with 30 mil cards. Bob Lashbrook, a sales representative with distributorship Roberts Business Forms, provided the company with hundreds of thousands of embossed cards attached to letters that were placed in window envelopes. "The cards showed through the envelopes, and people perceived they were getting something of value," Lashbrook says. Full story.

New at Print Solutions 2004 Conference and Expo
Are you looking for products to sell that have a margin of 30 percent or higher? You'll find them at Print Solutions 2004 Conference and Expo, Rosemont, Ill., Oct. 4-7. The exhibit floor will feature two product theaters featuring presentations on selling specific products and/or services with proven margins of at least 30 percent. Click here to see the schedule.

New this year for your pre-conference planning is an interactive, online floor plan and show guide! Click here to check it out. You can search and sort the floor plan by product or simply click on a booth number to see what each exhibitor offers. For example, if you sort on plastic products, you will see highlighted on the floor plan all the booths featuring that product line.

And, to add to the excitement on the show floor this year, Crabar/GBF, an Ennis Inc. company, is giving away a Lexus RX330 (valued at $35,000). This top-of-the-line SUV will be on display at the expo for some lucky attendee to drive home. But the only way you can win is by coming to the show. Click here to register online.

Here are the top unusual source requests received by DMIA:

1. Plastic RFID Proximity Cards; prints 1PMS-4cp; QTY=1M-20M
2. Wooden Pallets; 48" x 44"; QTY=500 per month
3. Greeting Cards; 5" x 6 3/6"; prints 4cp; two versions will be paper banded together; QTY=15M each of 2
4. Open End Envelope; 11 1/4" x 7 3/4"; prints metallic silver on 70# black stock; QTY=50M
5. Strapping; will hold 1/2" to 4" thickness of printed materials; Nylon with Velcro fastening; QTY=100M+
6. Six Pack Bottle Carton Holders; prints 4cp; holds 16oz. bottles; QTY=10M-60M
7. Cut Sheets; 8 1/2" x 14"; prints 4cp/4cp; affixed magnet; prints 2 color; QTY=100M
8. Contract Screen Printing or Pad Printing; 6 Gal Bucket; prints 1 color; QTY=336
9. Metal Suggestion Box; frame on front to hold an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet explaining program; tray on back to hold blank suggestion forms; box locks with slot on top; QTY=30
10. Finishing only; affix supplied magnet mechanically or manually to a supplied, folded brochure; QTY=100M

If you have a source request--for anything--call the Hotline at (800) 333-2828 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Eastern Time, or use the Source Hotline Database online. For new sales ideas every day, try our 1,000 Sales Ideas Database. Manufacturers, if you produce any of these items and would like to check your listing with the Source Hotline, please email Cheryl Rush.

Sales and Marketing Tip
Making a Click-Through Campaign Work
A click-through campaign might or might not be the best banner ad strategy for your business at its present stage. Here are a few situations in which your business would likely benefit from a click-through campaign. Full story.

E-Commerce Spotlight
Deliver the Goods
or Say Goodbye!
E-commerce is not just about front-end glitter and glory. It's also about streamlined back-end processes. The most important of these is order fulfillment, the ability to move a product from the warehouse to the customer's house in the cheapest, fastest way possible. Full story.

Product of the Week
The Printing Service Specialist's Handbook and Reference Guide
This CD-ROM contains 850 pages covering written and oral communication, customer satisfaction, proactive service, time management, organizational systems for smooth workflow, production planning and scheduling, press checks, shipping, printing processes, prepress, finishing and binding, printing papers, ink, bar codes, computer-driven printing, commercial printing and more. Code: SSPPCD. $89. To order, visit DMIA's online product catalog, or contact Tina Davis.

Hot Sites
Greatest Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Here's a project for you: You're in charge of inventing the world's most perfect grilled cheese. The folks at Dupont -- they invented Teflon, you know -- are sponsoring a contest for sandwiches in various categories (gourmet, kids' favorite, regionally inspired, low carb, etc.). The prizes are mighty impressive, and the site offers a few incredible recipes to get you thinking. Visit the site.

The Next American City
Here's a new quarterly magazine from a new generation of urban thinkers and leaders that explores the transformation of America's cities and suburbs, asking tough questions about how and why our environment, economy, society and culture are changing. Visit the site.