Awards
ICAC announces Researcher of the Year 2016
The International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) announced Dr. Jack C. McCarty, of the USA, as the winner of its Researcher of the Year Award for 2016. The announcement was made during the World Cotton Research Conference-6, which was held in Goiânia, Brazil, from May 2 to 6.
Dr. McCarty works for the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and is also an adjunct professor at the Mississippi State University. He is an agronomist/breeder whose research concentrates on cotton’s genetic diversity, conversion of photoperiodic races to day neutrality and germplasm enhancement for improving yield and fiber quality.
The ICAC started recognizing cotton researchers in 2009. Researchers from all areas of production research, including technology transfer, from ICAC Members are eligible to apply. The program is open for application on February 1st each year and a winner, selected by a panel of five judges with no direct link to the ICAC, is announced on May 1st.
Dr. McCarty will speak at the 75th Plenary Meeting of the ICAC, which will be held in Islamabad, Pakistan, from October 30th to November 4th, 2016.
AATCC TCR Service Award goes to Paul L. Johnson
Paul L. Johnson is this year’s recipient of the AATCC Technical Committee on Research (TCR) Service Award. He was recognized at the recent International Conference for his contributions toward the development of new Stain Release Replicas for AATCC Test Method 130. He was also acknowledged for his service, especially for his many years as a chair of AATCC Committee RA56 Stain Resistance Test Methods
Specifically, Johnson was instrumental in the development of new stain release replicas, as the previous replicas were outdated and difficult to reproduce. He performed statistical analysis on the data to provide a more accurate comparison. New replicas were created digitally, allowing for a more consistent, reproducible product.
Johnson joined AATCC in 2005, the same year that he became a member of the Stain Resistance Test Methods research committee. In 2006, he became chair of this committee, and continued to serve in the role of chair or acting chair for the next ten years. In 2005, he joined, and continues to serve on, the Home Laundering Technology; and Water Resistance, Absorbency & Wetting Agent Evaluation research committees. He also currently serves on the Committee on Conferences.
Johnson served on the TCR and the International Test Methods Committee while he chaired RA56. He served on the Executive Committee on Research (ECR) from 2008 through 2010.
Johnson received his bachelors in chemistry from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. Soon after graduating, he went to work for 3M in Minnesota, and recently retired after a 37-year career in research and process development for novel textile, leather, and paper functional finishes, and thermal management fibre. During his years at 3M, he served as project lead and key contributor for development and launch of more than 40 new products. He was a senior development specialist for international technical teams and company acquisition projects, and served as advisor to regulatory groups and government agencies.
Never one to take himself too seriously, Johnson admits that one of his proudest contributions was successfully introducing crawfish étouffée to upper Mid-Western Scandinavians.
The Technical Committee on Research Service Award was established in 2008 to recognize those AATCC members who have contributed greatly to the Association in a technical capacity. Senior members of the Association with at least five years of continuous membership in AATCC, who have contributed outstanding technical service to the Association through activity in a research committee, are eligible. Selection is by unanimous choice of the TCR Service Award Committee: composed of the current chair, vice chair, and secretary of the Technical Committee on Research (TCR), as well as the chair of the Executive Committee on Research (ECR). The Award consists of a plaque and an honorarium, presented at the AATCC International Conference.
Avery Dennison recognizes suppliers from across the globe in third annual awards ceremony
Avery Dennison Materials Group recognized ten pressure-sensitive industry suppliers during the company’s third annual supplier recognition ceremony held on May 24 in Shanghai, China. Winners were selected based on their performance in areas such as sustainability, innovation, service, overall value and quality
“Our suppliers are key partners in our quest to deliver superior value to our customers,” said Roland Simon, global vice president, procurement. “These awards are an ideal opportunity to recognize ongoing innovation and outstanding support, and to forge stronger relationships so that we can continue collaborating to drive excellence throughout the value chain.”
US-based industrial control systems supplier Quad Plus was recognized as “Supplier of the Year” for their exceptional efforts across all categories of performance. “Quad Plus has demonstrated their commitment to developing a stronger, more strategic relationship with Avery Dennison,” Simon said. “They consistently demonstrate great flexibility and meet Avery Dennison’s tight production schedules and critical deadlines to deliver successful projects across the globe.”
The list below details other companies recognized during the awards ceremony and their respective award categories.
Best Emerging Supplier: Hansol Paper, Seoul, South Korea; This award goes to the supplier that is growing with Avery Dennison globally while successfully meeting quality, service and innovation targets.
Best Transportation Supplier: Expeditors International, Seattle, Washington, USA; This award goes to the transportation supplier that has maintained high delivery service and quality standards and has worked collaboratively with Avery Dennison to provide innovative solutions to network and delivery challenges.
Best Indirect Supplier: Quad Plus, Joliet, Illinois, USA; This award goes to the indirect supplier that provided superior quality and service while continually improving their processes.
Best Supplier Sustainability: DRT, Cedex, France; This award goes to the supplier that demonstrated both leadership and action to align with Avery Dennison’s sustainability policy to use responsibly sourced materials, comply with third-party verification processes and show clear commitment to innovation and continuous improvement in this very important area.
Best Supplier Service: Munksjö, Stockholm, Sweden; This award goes to the supplier who in 2015 constantly met our availability targets and found ways to reduce overall supplied lead times.
Best Supplier Innovation: Binder GmbH, Holzgerlingen, Germany; This award goes to the supplier that was a key partner in the successful implementation of new products and ideas in 2015.
Best Supplier Quality: Siliconature, Godega di Sant’Urbano, Italy; This award goes to the supplier that in 2015 best demonstrated the ability to deliver defect-free material that exceeded the expectations of Avery Dennison and its customers.
As this awards ceremony moves around the globe, Avery Dennison also presents awards to suppliers that have provided strong support to the host region. This year regional awards went to:
Best Indirect Supplier – AP Region: Nicely Machinery Development, Taoyuan, Taiwan and
Best Supplier Innovation – AP Region: Zhejiang OULI Digital, Jiashan City, Zhejiang Province, China.
Avery Dennison is a global leader in labelling and packaging materials and solutions. The company’s applications and technologies are an integral part of products used in every major market and industry. With operations in more than 50 countries and more than 25000 employees worldwide, Avery Dennison serves customers with insights and innovations that help make brands more inspiring and the world more intelligent. Headquartered in Glendale, California, the company reported sales of USD 6 billion in 2015.
New super-fast Epson SureColor printer wins EDP Award
Epson’s new SureColor SC-P20000 has won “Best Photographic Printer” at the European Digital Press Association (EDP) Awards announced on June 1, 2016 at drupa in Düsseldorf, Germany. Each year the EDP Awards recognise the very best new innovative products and developments launched into the digital printing market
The SureColor SC-P20000
Launched in January this year, the 64-inch SC-P20000 combines super-fast printing speeds with superior photo quality and is ideal for high volume commercial print production firms, copy shops, photo labs and high street photo outlets. It is a cost-effective in-house production solution and can be used to create high-quality, large-format POS, short-term outdoor & interior signage, exhibition & display graphics, promotional graphics and photographs. The printer features Epson’s PrecisionCore MicroTFP printhead for producing outstanding results up to 2400 x 1200 dpi. Its robust design incorporates a range of innovative technologies and features such as high-precision media feed technology, a newly developed camera-based paper feed stabiliser and media inductive roller system.
Kristin Saus-Opuszynski, European Senior Business Manager, Epson Europe, says: “This printer combines new rapid printing speeds with the same high output quality that Epson customers have come to expect, while delivering a range of new features and enhanced usability. The EDP Awards recognise innovations that make a difference in the digital print sector, so to receive an award for the SC-P20000 is an achievement we are extremely proud of.”
Mimaki Hat-Trick at European Digital Press Association (EDP) Awards at drupa
The Mimaki UJV55-320 has been named Best Wide Format Roll-to-Roll Printer up to 320 cm; the Mimaki UJF-7151 plus, the Best Special Object Printer; and the Mimaki TX300P the Best Textile Printer Roll-to-Roll up to 100 square metre/h. The awards were accepted by Mike Horsten, General Manager Marketing of Mimaki EMEA, at a special ceremony held during the show
Creative recognition
“To achieve one EDP award is an honour – three is a great recognition of the hard work and creativity of our research and development teams in not only bringing market leading solutions to fruition but also in identifying emerging trends and how we can help customers make the most of the opportunities they present,” says Horsten. “The UJV55-320 is the perfect complement to existing sign and display graphics production platforms as well as an affordable market entry for operations looking for new sign revenue streams. The Mimaki UJF-7151 plus addresses a growing demand for digital, on-demand and plateless inkjet printing because of its ability to quickly provide high-mix and low-volume printing.
Mike Horsten adds, “With the Mimaki TX300P-1800, we were mindful of the shift in textile production from both analogue to digital and from centralised to distributed production. We envision a day not too far in the future when consumers will be able to download or create their own patterns rather than being limited to commercially available designs. The TX300P-1800 is ideal for this new distributed model of textile printing.”
The Mimaki UJV55-320 is an affordable roll-fed wide-format printer that delivers speeds of up to 110 m2/h and print resolutions of up to 1200 dpi, depending on the substrates. It uses UV-curable ink, cured with a low-energy LED light array. This results in sign and display graphics that exit the printer dry and are immediately ready for further processing, significantly reducing production cycle times. In addition, UV-curable inks emit no volatile organic compounds (VOCs), minimising the environmental footprint.
Industrial Small Format
The UJF-7151 plus industrial small format UV Inkjet flatbed printer ensures high quality printing production from both analogue to digital and from centralised to distributed production. We envision a day not too far in the future when consumers will be able to download or create their own patterns rather than being limited to commercially available designs. The TX300P-1800 is ideal for this new distributed model of textile printing.”
The UJF-7151 plus industrial small format UV Inkjet flatbed printer ensures high quality printing and top level productivity with ultra-accurate ink droplet placement. It has a maximum printable size of 710 x 510 mm (28 x 20 in). This best-in-class digital on-demand industrial small format printing solution for the screen printing industry improves accuracy, consistency and reliability by modifying the mechanical structure of the print table. Fine lines, edges and small texts are crystal clear. It also enables double-layer printing and colour printing on a white base layer.
Affordable wide-format
The Mimaki UJV55-320 is an affordable roll-fed wide-format printer that delivers speeds of up to 110 m2/h and print resolutions of up to 1200 dpi, depending on the substrates. It uses UV-curable ink, cured with a low-energy LED light array. This results in sign and display graphics that exit the printer dry and are immediately ready for further processing, significantly reducing production cycle times. In addition, UV-curable inks emit no volatile organic compounds (VOCs), minimising the environmental footprint.
Addressing small lots in textiles
The Mimaki TX300P-1800 is an innovative 1.8 metre roll-to-roll direct-to-textile inkjet printer designed to meet the market demand for smaller lot sizes, faster delivery times and the ability to quickly produce samples. Created specifically for direct-to-textile printing, the 8-colour inkjet printer features a new print head that ejects ink droplets at high speed to ensure accurate ink droplet placement with a high head gap. This makes the printer ideal for printing high quality images on all types of fabrics, including thicker and textured materials.
SPGPrints PIKE digital textile printer wins EDP Award for ‘Best Industrial Textile Solution’
SPGPrints is proud to announce that its PIKE digital textile printer has won the European Digital Press (EDP) Award for “Best Industrial Textile Solution.”
Launched at ITMA Milan in November 2015, the PIKE set new standards for print quality and production speeds. The single-pass printer’s debut attracted wide attention and, since then, that interest has continued and installations are underway at major textile printers. PIKE will enable them to address today’s demands for short-runs and fast-turnarounds as well as full production runs (up to 13 million metres per year).
Jorgen Lindahl, area sales manager for SPGPrints, accepted the award at the presentation ceremony held at drupa 2016, in Düsseldorf, Germany. This is the 11th year of the EDP Awards which were established by the European Digital Press Association to recognise the best offerings on the market in terms of technical performance and service.
In making the award, the judges’ commented: “The PIKE, built for industrial production, pushes the boundaries for digitally printed textiles. It gives textile printers the opportunity to switch to various images within one roll, and offers very short turnaround times compared to traditional textile printing.”
Commenting on the award, Jorgen Lundahl said: “We are very excited to have won this award for the PIKE printer. It not only recognises PIKE’s significance in the textile market, but also SPGPrints’ leadership in digital printing technologies. The advantages PIKE can bring to textile printers will be reinforced in the marketplace by the award, and the overall credibility of digital textile printing enhanced.”
The PIKE printer features the break-through Archer® technology with Fujifilm Dimatix Samba print heads for high-quality single-pass printing. PIKE delivers fine lines, subtle halftones, smooth gradients and sharp geometric patterns at speeds up to 40m/minute and provides the combined competitive advantages of shortened time to market and reduced logistics costs.
US Lands End recognized with 2016 StellaService Elite Award for Exceptional Customer Service
US Lands’ End, Inc. announced on May 31, 2016 that StellaService, an independent company that measures the customer service performance of online businesses, recently recognized Lands’ End with the 2016 StellaService Elite Award for exceptional customer service
StellaService recognized Lands’ End for excelling in phone, chat and email, with a phone response time of less than 45 seconds. In 2015, Lands’ End received an Elite Award for overall excellence in customer service.
StellaService’s Elite Awards recognize retailers on an annual basis for best-in-class customer service across phone, email, chat, shipping and returns. The 2016 Awards were given following analysis of thousands of customer service data points collected by StellaService shopping analysts throughout 2015. To qualify for an Elite Award, retailers’ annual service performance must meet or exceed the performance of the top five retailers in the StellaService Ecommerce Index, which includes 30 companies recognized as service leaders.
“At Lands’ End, demonstrating an outstanding level of customer service has always been a cornerstone of the company,” said Federica Marchionni, CEO, Lands’ End. “Our customer care specialists are renowned for their helpfulness and product knowledge and we are honored to be recognized by StellaService. We can’t thank our customer care team enough for the dedication and attention they provide our customers every day, across all shopping channels.”
“Based on the rigorous qualifications and continuous analysis by StellaService, Lands’ End delivered a continuously outstanding customer service experience throughout 2015, and we are excited to announce them as the recipient of our 2016 Elite Award for phone, email and chat,” said Jordy Leiser, Co-Founder and CEO, StellaService. “We are honored to continue to bring awareness and attention to companies, like Lands’ End, who are setting standards and paving the road for superior quality customer service.”
Lands’ End, Inc. is a leading multi-channel retailer of casual clothing, accessories, footwear and home products. We offer products through catalogues, online at landsend.com, canvasbylandsend.com and affiliated specialty and international websites, and through retail locations, primarily at Lands’ End Shops at Sears® and standalone Lands’ End Inlet® Stores. We are a classic American lifestyle brand with a passion for quality, legendary service and real value, and seek to deliver timeless style for men, women, kids and the home.
At StellaService, our mission is to help companies create value from every service interaction. We provide solutions that transform the way companies measure, optimize and monetize the service performance of front-line staffers. Founded in 2010, StellaService is headquartered in New York City and has raised over USD 35 million in funding.