PRINTING United Cancels 2020 Trade Show, Transitioning to Virtual Event

Letter from the President & CEO of Printing United Alliance Ford Bowers:

Dear PRINTING United Family,

We hope this message finds each of you and your staff healthy and well. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt our lives and businesses, PRINTING United and our great industry are not immune to such intrusion. It is with great disappointment to announce that we have made the difficult decision to cancel this year’s in-person expo in Atlanta.

The unavoidable decision comes after extensive conversations, surveys, and projections that we have been navigating since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. These conversations were held with numerous entities surrounding all aspects of the show, including the team at Georgia World Congress Center, the city of Atlanta, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security specializing in mass gatherings and local authorities. The health and safety of all our attendees and exhibitors remains paramount.

The decision to cancel this event did not come easily and we have waited as long as possible before costs and implications will begin to impact our exhibitors and attendees. Many factors are unfortunately out of our control, including travel restrictions and federal, state, and local governmental regulations, as well as the potential for another spike in COVID-19 occurrences. These factors have made it nearly impossible to hold the event in person.

We have been humbled by the volume of exhibitors and partners who have wholeheartedly expressed the desire and need for PRINTING United to take place in order for their businesses to continue the progression out of this disruption, especially after such a successful PRINTING United showcase in 2019. Even without a show, we will not be discouraged.

“According to the consensus of economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal, they expect the American economy to grow robustly in 2021 — by its fastest pace in nearly 40 years. That will give the printing industry a big boost, flipping the mindset from cost reduction and survival to capital investment and growth.” — Andy Paparozzi, Chief Economist, PRINTING United Alliance.

With that in mind, we now turn our attention to helping the entire industry prepare for the recovery. While recreating the experience of being together under one roof is a challenge, we can certainly do the next best thing…create a comprehensive online experience like no other! By combining the strengths of our combined PRINTING United Alliance and NAPCO Media organizations, we are already working diligently to launch a unique PRINTING United experience to connect attendees with exhibitors and their latest technologies. Details will be forthcoming on this very shortly.

We cannot thank you enough for your unwavering support and look forward to sharing more details about the online event to come.

So, in 2020, we will remain Bigger.Better.Together.

Wishing you well,
Ford Bowers
President and CEO
PRINTING United Alliance

Challenge TC & XT Touchscreen Console Cleaning Notice

TC & XT Touch Panel Cleaning Information:

Use a soft lint-free cloth
Cloth can be used dry or lightly dampened with mild cleaner or Ethanol
It is important that the cloth is LIGHTLY dampened and NOT wet
NEVER apply cleaner directly to the touch panel surface; if cleaner is spilled onto the touch panel, soak it up immediately with an absorbent cloth
Cleaner must be neither acid or alkali (neutral pH)
When using cleaner, avoid contact with edges of the film or glass and with the flex tail
Wipe surface gently and if there is a directional surface texture, wipe in the same direction as the texture
Never use acidic or alkaline cleaners, or organic chemicals such as:
- Paint Thinner
- Acetone
- Tolulene
- Xylene
- Propyl
- Isopropyl Alcohol
- Kerosene
Suitable cleaning products:
- Commercially pre-packaged:
  - Klear Screen
- Commercially available off-the-shelf retail brands such as:
  - Glass Plus (made by Reckitt-Benckiser)
  - Glas & Surface Cleaner (made by Reckitt-Benckiser)
Use of incorrect cleaners can result in optical impairment of touch panel and or damage to functionality
Please Note: Most products contain 1-3% Isopropyl Alcohol by volume, which is within acceptable limits for Resistive Touch Panel cleaning use
CAUTION: Many products contain Ammonia, Phosphates, and or Ethylene Glycol, which are NOT ACCEPTABLE; check product content label carefully

This information has been provided with all TC/XT operated machines/kits. If you have any questions, please contact us at 810.238.7370 to speak to a customer service representative.

Mid-State Litho (MSL)
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

MSL COVID-19 Action Plan

MSL will continue normal business operations as a supporting vendor provided there are no State or Federal direction to the contrary. Our account executives and technical staff are working their normal hours to assist our customers. Please note that MSL technicians will be dispatched on a case-by-case basis.

Safety is our number one concern and we are taking the concerns about COVID-19 (Coronavirus) seriously. As the situation continues to evolve, the health and safety of our customers, employees and partners remain a top priority as does our commitment to serving our customer needs.

MSL & Sales COVID-19 Action Plan:

In response to the COVID-19 virus, we are following the CDC Guidelines. MSL will have the following policy and procedures in place as of March 16th, 2020 until further notice:

Phone, email and remote support are a great first line of defense for all of our customers – technicians will be dispatched on a case-by-case basis
Contacting customers to verify every service call
Signature-free service tickets upon request
Enhanced sanitation procedures and perform routine environmental cleaning
Mandatory – All employees must call into work and report if they have a fever over 99.5 degrees Fahrenheit, cough or any other contagious symptoms prior to coming to work
Any employee that finds out they have been in the proximity to an infected COVID-19 person must report this to MSL management
MSL requires active hand washing and have instructed employees on proper cough containment techniques
No handshaking or other types of person to person contact and recommend the use of social distancing strategies
Notify our customers if there is a longer than normal response time to their service needs

What you can do to help:

Customers can chat about repairs with a technician
Customers can request email and remote support
Routinely clean all frequently touched surfaces in the work place
Utilize social distancing techniques

Our goal is to work with you to keep our teams safe and to keep our collective businesses running during this challenging period. We are committed to the safety of our outstanding employees and supporting you, our customers. We are all in this together, and we appreciate your business.

If you have any additional questions or concerns, please feel free to contact management 810.238.7370 or you can email support at support@midstatelitho.net.

Subject to change based on Federal and State guidelines. Please check back for additional information and updates. Last updated March 17th, 2020.

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

MSL Used & Reconditioned Equipment

Used equipment is a great way to save a few bucks or get your feet wet into a new market. There’s nothing like the performance and reliability of buying new but sometimes you just need to make something happen.

Browse through our used equipment on this page, we do our best to keep this list up to date. We typically go through our used pieces to ensure that they are at least operational. We will be clear with our buyers about the condition of equipment because in the used market it can be nerve wracking not knowing what you’re going to get.

Here are a few of our featured products:

MSL Used & Reconditioned Equipment VAC-60 System

Horizon VAC-60 4-Tower Collating System – System includes SPF-200A bookletmaker, FC-200A Face Trimmer, and single sheet insert kit. This machine is reconditioned. Subject to availability.

Horizon CRF-362 Creaser/Folder Demo Model – Crease and fold digital output across a wide range of light and heavy stocks, coated or uncoated. This machine is subject to availability.

Challenge Titan 200 Paper Cutter Used– The Titan 200 is a 20″ programmable paper cutter. This hydraulic powered, safe, productive, and durable machine won’t last long! This machine is used; only one available. Please call for availability.

MBM AeroCut G1 Used – The MBM AeroCut G1 is a slitter/cutter/creaser, ideal for business card cutting and a variety of other jobs. Subject to availability.

View all equipment >>>

These pieces come and go on a regular basis so don’t hesitate to jump on an opportunity. Our sales department is ready to help if you have any questions about the quality, condition or cost of any products.

If you have a question or would like additional information, please give us a call at 810-238-7370 or click here to view additional equipment from MSL.

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Increasing Food Sanitation and Safety with Wrappers

Energy Smart Wrapper from Heat Seal is Now NSF Certified!

Features & Benefits:

Easy to Clean
No Creases to Harbor Crumbs and Juices
All Wrapping Surfaces are Stainless Steel
Square Edged Hot Rod Cuts Film with Ease
Cradle Mount for Film Saves Labor
Fixed Distance Photo Eye Detects all Tray Colors
Rigid Aluminum and Stainless Steel Construction
Protect Both the Product and the Consumer*
Proudly Made in the USA
and more!

Learn More >>>

Reduce Energy Costs by 80%

The new Energy Smart Wrapper is proven to significantly reduce energy costs by 80%. The 725/700ES is an on-demand hand wrap machine, which the seal plate only consumes energy when you need to seal a package. This unit is actuated when you place a product on the seal plate, the photo eye sees the product that actuates the seal cycle. The 725/700ES has GFCI in the electrical box.

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Work Smarter & Keep Your Distance with Xitron’s Navigator Workflow

If operators have to share a RIP PC with others, it may be problematic for management to enforce social distance and disinfectant protocols designed to keep everybody safe. After all, you can’t put a mask on a PC! Consider adding Navigator Workflow to your customer’s Harlequin RIP and bring all the functionality to each operator’s individual desktop computer. They’ll no longer have to share a workstation to ROAM, release jobs, or change output settings! For information about adding this economical and socially acceptable option.

Navigator Harlequin RIP & Workflow

Xitron’s Navigator Harlequin RIP is a best-in-class implementation of Global Graphic’s Harlequin RIP technology. Providing prepress environments with fast, predictable, and reliable interpretation of PostScript, PDF, and EPS format files, Navigator is the most trusted name in RIP architecture with over 35,000 installations worldwide.

Building on this successful foundation, Navigator Workflow adds cross-platform functionality and user control from any workstation on the network. Protracted scalability enhances performance while maintaining the overall low cost of ownership.

Learn More >>>

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Air purifiers to protect against respiratory infections

IDEAL air purifiers help to contain the spread of pathogens

NOVEL SARS – COV-2 CORONAVIRUS
What can we do protect ourselves and others?

SARS-CoV-2 is a novel virus from the Coronavirus family. It is genetically related to the SARS virus from 2003. Coronaviruses can affect people and animals and cause a range of different diseases, primarily respiratory infections (colds and coughs) right up to serious cases of pneumonia. The official name for the disease according to the WHO is ”COVID-19“ (”Coronavirus disease 2019“).

How is the NEW CORONAVIRUS Transmitted?

Experts are working on the basis that the virus is transmitted by human-to-human droplet inflection, mainly through respiratory secretions. The finest droplets of saliva or mucus remain suspended in the air for different periods of time and can be breathed in. There may be a risk of infection even before the first symptoms occur.

Viruses are most frequently caught through droplet infection. The pathogens are embedded in minuscule droplets of respiratory secretions and are transmitted by sneezing, coughing and speaking. Larger droplets descend and are transmitted within a radius of approximately one meter. Smaller droplets remain suspended in the air for a long time and can cause infection, even from a distance.

How Can You Protect Yourself Against Infection?

As with the influenza virus, the best way to protect yourself is to avoid contact with people infected with the virus, wash your hands regularly and thoroughly and boost your immune system. To generally reduce the concentration of viruses indoors, we recommend using air purifiers.

Situation for Companies & Employees

The fact is: There is a residual risk of being infected by people who have the virus but are not yet displaying any symptoms. This can happen during flights, when visiting trade fairs or in international meetings.

Why & How Do Air Purifiers Help?

What can companies do to actively protect their employees (and business partners)? The risk of human-to-human transmission is not easy to avoid. Placing air purifiers in your meeting rooms, offices, the lobby and other shared rooms can be an effective addition to the package of measures. IDEAL air purifiers help to significantly reduce the concentration of viruses in indoor air. Thanks to their highly efficient, multi-stage filters, the AP PRO models almost entirely eliminate pathogens and pollutants from indoor air – and don‘t release them again. This is ensured by various physical effects, such as the ”diffusion effect“, which cause viruses to land directly in the filter fibers, where they remain suspended.

What do you get out of this? Peace of mind for your employees – and your business partners.

Download Brochure >>

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Meet the Rhin-O-Tuff Onyx 4000 Plus

Entry-Level Machine for Low to Medium Volume Usage

Meet the Rhin-O-Tuff Onyx 4000 Plus. The Onyx 4000 Plus binding machine from Rhin-O-Tuff is a compact, desktop machine that accommodates 11 inch interchangeable dies. Able to handle comb, wire loop, plastic coil, Velo bind from GBC, and three-hole loose-leaf binding methods it offers 12 die patterns for the best finish.

The punch can accommodate 20 plus sheets, depending on the weight of the paper and punch pattern you select. Since the Onyx 4000 Plus features open sides, it can process paper longer than 11 inches, which makes it a versatile entry-level machine for low to medium volume usage.

Watch Product Video >>

Product Features Include:

Auto Reversing Feature to Reduce Jams
12 Interchangeable Die Patterns:
- Comb
- Wire Loop
- Plastic Coil
- Velo Bind GBC
- 3-Hole Loose Leaf
Easy, “Paper to Pin” Sight Alignment, for Balanced Hole-to-Edge Margins on Odd-Sized Applications
Punch Capacity Rated up to 20 Sheets of 20 Pound (80 gsm) Paper
Uses 11 inch (A4) Size Dies with Open Sides for Wider Sheet Punching Capability
20 Cycles per Minute
Smooth, Quiet, Power on Demand Operation
Use Foot Pedal or Versa Switch

With a three-year warranty, and a very competitive price, no other solution in its class can match its price performance.

View Product Page >>

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

Titan Programmable Paper Cutters

The Titan Paper Cutter Series continues the Challenge tradition of innovation, delivering large cutters features and sophisticated yet easy to use controls in convenient smaller format sizes. Models are available in 20 inches / 50.8 cm, 23 inches / 58.4 cm, and 26-1/2 inches / 67.3 cm cutting widths.

The Titan’s solid cast iron and steel construction provides years of quality cutting. The solid one inch thick metal tables provide a strong work surface necessary in a production environment.

The fully programmable Titans are accurate to within +/- 0.002 inch (0.05mm). For manual adjustments, the line-light indicator projects onto the stock to quickly allow for visual alignment. A low-pressure foot pedal clamping system provides safe control of the clamp where pre-cut clamping is needed, such as holding slick stock in place of verifying cut position.

Barcode Reader

Titan cutters with the TC control system can add an optional barcode reader to run multiple production lots quickly and efficiently. Once the job arrives at the cutter, simply scan the barcode printed on the job ticket or in the bleed area and the cutting program will instantly load into the machine. The barcode contains all cutting commands, or it can refer to pre-programmed job name already stored in memory.

Download brochure >>

Titan 200 – 20″ Cutter

This budget conscious 20 inch manual backgauge paper cutter meets the toughest safety standards in the industry today. When it comes to choosing your next paper cutter, this one is easy…step up to a Titan 200!

Learn more >>>

Titan 230 TC – 23″ cutter

Today’s print market places great demands on your business. Investments in cutting-edge wide format, inkjet, and digital print engines ensure you meet your customer’s diverse needs. Finish your upgrades with a Challenge Titan 230.

Learn more >>>

Titan 265 TC – 26″ Cutter

The Titan 265 is based on a solid cast iron and steel construction for maximum durability. Featuring a powerful hydraulic clamping and cutting that yields up to 26 cuts per minute!

Learn more >>>

The Titan Series are safe, productive, and durable machines that fit almost any budget. Stop wasting valuable production time using that old cutter. Step up to a Titan Series cutter today!

Mid-State Litho, Inc.
5459 Fenton Rd.
Flint, MI 48507
www.midstatelitho.net

MSL Blog

Equipment and Support for the Graphic Arts Industry

PRINTING United Cancels 2020 Trade Show, Transitioning to Virtual Event

Challenge TC & XT Touchscreen Console Cleaning Notice

TC & XT Touch Panel Cleaning Information:

MSL COVID-19 Action Plan

MSL & Sales COVID-19 Action Plan:

What you can do to help:

MSL Used & Reconditioned Equipment

Here are a few of our featured products:

Increasing Food Sanitation and Safety with Wrappers

Reduce Energy Costs by 80%

Work Smarter & Keep Your Distance with Xitron’s Navigator Workflow

Navigator Harlequin RIP & Workflow

Air purifiers to protect against respiratory infections

IDEAL air purifiers help to contain the spread of pathogens

How is the NEW CORONAVIRUS Transmitted?

How Can You Protect Yourself Against Infection?

Situation for Companies & Employees

Why & How Do Air Purifiers Help?

Meet the Rhin-O-Tuff Onyx 4000 Plus

Entry-Level Machine for Low to Medium Volume Usage

Product Features Include:

Titan Programmable Paper Cutters

Barcode Reader

Titan 200 – 20″ Cutter

Titan 230 TC – 23″ cutter

Titan 265 TC – 26″ Cutter