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<\/a>Durst Dice America, LLC. As Rochester, N.Y.-based (DDA) continued its 2002 worldwide rollout of the Durst Rho160 UV flatbed industrial inkjet printer, the company sought an opportunity to showcase the digital printer\u2019s capabilities at trade shows and to demonstrate realistic production workflow. The Durst Rho 160 is a high-performance large-format production inkjet printer capable of outputting directly onto rigid and flexible (roll-to-roll) materials without the need for dye-receptive coatings. The Durst Rho 160 can print panels up to 62 inches wide and 1.58-inch thick.<\/p>\nThe company teamed with Mikkelsen Graphic Engineering, Inc. (MGE) of Lake Geneva, Wis., setting up both the Durst Rho 160 and an MGE i-cut\u00ae automated digital die cutting system at DDA\u2019s exhibit booth at SGIA \u201802, sponsored by the Screenprinting and Graphic Imaging Association in St. Louis Oct. 30-Nov. 2, 2002.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to show our potential customers an inline process with a typical workflow,\u201d said Ryan Fosegan, marketing communications manager, Durst Dice America. \u201cHaving the printer without the cutter doesn\u2019t help much. Other companies have a small representation of a cutter in their booths. We wanted to make it as much a part of our booth as the printer.\u201d<\/p>\n
DDA originally selected to print money puzzles with both the DDA and i-cut logos as trade show marketing tokens. But they also threw in an image of an electric guitar \u2013 due to a DDA employee\u2019s love of playing air guitar.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone took the guitars,\u201d recalled Fosegan of SGIA attendees. \u201cWe had people tell us that their kid loves guitar or they had a basement bar where it would look great.\u201d<\/p>\n
DDA chose to print the money puzzles and guitars at SGIA \u201902 on 4-foot by 8-foot sheets of 3\/16-inch heavy-duty Gatorfoam because the product holds ink well and is durable, according to Fosegan, who said lighter-duty paper-faced foam boards would have been a lower-cost alternative.<\/p>\n
\u201cGatorfoam cuts well and prints well,\u201d said Fosegan. \u201cIt\u2019s readily available from a number of suppliers. You get a good bang for your buck.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gatorfoam consists of extruded polystyrene foam bonded between two layers of Luxcell\u00ae, a sturdy wood-fiber veneer laminate. This unique construction makes Gatorfoam lightweight yet durable, rigid and warp-resistant; its surface also is exceptionally smooth and strong. Gatorfoam cuts cleanly and will not tear, chip or shred.<\/p>\n
\u201cGatorfoam has a harder foam,\u201d says Paul White, of the MGE testing and sales department, \u201cso we can route it and it looks nice. The edges are clean. There\u2019s no cleanup afterward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had people literally waiting in line for 15 minutes to get a guitar,\u201d said Fosegan.<\/p>\n DDA\/MGE took 2,500 pre-printed guitars to PMA 2003. Those were gone midway through the second day of the show, according to Fosegan, who said they printed and cut another 1,000 guitars to finish the show.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery one of those guitars was accounted for,\u201d said Fosegan. \u201cAs a marketing aid, they helped to generate awareness of who we are and where we are. They were so popular that a competitor started printing guitars. That\u2019s the highest form of flattery.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>By the time PMA 2003 rolled around the next March, the puzzle giveaways were history. The DDA\/MGE team focused strictly on guitars, producing everything from one 7-foot tall guitar to sheets with multiple guitar images ranging from four to 42 inches long. All featured the DDA and i-cut logos.<\/p>\n