As editorial copy pours in for SOU, themes quickly start to emerge. This month, two topics of choice (across all sectors) are cost reduction and the environment. Not long ago it would have been impossible to use these terms in the same sentence: reducing an office's environmental footprint often meant increasing expenditure, not reducing it.

Manufacturer of creative materials and papers, Arjowiggins, has launched a new division set to focus on the development of environmental papers. Arjowiggins Graphic will bring the company's coated and uncoated recycled papers under one umbrella as part of a new organisational structure.

As part of a strategic shift towards the production of branded products, Atlanta Office Products is to concentrate its manufacturing facilities in The Netherlands, relocating its Estonian production capacity and closing its production site in Denmark.

Six companies in the envelope industry have joined together in a strategic alliance designed to offer a global mailing solution. The International Envelope Coalition comprises Bong Ljungdahl, Tension Envelope Corporation, Groupe Hamelin, Vigamil, King Corporation and Wigg and Son. It brings together over thirty manufacturing plants and covers five continents: North and South America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

Furniture, technology and office products supplier, Banner Business Supplies, is now trading as Banner Business Services, reflecting the company's growing portfolio of added value business services. These encompass specialist sourcing, environmental audits, furniture and equipment disposal and recycling. The launch represents the final stage of a corporate re-branding project, which began last year with a new logo.

Konica Minolta Business Solutions has landed a sponsorship deal as the official supplier of printers, copiers and faxes for UK Athletics major events until September 2013. The agreement includes UK Athletics' participation in the London Olympics in 2012. As an official supplier, Konica Minolta will support UK Athletics at six televised athletics events a year, where the Konica Minolta logo will be visible trackside and at the finish line.

Fellowes is offering purchasers of its environmentally friendly R-Kive System storage products the chance to win a Toyota Prius hybrid car.

In keeping with Nemo's support of environmental issues in the office, green products feature prominently throughout the new 2009 catalogue, which this year is printed on recycled paper. Amongst other improvements is a redesigned furniture section, which provides better clarity and simplified product selection.

Pico technology from Texas Instruments DLP Products is enabling a new generation of portable projection equipment for business and consumer use. DLP has worked with a number of manufacturing brands and has already unveiled a variety of implementations for its Pico chipset, including products from Acer, BenQ, Dell, Optoma, Samsung, Toshiba and WowWee.

UK businesses struggling to manage cash flow could be paying up to 25 per cent over the odds for their stationery and office supplies, according to on-line office supplies specialist, Netstationers. A lack of purchasing control and the use of multiple suppliers means that many companies are paying an inflated price for volume products such as paper and printer cartridges with no real visibility of their spending.

Employees from all Office2office (o2o) Group companies, including Banner Business Services, Accord and AccessPlus, joined key suppliers at o2o's annual supplier day, at Norwich City football ground. The day commenced with an exhibition featuring new products from o2o's 2009 catalogue and finished with an awards ceremony recognising suppliers.

Winstonmead has strengthened its sales and logistics capabilities in the South, following its acquisition of PDQ, based in West Sussex. Managing director of PDQ, Ryan Flippance, will join Winstonmead as regional general manager, along with a number of others from the PDQ team.

Abooming order book at on-demand book printer, CPI Antony Rowe, has prompted the company to invest in a fourth Océ VarioPrint 6250 system. The Océ presses complement existing cut-sheet printers, working to enhance productivity and quality.

Integra Office Solutions has announced a price freeze on initiative products sold via own brand distribution partner, Antalis. With the price freeze guaranteed until the end of June, the programme will cover all stationery and EOS lines, except initiative copier paper and envelopes. This is the latest step to support members and keep their costs low.

Auto ID and barcode label printing specialist, Zebmec has partnered with TallyGenicom to supply the company's new range of thermal printers. The 7005, 7006 and 7008 thermal printers are ideal for barcodes, labels and other critical documents, with a rugged design suitable for printing up to eight inches per second in harsh environments such as healthcare, transportation, manufacturing, warehousing and retail.

Premierbeswick, the paper merchanting division of the Premier Paper Group, is offering customers a 15 per cent discount off their first purchase of Creazy short-run personalisable packaging products, which are now available for both colour laser digital and HP Indigo ranges.

Dealers and retailers can now register on-line for free entry to the 2009 Stationery and Office Products Show (SOPX) in London this April. The website, which has now gone live, hosts regularly updated information about the show, including who is exhibiting and how to get to there. Those who register will receive their personal badge and a preview for the show two weeks before it opens.

Manufacturer of self-adhesive labels and paper products for printers, Avery, is hoping to mobilise the office products industry and offices nationwide to think greener with the launch of Green Office Week, 2 to 6 March 2009. The initiative is expected to help UK office workers better both their working environment and the natural environment in practical ways.

Product Line Services (UK) has launched its "See Differently" campaign which is designed to encourage people to see how they can reduce cartridge costs without compromising quality. Genuink and Re-Gen compatible and remanufactured cartridges are between 48 and 68 per cent cheaper than OEMs and feature a ‘no-quibble' money-back guarantee.

Regarding the products themselves, Product Line Services has made a number of recent announcements.

Crafter's Companion prides itself on the design, manufacture and distribution of innovative crafting tools. One of the latest additions to its range is Rock-a-Blocks, a patented stamp mounting system designed to work with a simple rocking motion.

Aqueen of the crafting world, Donna Dewberry, will be attending ICHF this February. Donna has long been associated with approachable, fun and successful learning, with over two million hits to her YouTube tutorials highlighting her approach.

The academic market is a huge market for stationery retailers, providing a key sales opportunity only overtaken by the Christmas period. The market is fiercely fought over and getting the right combination of products, price, merchandising and marketing is key for manufacturers and retailers.

Texas Instruments is using BETT to demonstrate projectors for education applications. Innovations include 3D display, extreme short throw, high brightness, vibrant colour and filter-free projectors.

Organisations can now safely and securely mail sensitive documents, such as health records, financial information and legal notices, thanks to the new Mail Piece Production Control (MPPC) solution from Neopost. Used with a Neopost intelligent inserting system, the solution offers the levels of monitoring and validation that many businesses need to meet demands of confidentiality, time sensitivity and regulatory compliance.

Eco Trade Print specialises in digital and litho printing, offering readers substantial savings on print and marketing literature. The company is now offering cost savings on personalisation and mailings with: discounts up to 24 per cent on standard Royal Mail postage; advice on printing and mailing documents; printed and non-printed envelopes; and poly wrapping box mailing for books and catalogues.

Timing incoming packages, numbering received documents, controlling received tenders. From hand-held JetStamp and Speed-i-Jet to desk-top MultiPrinter and ChronoDater, Reiner's electric stamps are used and trusted by lawyers, councils and health service establishments.

Envosort's new brochure moves beyond its mailroom design expertise and now includes numerous products embracing disaster and recovery, health and safety and security items.

Despite the digital era we live in, many paper pads and books are still necessary in our daily lives, helping us organise our documents and tasks. One example is the handy ‘things to do today' book, which is the ideal product to plan and keep track of all daily tasks and activities.

Since its launch in 2008, Pelltech's Computer Craft range of speciality papers has been offered alongside Decadry papers. The initial range includes graduated, marble and certificate papers, including self-adhesive seals and document/certificate jackets. Due to demand, additional colours and designs are being launched in March.

When it comes to recycled products, gone are the days when being environmentally conscious meant spending more money on poor quality alternatives. Basildon Bond is challenging the perception that recycled stationery means inferior paper and uninspiring designs with its range of One Chance notebooks.

Arjowiggins Graphic, the newly launched branch of Arjowiggins, has reveals its desire to become the undisputed leader of innovative environmental paper solutions. The business will focus on developing cutting edge green coated and uncoated recycled papers. The business will also target printers, designers and end users with increased awareness of the environmental agenda and its impact on businesses.

Howard Smith Paper Retail has been trading with the UK's largest retailers for over 15 years. In that time the company has developed a value proposition centred on the supply of cut-size printer and copier papers, own-label photo papers and specialty inkjet papers.

GfK account director, Richard Peak, comments on the books and pads market. The books and pads market (incorporating pre-printed pads, writing pads and other pads) grew year-on-year by 8.7 per cent (comparing Dec 07 with Dec 08) in unit terms, with the majority of growth coming from the writing pads category. However, when looking at the value generated it tells a very different story.

The Premier Paper Group has introduced a range of papers for a multitude of uses called, Multi. The range includes: papers developed for high quality office printing; multifunctional papers for office and pre-print applications, available in cut size and folio; a value for money cut size paper; and an uncoated offset range for general print applications.

Office technology specialist, Brother, has unveiled its latest multifunction colour laser machine, designed to support large offices and educational establishments looking for efficient, cost-effective and responsible printing.

Professional scanning solutions from Iris Group are designed to improve office productivity. The new IrisPowerscan 8.2, IrisPdf 7.2 and IrisCapture Pro for Invoices 8.5 software packages are said to cover all scanning needs, helping users organise their business and increase efficiency.

Linda and Harriett has added vintage wallpaper stationery to its custom letterpress collection. These limited edition products highlight vintage wallpaper as the envelope liner, all cut and assembled by hand to provide a tactile quality. Accompanying the envelopes are customised letterpressed cards, displaying a hand-lettered name across the top. Made from 100 per cent cotton paper and letterpressed with soy-based black ink, the cards and envelope measure 4.5 by 6.25in A set of 50 cards and lined envelopes retails for $490.

Canon UK aims to help organisations minimise and control print costs with its latest print management system, uniFLOW Output Manager 4.0.

Designed for today's demanding businesses, the new TASKalfa range of colour multifunctional products (MFP) from Kyocera Mita combine colour printing, scanning, copying and faxing in a package designed to maximise efficiency and streamline tasks.

All Integra group employees involved in sales or marketing are invited to attend the company's 2009 Secrets of Success 4 Sales conference, titled Seize the Day. The conference, set to take place at St Johns Hotel, Solihull on Friday 27 March, will include three breakout sessions focused on increasing sales, the importance of marketing and personality profiling.

Pen refills from Presspart, a division of the Heitkamp and Thumann Group, are said to offer cost effective volume manufacture, without compromising quality. The company offers a range of nickel silver pen refills and brass and stainless steel custom-made components manufactured using a precision, deep drawn technology.

Responding to demand for more personality in the notebook PC and accessories market, PLDS has introduced its new external DVD drive with a range of colour options. Available in pearl white and burgundy red like its predecessor, the eSAU208, the new eSAU108 is also offered in piano black and navy blue.

Business telecommunications operator and internet service provider (ISP), Spitfire is now offering spam filtering using appliances from Barracuda Networks. The appliances are updated every hour with the latest spam data, processing e-mail through 12 defence layers and analysing messages to determine what is likely to be spam. Suspect messages are marked and the user decides how they want them to be handled.

Streamlining its warehouse truck operations by appointing a single supplier enabled office supplies company, office2office (o2o), to provide customers with a rapid response service, 24/5. The company called in Atlet to manage all its lift truck supply and maintenance requirements as part of a company-wide standardisation programme.

IIndustrial and commercial lighting experts, Steel City Lighting, are encouraging businesses to use modular lighting and energy saving alternatives in the workplace. Not only will this help reduce their carbon footprint, it could also save costs.

Designed for corporate and high volume users, the F305 business fax machine from Muratec Europe (UK), offers multifunctional capability for copying, scanning and printing. For fax use, the F305 has an 80 sheet automatic document feeder (ADF) for sending large multi-page documents and a 33.6kbps modem for two second per page transmission. A 500 sheet paper tray is available to receive documents, with secure PIN access where required, so faxes can be retrieved only by the intended recipient.

A real-time enterprise system has enabled UK-wide office products supplier, Zenithoffice, to control its business and improve customer service. The solution is built around Masternaut Three X vehicle tracking and PDA-based X-Delivery Pro service management system integrated with Horizon, an enterprise system developed specifically for office-supplies companies. Zenithoffice can now track its delivery vans in real time, with the PDAs replacing paper delivery notes through electronic signature capture.

International name badge supplier, Badgemaster, is inviting buyers to achieve the seemingly impossible: cut costs while improving quality and service. Purchasers can challenge Badgemaster to beat the current price by taking the company's Price Challenge. It takes less than a minute to carry out and buyers obtain a fixed price per badge quotation. It is free, confidential and without obligation.

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) has teamed up with Staples to support its business start-up pack. As a result, all start-ups that join the BCC will receive a 20 per cent discount voucher to spend at their local Staples store, helping to give new British businesses a boost.

Blu-Tack reusable adhesive from Bostik is turning yellow in support of national charity, Marie Curie Cancer Care. Just 130,000 packs of Blu-Tack Yellow will be produced for the charity's annual Great Daffodil Appeal in March. Packs will be branded with the Marie Curie Cancer Care logo and 10p from every pack sold will be donated to the charity.