Sappi Fine Paper North America Announces Printers of the Year Gold Winners in 15th Year of Competition

BOSTON, June 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Sappi Fine Paper North America today announced the 10 gold winners of its 15th North American Printers of the Year awards for 2011-2012. Culled from a field of approximately 2,000 entries, the 10 gold winners will now compete for the distinguished Sappi International Printers of the Year Award global competition.

(Logo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120111/NE33873LOGO )

Each of the gold winning printers will receive $20,000 to support marketing and brand initiatives, as well as entry into the 2013 Sappi International Printers of the Year awards, regarded as the world's most respected accolade in printed communications. For more details, visit: www.sappi.com/na/poy.

"Sappi is devoted to delivering the highest quality product to our clients, and in turn we recognize the value of quality printing to the continued vitality of print as a communication medium," said Jennifer Miller, EVP Coated Business, Sappi Fine Paper North America. "In order for print to remain relevant, it needs to be approached in innovative ways and our printing community must continue to share its best work. This is the mission behind our long-standing Printers of the Year competition and we are honored to showcase the exemplary craftsmanship submitted by our 2012 gold winners."

Sappi's Printers of the Year awards recognize print excellence and innovation produced on Sappi papers in ten categories of work. A panel of highly regarded print professionals judged the entries on the overall impact of the piece, degree of difficulty in printing techniques, and technical excellence. The gold winners of Sappi's North American Printers of the Year are as follows:

To ensure the highest possible standards and integrity, Lauren Elliot, Principal of Wicked Good Print Production based in San Francisco; Bill Garno, Director of Rochester Institute of Technology's (RIT) Printing Applications Laboratory (PAL); Malcolm Keif, professor in the Graphic Communication Department at Cal Poly; and, Ken Lantz, Director of Operations for Euro RSCG Life LMP in New York served as the panel of judges.

Sappi's Printers of the Year online resource helps to better connect designers, print buyers and corporations with the winning printers. Sappi's North American Printers of the Year gold and silver winners will receive their own marketing pages in the searchable online database, which provides information about the award winning printers and their capabilities, printing equipment and location. The database is available at: www.sappi.com/na/poy.

About Sappi Fine Paper North America
Sappi Fine Paper North America, known for innovation and quality, is a preeminent North American producer of coated fine and release papers and market pulp headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. Its coated fine papers, with highly recognized brand names such as McCoy, Opus, Somerset and Flo, are used in premium magazines, catalogs, books and high-end print advertising. The company is also the world's leading supplier of release papers for the automotive, fashion and engineered films industries, including the globally recognized Ultracast brand. Sappi's release papers provide the surface aesthetics for synthetic fabrics used in footwear, clothing, upholstery and accessories, as well as the textures for decorative laminates found in kitchens, baths, flooring and other decorative surfaces. An integrated pulp and paper producer, with state-of-the-art pulp mills, Sappi is the third largest seller of hardwood pulp in North America.

Sappi Fine Paper North America is a subsidiary of Sappi Limited, a global company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, with manufacturing operations on four continents in eight countries, sales offices in 35 countries, and customers in over 100 countries around the world. For more information, visit: www.sappi.com/na.

For further information:

Joanna Rieke
Manager, Corporate Communications
Sappi Fine Paper North America
Office:  617-423-5409
[email protected]

Shannon McLoughlin
Burson-Marsteller
Office:  617-912-5412
Mobile:  646-379-7508
[email protected]

SOURCE Sappi Fine Paper North America