Paperlinx announced it was to disband the Commercial Print division's centralised account management team and hand “power back to the branches”… A man in his 40s suffered life-threatening injuries when he was crushed under a paper reel at Essex-based paper converter and flexo printer Aspenlink. The company was subsequently ordered to stop work on three of its machines by the Health and Safety Executive… Former print finisher Michael Carroll, 60, was convicted of murdering his 64-year-old wife Elisabeth following a re-trial at Cambridge Crown Court… John Walker, co-founder and managing director of Macro Art and a pioneer in super wide-format printing, died of cancer, aged 67… Manroland Sheetfed took its first UK press order since its administration and sale to Langley Holdings in March 2012, from Derbyshire-based fashion house David Nieper… Communisis group business development director Gurdev Singh left the company amid a reshuffle of its senior sales staff… Wyndeham Group renewed a printing contract with its longest standing client, Haymarket Media Group, until December 2017, taking the relationship between printer and publisher to 50 years… Two of the UK's biggest printers have their sales director on gardening leave due to an unusual incidence of simultaneous recruitment: Alison Kaye, who was group sales director at book printer CPI UK, left to join rival St Ives; meanwhile, Tanya Dunbar, who was sales director at St Ives’ book printing operation Clays, was recruited by CPI… Royal Mail shares began trading on 11 October at 450p, up more than 36% on their 330p offer price. The Communication Workers Union slammed the government for undervaluing the company’s share at the initial public offering… Book printer Clays was left red-faced and feeling like a right Rodney after it produced a “small number” of early copies of the new Bridget Jones book, Mad About the Boy, containing a 40pp section of Sir David Jason’s autobiography, My Life… Heidelberg UK marketing director Mark Hogan was promoted to head up worldwide sales of finishing equipment for the manufacturer in a newly created role… Smurfit Kappa UK agreed to acquire independent Corby-based litho-laminated packaging specialist CRP Print and Packaging Holdings for an undisclosed sum…

Postal workers at the Royal Mail voted in favour of strike action by a ratio of 4:1 over "pay, pensions and the impact of privatisation on job security”, according to the Communication Workers Union… The PrintWeek Awards celebrated the power of print as optimism surged within the industry. Inc Direct took the top award, being named PrintWeek Company of the Year… Kodak officially opened its new combined European headquarters, inkjet demo facility and EAMER technology centre in Eysins, Switzerland… The Serious Fraud Office brought corruption charges against security printer Smith & Ouzman and two of its directors alleging that payments totalling £413,552 were used to “influence the award of business contracts to the company”… RR Donnelley signed a definitive agreement to acquire Consolidated Graphics in a $620m cash plus shares deal… Cogent B2B, the new owner of St Ives Direct Bradford was putting in place its executive team ahead of a re-branding of its print interests… Johnston Press reportedly hired the investment bank Rothschild as it prepared to enter discussion with its lenders over its £306m net debt… Prinovis UK made a huge write-down in the value of its assets due to changes at client News UK and with the parameters of its contract with the publisher… Polestar’s web expansion plans were “on track” with the company lodging a planning submission with Sheffield City Council to extend its existing Sheffield gravure facility by more than 20,000sqm… Westdale Press reversed its high-profile order for a KBA Rapida 106, announced at last year's Drupa, and returned instead to incumbent supplier Heidelberg for two new 10-colour B1 perfectors…