FLAAR facility at Bowling Green State University

Reviews, evaluations from FLAAR offer the actual facts on inkjet printers, media, and RIP software

Five years ago FLAAR expanded from its office in Germany and at Francisco Marroquin University in Latin America to begin a facility at Bowling GreenStateUniversity. We primarily work on wide format inkjet printers, RIP software for inkjet printers, scanners, and digital cameras.

Scanners are included in the program, as well as high-end digital cameras, as input for eventual printer output. This scanner site is being updated after DRUPA '04 trade show. The next update will be after the Photokina '06 trade show.

Dr Nicholas Hellmuth is the director of this Large Format Digital Imaging Division in Ohio. This program of research and public education is devoted to large format inkjet printers is part of the Center for Applied Technology, Joe Catalano, Director.

Another entity at BGSU is NISDM, the National Institute for the Study of Digital Media, directed by Janet Womack. NISDM is a licensed training center for Media 100 and for Macromedia (DreamWeaver, Flash, etc). NISDM also provides training in Adobe Photoshop and comparable products.

The original inkjet printer evaluation facility of FLAAR at FranciscoMarroquinUniversity grew to 15 employees. The move to BGSU in Ohio was initiated by a professor at BGSU, Charles Spontelli, who felt it would be an asset to their programs in the College of Technology.

The facility at Bowling GreenStateUniversity started with five employees and will increase in size before the end of the year (we had about ten employees as of early 2004).

The snapshots here show the pertinent people in the College of Technology (Catalano and Spontelli) as well as the initial employees of FLAAR at BGSU. Chuck Spontelli has a MS degree from the prestigious Rochester Institute of Technology. His specialty is color management as well as other aspects of printing technology.

So if your company needs training, now you know where to consider. FLAAR already offers intermediate and advanced training in digital photography.

Joe Catalano has an MBA degree from the University of Chicago as well as having completed an advanced management course at Harvard's BusinessSchool. He is the Director of the Center for Applied Technology.

Actually a main component of the FLAAR program is market analysis, led by Sheila Irving, FLAAR's business manager for marketing statistics and surveys. Her e-mail is sirving@bgsu.edu. She graduated from BGSU's business administration program and now runs the FLAAR projects for leading inkjet printer manufacturers who come to FLAAR to obtain meaningful statistics on the actual state of the wide format printer market. We also provide consulting services for companies relative to inks, media, and overall digital imaging. FLAAR has eight employees who work full time doing these market surveys.

The large printer and inkjet media companies who come to FLAAR say that our statistics are much closer to reality, that we reach the in-house corporate market, and that FLAAR is so clearly the source of choice for first-time users who need help to overcome the learning curve before they decide whether, when, and which first wide format inkjet printer to purchase.
Professor Spontelli (right) helping a student learn about the digital imaging equipment in the FLAAR facility at BGSU.

If your company seeks to know what features and capabilities end-users desire in their dream printer, FLAAR is now recognized as the bestplace to get realistic documentation. Same with inkjet media, inks, and digital imaging software such as RIPs.

This is the beauty of being at a university, having all the specialists from so many disciplines available on campus. Besides, the FLAAR web sites are the most popular sources of information for end users, and we get feedback daily from readers on what they want or don't want. If you notice that the FLAAR Reports are being updated almost every two months… that's all due to feedback which we appreciate from our thousands of readers (got about 29,000 e-mails at last count; yes, and we have an entire room full of trained staff to receive these e-mails and, where possible, to respond by sending out the FLAAR Report that most closely covers their needs and concerns.

Nicholas Hellmuth graduated from Harvard, has three honorary research appointments at YaleUniversity, and received his PhD from a European university.

The combined capabilities of the College of Technology at BGSU and FLAAR insure that we can provide a high level of assistance to companies and individuals who seek help, tips, and consulting services as they face the problems of trying to figure out which printer, inkjet media, inks, laminator, hardware or software to select.

If you wish to hire Professor Hellmuth as a consultant to come to your company, and/or his staff please send an email to readerservice@flaar.org or use our VoIP / Vonage telephone number 419 823-9218 and ask for Patty, Andrea, or Flor. To this effect to FLAAR. This number is only for opening up a professional consulting appointment either with Dr Hellmuth coming to your company. This number as contact is exclusively if your company wishes to ask about a professional consulting relationship.

This number is not to circumvent the Request-Survey Form, not to ask miscellaneous questions, not to get other information.

We respond quickly to mails inquiries about professional consultant, but do not handle inquiries by phone until you have initially sent an e-mail outlining what you wish consulting on. We prefer to have an inquiry first by e-mail please.

Because over 280,000 people a year read a single FLAAR web site, we are not able to respond to initial inquiries by telephone. Sorry; if you seek FLAAR reports, then please use the Request Form; these are not available by telephone, nor are other questions answerable by phone. However if you are a company or individual who seeks professional consulting services, please send an e-mail.

FLAAR serves as consultant for Fortune 500 companies as well as companies who wish to reach that level. If you are an individual rather than a company, in some instances taking one of our training courses may be what would best help you. digital-photography.org lists current courses. That way you get the direct telephone number, direct e-mail straight to Nicholas, and can come visit the FLAAR facilities as well.

Please understand that due to the size of the readership it is not realistic to handle inquiries by telephone unless we have a working relationship with your company initiated by your fax followed by a day of initial consulting at your place or at either of the two universities where FLAAR maintains an office. Once you are signed on with a consulting relationship and/or retainer relationship, then you receive as much telephone contact and question-answering as you sign-up for.

If you are an individual, a small business, as well as a large company, we reply to the Request-Survey Form usually within 48 hours, so by e-mail via the Request form on the web site is the way you should reach us. There is no cost for the e-mail service; there is no cost for the entry-level FLAAR reports. If you dislike Request survey forms, we have set up an entire web site, wide-format-printers.NET where all reports are available without filling out any form. You just charge the reports on your credit card.

In most cases, a visit to our facilities should be arranged as an initial consulting visit based on a professional fee. This kind of visit is precisely what opens up all our resources for you and your company.

All FLAAR resources are open and available to both industry and end-users in appropriate situations under a professional relationship. Naturally we sign an NDA.

We accept inquiries in Spanish, Deutsch, and naturally in English.

If you would like to take advantage of the capabilities and experience of FLAAR consider hiring Dr Hellmuth and/or the BGSU staff as professional consultants.

 
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  • Most recently updated April 6, 2006.
    Previously updated June 1, 2004. Redesigned May 2004 Previously updated Jan. 21, 2004. First posted July 2002