FLAAR offers professional consulting services on UV-cured flatbed and roll-to-roll printers for a variety of businesses and industries in the professional printing markets.

FLAAR offers a variety of consulting services for the inkjet printing industry. FLAAR is increasingly sought after by investment analysts. One investment analyst said clearly that the FLAAR data is valuable for documentation of sales potential, which directions the markets are going, and most of all the true pros and cons of a product and a company, "all we otherwise ever hear is management's rosy picture.”

FLAAR consultant Dr. Nicholas Hellmuth can conduct his consultation services on-location anywhere around the globe. He has consulted in Japan, Slovenia, Italy, Austria, Latin America, Turkey, Greece, and across the United States and Canada.

Dr. Hellmuth was educated at Harvard, trained at Yale, and received his Ph.D. from Karl-Franzens Universität (Graz, Austria). We are especially interested in consulting for museums, museum exhibits, and field research programs since we have also spent many decades doing field projects in remote areas of Central America. Our primary clients are print shops of all sizes, printer manufacturers, ink companies, and component manufacturers (LED lamps, for example).

Dr. Hellmuth/FLAAR consult on UV-cured flatbed and UV-curable roll-to-roll applications, textile printing, decor, RIP software, inkjet printers in general, inks, media, and lamination. We also provide knowledge on market research. Several printer companies have come to us to ask assistance in acquisitions (either them acquiring another company, or preparing themselves to be acquired).

In addition, he is knowledgeable in giclee, fine art photography, solvent, eco-solvent, mild-solvent, as well as in scanning and high end digital photography.

For training in color management and ICC color profiles we work together with experienced color consultants who can provide hands-on training. Two of our color management partners are multi-lingual. Dr Hellmuth is tri-lingual (German, English, Spanish) and he can understand Italian, some Portuguese and basic French.

Dr. Hellmuth's consulting services are valuable for manufacturers, distributors, dealers of any size, as well as print shop owners, operators, and individuals.

The difference between reading the FLAAR reports and web site, compared to retaining Dr. Hellmuth for an on-site visit, is that he can provide fresh information not yet published in the written reports, or posted on the web site. Therefore, an on-site consultation with Dr. Hellmuth is invaluable to keeping up with the latest trends and technologies in professional printing.

Listed below are a few of the topics our consultation services cover. This list is not exhaustive and is only meant to highlight the services FLAAR has to offer. A brief list of services includes:

• Discussing which printer(s) are optimal for your business, screen printing company, offset printer, franchise sign shop, reprographic, packaging, speciality, museum, studio, university or other company's specific needs;

• Explaining of the pros and cons of piezo vs. industrial piezo vs. thermal vs. continuous inkjet technologies for your specific printing needs;

• Discussing which inks and media work in which printers (and which inks and media will not function in popular printers);

• Explaining inks, colorants, media, paper, substrates in a non-technical, easy to understand manner;

• Providing a follow-up list of key contacts within the industry, pertinent individuals in ink chemistry, media/substrates, printer technology, business-plans and strategy;

• Discussing digital image storage options, digital asset management software, computer platforms (Macintosh vs. PC);

• Discussing color management options, training, follow-up, software, color measurement tools;

• Teaching techniques for printing on ceramic tiles, wood, leather and metal foil (even onto solid metal);

• Understanding how to print art onto silk, cotton, and onto other fabrics with a wide format inkjet printer;

• Providing analysis of market potential for the market(s) your company is seeking to enter.

• Market analysis, who are the competitive players (strengths and weaknesses both of products and company per se).

Consulting for ink companies

If you are an ink company in Korea, Taiwan, China, India, or Thailand, we have a successful record in assisting you enter markets in Europe, North America, and South America.

Consulting for components for inkjet printers

The most popular component these days are LED lamps, so FLAAR is much sought after here. But whether you make the conveyor belts (transport belts), ink pumps, UV lamps, printheads, or whatever, you can profit from learning tips and trends and benefiting from the unparalleled access that FLAAR has in the wide-format inkjet industry.

Consulting for Analysts & Investors

FLAAR is increasingly asked to provide assistance for investors and market analysts. We also provide crucial advice for acquisitions, de-acquisitions, mergers, and OEM relationships. You would be surprised who we already provide consulting for. Since we are under NDA, we can’t exactly list our clients. Ironic that in two recent cases FLAAR was already the consultant for the buyer and the company he wanted to purchase. If you are already consultant for a significant number of the major companies, this happens by concidence. When so, we simply let both sides know we are already consultants and then it’s a lot easier for the companies to buy or sell each other.

Market Analysis, Marketing Survey Data, etc.

FLAAR also offers market survey information and product analysis for ink, media, hardware, and software manufacturers. FLAAR's market information can help your business focus on the features end-users are most happy with or would like to see improved.

Almost every month investment analysts are coming to ask for information from FLAAR. This suggests that the data and knowledge that we possess is not readily available elsewhere. Seemingly our reputation for blunt pros and cons is becoming better known.

Consulting on large format printer reality in China, Korea, and Taiwan

Are you a Chinese manufacturer wishing to enter markets in Europe, the US, or Latin America?

Are you a manufacturer in the US, Europe, or Asia who seeks a trustworthy partner in China, Korea, or Taiwan for OEM manufacturing?

Are you a printshop owner, manager, or investory seeking to learn the pros and cons of Chinese, Korean, or Taiwanese printers?

Dr Nicholas Hellmuth can assist your company relative to China, Korea, and Taiwan. FLAAR has experience, actually inside the headquarters, factories, R&D testing rooms of the primary manufacturers in China, in Korea, and in Taiwan.

Distributors

Are you unsure which brand or model of printer to distribute in your country?

We can provide you the knowledge so you can decide which printer to distribute or resell in your country. Recently one distributor in the US said that the manufacturer in Asia had not been in touch with him for months. Another distributor in the UK said that after be built up the business he was dropped by the manufacturer.

And what happens if you put all your time and energy in distributing a brand and then the manufacturer goes out of business or goes into bankruptcy?

For manufacturers, we assist you in learning which distributors in which world area might be appropriate for you. We know distributors in Middle East, South Africa, US, Latin America, Europe, Eastern Europe, Balkans area, and Turkey.

Expert Witness

We prefer to do the research aspects leading up to an Expert Witness, since an actual court case appearance is difficult due to our busy schedule. So far, of the lawsuits that have been shown to us, all were lacking adequate research and lacked an understanding of the reality of wide-format inkjet printing. So FLAAR can be a significant asset in providing historical time-line and background information for the attorney. Otherwise your law firm only hears one side of the story (that of your client). Obviously most lawsuits are settled out of court, but you need to have enough knowledge on your side to protect yourself.

Lectures, Seminars, Conferences, Open House, In House.

Dr Hellmuth can provide educational presentations in German, English, and Spanish, and can be translated elsewhere in the world. He has lectured in Japan, Guatemala, Mexico, Johannesburg South Africa, Greece, Amsterdam, etc. and lectured several times in Korea, Slovenia, Croatia, Dubai and elsewhere.

You can hire Dr Hellmuth to provide training presentations or private presentations under NDA. He also is available as VIP Guest at your trade show booth, In House or Open House, product launch, or other international or regional events.

Contact Info

If you wish to hire Professor Hellmuth as a consultant to come to your company, please contact ReaderService@FLAAR.org. If no answer, telephone 419 823-9218 (Vonage/VoIP service). But this is NOT a telephone number for access to general FLAAR information whatsoever. No information is available by phone other than to companies and individuals who wish to consider sign professional consulting at standard industry rates; we ask that all other contact be via e-mail please.

These contact routes are not intended for:

• Circumventing the inquiry survey form; or

• Submitting miscellaneous questions before a professional consulting relationship is established.

This contact route is only for opening up a professional consulting appointment with Dr. Hellmuth coming to your company or to arrange a conference call. We can sign an NDA or your preferred Confidentiality Agreement if necessary, though that just adds a layer of additional paperwork.

If you are an individual, a small business, as well as a large company, we try to reply to the Inquiry-Survey Form usually within 72 hours, so submitting the form via e-mail is the best way to contact us. There is no cost for the Survey Form response. We are not able to respond to random e-mails or random fax messages.

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 email followed by a day of consulting at your place or at FLAAR's home facility.

We accept inquiries in Español, Deutsch, English, French, Portuguese, and Italian.

Consulting for giclee, decor, fine art photography and scanning. (FREE Download)	For all wide-format inkjet printers, RIP, Ink & Substrates. (FREE Download)

Consulting for UV printer manufacturers, available to manufacturers only: ink, media, substrate, scanner, RIP software, printer manufacturers, integrators, parts manufacturers, please request this by e-mail from: ReaderService@FLAAR.org	To obtain this PDF on consulting services for financial analysts and business strategy consultants, please request this by e-mail from: ReaderService@FLAAR.org

FLAAR Schedule for 2009-2010

Most recently updated, July 2, 2009.
Previous updates:Oct. 22, 2001, Feb. 10, 2003, April 6, 2009.