Behind The Beer

To a famous brewer like Anheuser-Busch, quality is crucial. Jon Schroeder makes sure its printed products are equally outstanding.

by PAMELA MORTIMER

Life at Anheuser-Busch's St. Louis in-plant isn't always a party. Sure, employees get two free cases of beer a month, but those are for take-home use only. You won't see press operators downing cold Budweisers.

What you will see is a very clean shop, and a very proud staff.

"They are proud of what they do, and I'm genuinely proud of them and represent them that way," remarks Jon Schroeder, supervisor of Graphic Communications for the world's largest brewer.

That pride has yielded some excellent printing over the years. The in-plant was recently honored for its print quality with two In-Print 2001 awards: a second place in the pocket folders category and an honorable mention in booklets. With a company as famous as Anheuser-Busch, Schroeder says, the printing quality has to be top notch.

Schroeder has been supervisor of reprographics at Anheuser-Busch for 21 years. Though he loves his job, it isn't exactly where he had envisioned himself ending up.

Schroeder was born in Youngstown, Ohio. His father, a minister, relocated the family to St. Louis when Jon was young. After high school, he joined the Navy, and then he drove a truck for a while before ending up in his first printing job at County Business Services, a commercial printer. Starting out as a letterpress operator, Schroeder worked there for six years. He used the job to support himself while he attended college, first at a junior college, and then at St. Louis University, where he majored in history.

Prison Life

After college, he set his in-plant career in motion when he went to work at the St. Louis County print shop—located inside the St. Louis County Adult Correctional Facility.

"I've done my time in prison," he says with a laugh. "I did five years."

Schroeder served as both rehab counselor and printing supervisor, training residents of the facility. Employee retention wasn't a problem, and most were anxious to work in the shop due to the luxury of air conditioning and Schroeder's respect for the labor force.

After five years there, Schroeder took a teaching job at North County Tech, a vocational technical school. He formed a bond with some of the seniors he taught.

"I still see or hear from the students I had," he says.

This led to a position at Florissant Valley Community College, where Schroeder taught a course in printing.

"The course was designed to teach salespeople, commercial artists and anyone who worked with printers," he says. Unfortunately, after he spent five years there, the course was discontinued due to lack of funding.

During his tenure at the college, he saw a newspaper ad for the position at Anheuser-Busch. He applied and was hired as supervisor of reprographics.

Twenty-one years ago, the in-plant "was basically a copy shop," says Schroeder. "We had two duplicators that ran black. We also had two or three copiers and some finishing equipment."

Most of the staff did not have a printing background, so Schroeder quickly put his teaching experience to use and started training his staff. He also encouraged employees to get outside graphic arts training.

Five years after Schroeder started, the in-plant moved into a 20,000-square-foot facility. Other changes took place, as well.

"The first thing we did was to create a group identity," he says. "We began to develop a sense of unity and team spirit." That unity, bolstered by increased education, has helped establish an identity for the in-plant within the company.

"We have a lot of pride in this shop," Schroeder observes.

A Fully Equipped Shop

The in-plant currently operates three Heidelberg presses: a two-color 12x18˝ press and one- and two-color 19x25-1⁄2˝ Model M presses. It also runs black-and-white and color copiers.

The prepress department handles layout, imposition, scanning and digital proofing, and includes an imagesetter and a wide-format ink-jet printer for posters and press-size proofing. The shop also has a full bindery and handles addressing and mailing.

Schroeder says the biggest challenge was making the transition to a full-color operation. Over the next couple of years, he hopes to continue to upgrade to keep up with growth and technology.

With the enthusiasm of his 16 employees and the continuing demand for the in-plant's services, Schroeder feels he can make it happen.

His secret to managing a successful operation?

"I leave whenever possible," he jokes. "Seriously, it's a self running system. I don't believe in watching over people's shoulders if they're doing their jobs and producing good work. When things are running well, it stays that way."

Schroeder and his wife, a secretary at a local school, have two daughters, 22 and 18, currently attending college. While their daughters don't share their father's interest in printing, they do share in his love of music. When he isn't golfing, Jon is a tuba player in a community concert band. The girls both sing and play piano. The empty nesters admit to adjusting to their new lifestyle.

"We're doing okay so far," he says. "But it's only been three weeks. By next week, we'll probably run out of things to talk about."