Jimmy Friend Retires from UNT
In 1989, he joined UNT as assistant director. He admits the in-plant, at the time, had many service issues. Delivery was slow, work quality was low and attitudes were bad. Once he was promoted to director in 1995, he made a deliberate effort to change all that and eventually turned the in-plant around.
Over the years, Friend successfully merged with the mail department and added fulfillment services to the in-plant's repertoire. One of the biggest changes came when he added an HP Indigo 3050 in 2002, followed by an HP Indigo 5500 in 2008. This blend of high-quality color and fast turnaround was a hit with customers and has been instrumental to the shop's success.
In the fall of 2008, the in-plant completed a major relocation and consolidation of its services. In 2012 it bolstered its offset services with a new five-color, 29˝ Ryobi 755XLW press and a Ryobi 3404 DI direct imaging press.
"I know I’ll miss my awesome staff, the many great people I work with at UNT, and the many, many wonderful people and friends I’ve networked with for so many years," says Friend.