From the Editor: New Year, New Name

Happy New Year! To start things off fresh, we’ve even changed our name. In case you hadn't heard, In-plant Graphics has been rebranded In-plant Impressions.

It doesn’t seem so long ago that we were brainstorming new names to transform the moldy In-plant Reproductions into something a bit more modern. But that was 23 years ago now, the longest reign of any of the names this magazine has had in its 68-year history. Not bad.

This new rebranding came from a need to better align this magazine with NAPCO Media’s other graphic arts publications, Printing Impressions and Wide-format Impressions. But don’t worry, even with a new name, In-plant Impressions will continue to deliver the same in-depth coverage of the in-plant industry that our readers have come to expect, focusing on successful, innovative in-plants and the strategies that help them thrive. Our goal, as always, is to bring in-plants the respect they deserve by highlighting their many benefits and accomplishments.

For those keeping track, this is the sixth name change in the magazine’s history. Some were minor, some short-lived, some stemmed from a merger of magazines. I documented all the name changes back when we celebrated our 50th anniversary in 2001, but it’s likely no one but me found this interesting enough to read.

The first issue of Offset Duplicator Review, January 1951.

So, in brief, we started as Offset Duplicator Review in 1951, then changed to Reproductions Review, then Reproductions Review and Methods, then Reproductions ’79 (a name destined to fail in the ’80s), then In-plant Reproductions. That name held on for 16 years until we came up with In-plant Graphics in 1996.

But while those name changes were made purely with the in-plant market in mind, this new rebranding takes in the entire scope of our parent company’s mission. We want all printers everywhere to understand that In-plant Impressions, Printing Impressions and Wide-format Impressions are all part of the same NAPCO Media family, all dedicated to serving the graphic arts market.

This is particularly important in a time when various segments of the market are converging, as printers move beyond their traditional boundaries to provide more types of services and applications. This “convergence” trend is the key driver of the new PRINTING United event, which NAPCO Media is coordinating, in partnership with SGIA, the event’s owner.

In-plants will be a key focus at PRINTING United, and we plan to hold several free breakfast and lunch seminars exclusively for in-plants. These always provide great networking opportunities and a chance to get ideas directly from your peers. Then you can explore the expo floor to scout out new services and applications your in-plant can provide — because these days, in-plants have to do more than just save money. That’s how the outsourcing companies try to put you out of business: claiming they will save your organization money on printing. So you need to add value far beyond just a cheaper price.

Offering new services is the key to your future success. And PRINTING United will be packed with hot, new technologies and eye-catching applications that you can implement in your in-plant, bolstering your status as the one and only place customers should look for any kind of graphic arts need.

This is what Michael George and his team at Villanova University Central Services did when they got an engraver and began creating campus signage. And what Cathy Chambers and her crew at Alfred State College of Technology did when they added dye-sub and 3D doming equipment to satisfy the need for name badges. What is your in-plant doing to add value?