Ray Chambers

Though Ray Chambers passed away in 2023, the articles he wrote to help in-plants fight against outsourcing are as pertinent as ever. This one details how even an in-plant that is doing everything right can find itself on the chopping block.

Organizations where management makes unstructured, random visits to the shop floor tend to be more efficient and enjoy greater morale.

Years ago, after partnering with a vendor to implement one of the first all-inclusive copier management programs in higher-ed, I was shocked when that same vendor approached our administration with the news that we had too many copiers, too many printers and too many copy centers. 20 years later, nothing’s changed.

Often, the VP and the in-plant manager have different perceptions of which data is important to measure and report on. The in-plant manager needs hard numbers to guide shop performance. But the VP needs to know why these metrics are important. Make sure you ask which metrics management wants to see.

Don’t waste time on the ‘offset or digital’ question. Focus on how your in-plant can best help customers be successful.

Ray Chambers explores how the desire to control the supply chain to meet business objectives led companies to create in-plants.

Do you ever have those days where you just can’t get your head around what your priorities are, so you look for other things to do?

Two in-plants were doing all the right things, yet somehow administrators didn’t see their value. What could they have done differently

After a year of planning, the Association of College and University Printers conference is just over a week away.

Twenty years ago, HardCopy—the listserv for print professionals serving in the educational space—was born. Here’s the story.