Heidelberg

Parent company mergers, diverse products and a focus on color printing for the public eye seem to typify in-plants in the wholesale and retail trades. Dean Sutera hits the nail right on the head when he comments on the importance of in-plants in the wholesale and retail markets. "Because of the wide variety of printing that is needed by the retail environment," says Sutera, manager of the corporate print shop of Fred Meyer Inc., in Portland, Ore., "in-plants for retail operations are a lot more justifiable." Retail companies like Fred Meyer need everything from large, four-color signs to small flexo labels. And

Competition among insurance companies is fueling marketing efforts, forcing in-plants to turn out more four-color work than ever. Insurance is a huge market. Its providers make up a major portion of Fortune magazine's annual Fortune 500 listing, with giants like State Farm and Prudential ranking in the top 20. Behemoths like these know how important quality marketing materials are to their businesses, and many of them turn to their in-plants to get them. Because of the competition among insurance firms, these materials must be eye-catching and colorful, a fact that is bringing more color printing work into these in-plants. "Color will sell things

In-plants have found that showing off their capabilities to customers and senior management helps generate new business. Learn how UC-Berkeley went about it. One of our primary obstacles at University of California-Berkeley Printing Services has been exposure to, and physical presence with, our customers—and, more importantly, those qualified campuses and agencies with whom we should be doing business. U.C.-Berkeley Printing Services works for all nine U.C. campuses, three national laboratories (federally funded but administered by the university), several of the 20 California State Universities and a number of state agencies. Print buying within our system is not mandated; therefore, we must maintain

Despite the "glamorous" work going on in sound stages right down the hall, the real excitement for Paramount's director of graphic services lies in the print shop. There was a time when the sight of a Klingon chowing down in the company cafeteria would have made Hector Amaya's jaw drop in amazement. But these days the executive director of Graphic Services at Paramount Pictures would hardly give such alien tablemates a second glance. It's all part of life at the giant Hollywood, Calif., studio, where dozens of TV shows like Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Frasier and Wings are shot

Twenty-four years after its first meeting, the National State Publishing Association returned to Carson City for one of its most ambitious conferences yet. The National State Publishing Association certainly has a loyal following. Not only did its recent conference in Carson City, Nev., draw 48 government in-plant representatives from 34 states, but more than a half dozen retired government printers showed up as well—from as far away as Alaska and Hawaii. Their trek to Nevada's state capital was well worth it, because Don Bailey, Nevada State Printer, together with his staff and the NSPA office staff, organized an activity-packed three-day event, blending education and

Often overlooked, specialty printing equipment can prove vital to your in-plant when a job requires its services. Digital copiers and wide-format ink-jet printers may get the lion's share of the headlines these days, but when you have special needs—like for envelopes or labels—it's the specialty printing equipment that you turn to. To help you sort through the available systems, IPG has assembled information on various models of envelope presses, tag and label presses, thermographic equipment and sheetfed press attachments. Envelope Presses For in-plants that need to print short and mid-volume runs of envelopes, Olympus America Digital & Imaging Group offers the PagePlex

Old-fashioned printing techniques are kept alive at historic print shops around the country. If you're struggling with a less-than-modern press in your in-plant, take heart: Compared with the printers of old, your press is like lightning. How would you like it if your top press speed was 180 sheets an hour, and setting type for one sheet required half a day of labor? This is what being a printer meant in the 18th and 19th centuries. But while the wooden presses of Ben Franklin's day have mostly made way for today's high-speed marvels, they're not completely gone. Historic villages and museums around the country

Graph Expo marked the debut appearance of many of the technologies unveiled at Drupa. After seeing so many new technologies displayed at the massive Drupa trade show in Düsseldorf, Germany, trade journalists found few surprises at the recent Graph Expo show in Chicago. But it was for printers, not journalists, that McCormick Place opened its doors—and they were certainly impressed. "I thought the show was very complete, with more than enough new things to see and want," remarked Don Davis, associate director of LSU Graphic Services, in Baton Rouge, La. He went to the show to look at prepress and computer-to-plate (CTP) equipment and

Steady improvement over six years turned the once meager in-plant at Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Maine into an award winner. WHEN ANDREW Haynes started working at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Maine in 1994, the in-plant wasn't exactly state-of-the-art. "The equipment was so old that you really couldn't do anything with it," the prepress and press production specialist recalls. But help was on the way—in the form of a two-color, 26˝ Heidelberg MOZ press. Haynes arrived at the beginning of a six-year period of growth that turned the South Portland, Maine, in-plant into a high-production, award-winning facility. These changes not

Government in-plants face difficulties other in-plants seldom confront. Our story and survey results offer a look inside the most political segment of the industry. Think your in-plant has it rough? Try working at a government in-plant. Getting money for new equipment is difficult, you say? It's even harder when it's taxpayer money and your proposals have to go through several committees—often years before your purchase. Concerned your new boss might replace you? Government in-plant managers often wait on pins and needles for months when they get a new governor, hoping to be reappointed. Worried outsourcing firms will convince your CEO to shut you