PIA, NAPL Begin Unification Negotiations
MARCO ISLAND, FL—One meeting held at the recent Vision 3 Summit here wasn’t listed on the general conference program. Prior to the event, a group of industry leaders convened to discuss the unification of the Printing Industries of America (PIA) and the National Association for Printing Leadership (NAPL). The group reached a unanimous consensus to move forward with a plan.
The action was taken for several reasons: economic conditions of the past several years, the ongoing contraction of the industry, and in response to calls for action from their membership and suppliers. The boards of each organization have approved a special task force, consisting of representatives from both sides, to take the steps to create a single entity. PIA Chair Laura Lawton and NAPL Chair Darren Loken are co-chairing the task force. The unification process is expected to take several months to complete.
The task force will develop sub-committees to address areas such as strategic planning, renaming of the organization, staffing and leadership, local representation, programs and location. Members of the task force include association CEOs Michael Makin (PIA) and Joe Truncale (NAPL), John Berthelsen, Suttle-Straus Inc.; Tim Burton, Burton & Mayer; Keith Kemp, Xerographic Digital Printing; Jules VanSant, Pacific Printing Industries; Niels Winther, Think Patented; and Nigel Worme, COT Media Group.
"Printing Industries of America has long sought to cooperate with other associations, including NAPL, and I am thrilled that Laura Lawton has been able to leverage a personal relationship with Darren Loken to make this a reality for both organizations," Makin told Printing Impressions. "I am confident that a singular, powerful organization is in the industry's best interests."
According to Truncale, the idea was for the NAPL to sit down with likely partners to create an organization that addresses the evolving needs of the industry.
"The idea is to see if we can come together and create a new organization for a rapidly emerging, new industry," Truncale said. "The aim is more than just unification. It's not about looking at existing business models and saying, let's fold one into the other. Unification might be the first step, but it's really about creating a new organization for the emerging needs of a new industry. That's what we want to take a look at more broadly."
