CIM In Action -- Awaiting the Big Payoff

Apply the same principles to CIM and ROI and the similarity can be seen. Some, but not all, printers that have taken the JDF/CIP4 highway to CIMville can boast of a tangible return. But virtually every printer can speak of the benefits from process integration.

"The industry has to take a longer term view on this," notes Michael Murphy, president of Japs-Olson in St. Louis Park, MN, which is an associate member of CIP4, the International Cooperation for the Integration of Processes in Prepress, Press and Postpress. "Our industry as a whole needs to say that (CIM) is good for the industry. It's giving us vital data about each step of the process and each area of our company that we need to manage more efficiently. I really think of CIM as the base level from which the industry is going to become more efficient overall."