UPFRONT

Carter Steps Down at Komori ROLLING MEADOWS, IL—Stephan Carter, who ushered in the Lithrone S sheetfed press era and drove significant growth of market share across all product lines at Komori America, stepped down from his role of president and COO on November 30. He has been replaced by Kazuyoshi “Kosh” Miyao, formerly the executive vice president of marketing and product development. Carter has been appointed president and CEO of Hudson North America, a provider of permanent recruitment, contract professionals and talent management services worldwide. He spent seven years with Komori America.

Vertis Completes ACG Deal

BALTIMORE—Vertis Communications has successfully consummated its prepackaged Chapter 11 plan and its merger with American Color Graphics (ACG). The new company will be headquartered here under the Vertis Communications brand. As a whole, the network boasts 100 worldwide locations and roughly 8,000 employees.

RRD Gets $60M Harrah’s Pact

CHICAGO—RR Donnelley has been awarded a $60 million, multi-year print management contract by Harrah’s Entertainment, a provider of branded casino entertainment. Under terms of the agreement, RR Donnelley will provide a range of printing and related services, including commercial printing, forms and print fulfillment to Harrah’s properties across the United States and in Ontario, Canada.

Lawsuit Filed Following Death

SAN FRANCISCO—The father and daughter of a pregnant woman who was killed by a diecutter earlier this year are suing her employer, claiming it failed to equip the machine with safety devices that would have prevented her death, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. The January 29 incident at Digital Pre-Press International occurred when 26-year-old Margarita Mojica became entangled in the machine when it suddenly engaged while she and another employee were prepping it for a job.

GTech Opening Ticket Plant

TAMPA, FL—GTech Printing plans to open a new instant ticket printing facility in the spring of 2009, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal. The 100,000-square-foot plant will initially employ 100 people, a figure that could rise to as many as 200 by 2013, according to the paper. The company is expected to produce about 11 billion instant tickets annually.

Vista, Centennial Join Forces

INDIANAPOLIS—Vista Graphic Communications, which specializes in printing, packaging, dimensional mail, point-of-purchase and fulfillment, has merged with Centennial Press-Printing and Mailing, which provides personalized and bulk direct mail, digital printing and data analytics, among other things. The combined company will operate under the Vista name and generate $7.5 million in annual sales.

Changes for Standard Register

DAYTON, OH—Standard Register has announced a strategic and organizational realignment to position the company for long-term growth, while maintaining its strong balance sheet. The company will organize around the healthcare, industrial and commercial market segments, among other initiatives, while reducing annualized costs by $33 million.

Domtar Idles Paper Machine

MONTREAL—Domtar Corp. is permanently shutting down the paper machine and converting operations of its Dryden, Ontario, mill. The move will reduce the company’s annual paper production capacity by about 151,000 short tons of uncoated freesheet. It will result in the loss of approximately 195 employees.

aNETorder Acquires Fulfillment

LOUISVILLE, KY—Fulfillment and distribution services provider aNETorder has acquired the fulfillment operations of Reader’s Digest, based in Strongsville, OH. The 175,000-square-foot warehouse in Strongsville was opened in 2006 to provide fulfillment services for divisions of Reader’s Digest, including Weekly Reader and Gareth Stevens Books.

DG3, Pace Press Unite Execs

JERSEY CITY, NJ—The senior executives at Pace Press have joined DG3 North America in senior sales roles, including Jack Mangiciarina, president and CEO. In order to better serve the customer bases of both entities, DG3 has acquired four new presses, including an eight-color sheetfed press with UV coating and a seven-color web press.

DSS Obtains Printer’s Assets

ROCHESTER, NY—Document Security Systems (DSS) is purchasing the assets of DPI of Rochester, a digital and offset printer based here that filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. The deal is pending court approval, according to the newspaper. DPI registered sales of about $7.6 million in 2007. Publicly held Document Security Systems is an anti-counterfeiting technology company.

$5M Investment for Schmidt

BYRON, MN—Schmidt Printing, a web printing business owned by Taylor Corp., of North Mankato, MN, is implementing a $5 million investment campaign that sees it adding as many as 30 new jobs, according to the Rochester (MN) Post-Bulletin. Among the equipment being installed are a new press and a collating machine.

Manufacturer Is Shaving Staff

HEIDELBERG, GERMANY—As many as 2,500 Heidelberg workers from around the world could lose their jobs as the parent company expects a “significant downturn in sales.” The move is part of an accelerated plan to save 200 million euros, or $261 million, as the company expects a marked reduction in operating results for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009. PI