UPFRONT

Standard Acquires Veitch

READING, PA—Standard Offset Printing has purchased Veitch Printing and Veitch Digital Partners for an undisclosed amount of cash, according to the Lancaster (PA) Intelligencer Journal. The deal creates a company with a potential for annual sales of $25 to $30 million.

NewPage Going Public

MIAMISBURG, OH—Coated paper manufacturer NewPage Group is planning an initial public offering, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Associated Press reports that the offering price may be as much as $805 million. Some NewPage stockholders will sell shares as part of the IPO.

Impact Obtains ZipSort

MINNEAPOLIS—Direct mail marketing specialist Impact has acquired the statement processing, laser operation and lettershop capabilities of ZipSort Inc. Impact will bring all 102 ZipSort employees and equipment over to its operation. To support the new inhabitants, Impact will be adding 60,000 square feet to its facility. As part of the consolidation, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2008, Impact will continue to support current ZipSort clients and ongoing contracts.

Printer Adds XL 105 Presses

LOS ANGELES—Anderson Lithograph, a Cenveo company, has signed an agreement with Heidelberg to install two eight-color XL 105-8+LX sheetfed presses. They are expected to be installed and operational by July 31.

Grafitec, Adast Forge Deal

DOBRUSKA, CZECH REPUBLIC—KBA-Grafitec, KBA’s subsidiary here, has entered into a strategic alliance with Adast. According to the deal, Adast will discontinue the development, production and marketing of its own branded products to focus on providing KBA-Grafitec with parts and sub-assemblies. In exchange, KBA-Grafitec and other KBA production sites will purchase components from Adast when possible.

Partnership for Rider, SWO

CHICAGO—Printers Rider Dickerson and Service Web Offset have formed a mutual equity partnership. The firms purchased an equity interest in each other’s business as part of a long-term growth plan to specialize in turnkey print solutions. With the move, the two companies retain their independence and can offer web and sheetfed printing, binding and mailing.

Forger Gets Nabbed

OAKLAND, CA—Michael McGruder continues to get into trouble. After being arrested in March for passing fake bills, McGruder was found to have $250,000 in funny money and printing equipment used to produce the ersatz cash, according to the Associated Press. The Treasury Department and Secret Service, with the aid of information from McGruder, were able to find the operation in Alameda County.

Domtar, Unions Reach Deal

FORT MILL, SC—Domtar and the United Steelworkers Union have reached an umbrella agreement that covers economic and job security issues. The deal, which will be voted on by 4,000 members at 10 Domtar facilities, includes a successorship clause that protects workers’ jobs and contract if a Domtar plant is closed.

Imperial Gets Much Bigger

NEW BERLIN, WI—On the heels of relocating its facility from Milwaukee to an office park, Imperial Visual Communications has bolstered its capabilities with the addition of a new press, the Small Business Times reported. The move allowed Imperial Visual Communications to add a six-color, 40˝ Komori Lithrone press with coater.

Arandell Bolsters Capacity

MENOMONEE FALLS, WI—Arandell Corp. has increased its co-mail capacity to accommodate growing demand stemming from the 2007 USPS rate case. Jim Treis, Arandell’s executive vice president of sales and marketing, notes that the company places priority on client mail plans by offering customized solutions.

48HourPrint.com Adds Gear

BOSTON—Online business-to-business printer 48HourPrint.com has augmented its printing arsenal with a six-color, 40˝ Komori Lithrone sheetfed press. The overall package includes in-line aqueous coating, fully automated plate changers, scanning spectrophotometer, extended delivery and IR/air drying systems. Also acquired was a Kodak Magnus 800 CTP device.

Cadmus Strengthens Arsenal

CHARLOTTE, NC—Cadmus Whitehall Group, a Cenveo company, has added capacity and expanded capabilities across its Latin American production platform. In Costa Rica, the Impresora Delta plant is getting a new Heidelberg XL 105 press. Its Dominican Republic facility will install a second six-color, 40˝ Heidelberg CD 102 press and add UV printing capabilities. And, in Honduras, another six-color, 40˝ Heidelberg CD 102 joins a new Bobst gluer and a sheeter.

IMFS Opens New Center

LANCASTER, PA—Intelligencer Mailing and Fulfillment Services (IMFS) has opened a new 70,000-square-foot mailing and fulfillment facility at Greenfield Corporate Center. The move brings the company’s mailing and fulfillment operations under one roof and more than doubles the combined size and capacity of the previous facilities.

Quad Grows Co-Mailing

SUSSEX, WI—Quad/Graphics is expanding its clients’ opportunities to reduce postage costs by advancing the co-mailing capabilities across its entire manufacturing platform. At the center of the initiative is its new IntelliTrim technology, which allows multiple titles to be bound together on a single, conventional saddlestitcher.

Trade Secret Installs a Sunday

TORONTO—Trade Secret Printing has added a five-unit Goss Sunday 2000 press, the first web press for the Canadian trade printer. The 24-page, gapless press has a 57˝ web width and is equipped with a pinless combination folder and sheeter. It also includes Autoplate plate changing and Goss Web Center digital workflow modules, including automated presetting and closed-loop controls.

IWCO Direct Eyes Expansion

SCHAUMBURG, IL—IWCO Direct could soon be coming to the Left Coast. Jim Leone, a vice president with the Chanhassen, MN-based direct mail printing specialist, told a keynote audience at the Web Offset Association’s Offset & Beyond conference that California is a possible target for expansion in 2008. “Based on population density, we see the western United States as fertile ground for growth, as we continue to expand upon our geographic footprint,” Jim Andersen, IWCO Direct president and CEO, told PRINTING IMPRESSIONS.

DBO Adds Taskero Universe

LEBANON, PA—Donald Blyer Offset is one of the first commercial offset printers on the East Coast to implement Fujifilm’s Taskero Universe, a suite of performance analysis tools for providing quality control from prepress through the pressroom. Taskero Universe also provides real-time information on the status of prepress devices and their performance.

Staples Turned Away Again

FRAMINGHAM, MA—Corporate Express isn’t averse to negotiating a takeover. But the Netherlands-based company did reject rival Staples’ bid of $2.47 billion, saying the sweetened offer was still too low. The 10 percent increase in the offer still “significantly undervalues the business of Corporate Express,” the company contends.

Tribe Seeks Label Printer

OCEAN SPRINGS, MS—A Choctow Tribe is negotiating to bring a New England label printer here to Jackson County, where it owns First American Printing, according to the Biloxi (MS) Sun Herald. Such a move could result in the addition of 250 jobs to the First American complex. The tribe is targeting printers of pressure-sensitive labels, since 75 percent of First American Printing’s business is direct mail.

Xerox Donates $2 Million to RIT

ROCHESTER, NY—Xerox Corp. is committing $2 million to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) to serve as a founding partner of The Golisano Institute for Sustainability. This investment in RIT by Xerox, which will be spread over five years, focuses on developing talent and fostering new sustainable technologies through research. RIT introduced The Golisano Institute for Sustainability last year following a $10 million commitment from B. Thomas Golisano, chairman and founder of Paychex Inc. and a member of RIT’s Board of Trustees. PI