Upfront 6-01

Roger Perry: Web Offset Pioneer
WATERLOO, WI—Roger L. Perry, 78, who transformed his father's newspaper publishing business into a bustling commercial printer of magazines, catalogs and advertising, died April 14. Mr. Perry purchased an interest in his father's firm, Perry Printing, in 1956. He updated his father's antiquated letterpress with a web offset press, a bold move at the time, but Mr. Perry saw a trend toward higher quality, larger volume and increased color reproduction capability. He sold full ownership of the company to Journal Communications in 1974, but remained there until 1990, when he retired as chairman and CEO of Perry Printing and as a vice president of Journal Communications.

Goss Presses Anti-dumping Suit
WESTMONT, IL—Goss Graphic Systems received some good news on its anti-dumping suit against its largest competitors when the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa rejected the defendants' motion to dismiss the case. In the suit, Goss accuses foreign press manufacturers MAN Roland, Koenig & Bauer, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Tokyo Kikai Seisakusho, and their U.S. subsidiaries, of violating the Anti-dumping Act of 1916, by improperly selling their products to the U.S. market at prices significantly lower than the prices charged abroad. Goss claims the dumping suppressed prices in the U.S. press market.

Valassis Merges Two Divisions
LIVONIA, MI—Valassis announced that it has organized its divisions to better reflect its mass, cluster-targeted and one-to-one media services, resulting in the merger of Valassis Impact Promotions (VIP) and Targeted Marketing Services (TMS). Mary Ann Rivers will head the newly formed division.

Ripon Expands Its Bindery
RIPON, WI—New equipment and systems will complement a 4,300-square-foot addition to Ripon Community Printers, the company announced. Ground was broken February 5 on the addition, which will give Ripon a total of 210,000 square feet. Highlighting the new equipment to be added is a Muller Martini Prima SB Model 390 saddle stitcher, which has 10 pockets with cover feeder and features inside/outside ink-jet and selective capability. The unit will give Ripon five saddle stitchers in all, while a fourth Prism ink-jet controller is also slated. The company also plans to replace its baler system and relocate its shipping area.

Pace Litho Acquires CP Graphics
CITY OF INDUSTRY, CA—Pace Lithographers announced that it has acquired CP Graphics, of Glendale, CA. The acquisition includes incorporating much of CP Graphics' mid-size equipment with Pace's larger capacity equipment, as well as keeping key associates on staff.

Vertis Names Roland Chairman
BALTIMORE—Vertis Inc. has named Donald E. Roland chairman of the board. Roland succeeds Theodore Ammon, who will remain on the board of directors. Roland will also retain his roles at Vertis as president and CEO.

MBO Mourns Death of Founder
OPPENWEILER, GERMANY—Heinz Binder, owner and chairman of MBO Binder & Co., died May 3. Mr. Binder, 81, was actively involved with the company and served as chairman. Originally a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) by trade, he founded MBO Germany in 1965. The company quickly gained a fine reputation for manufacturing folding machines. He simultaneously established both MBO America and MBO Portugal in 1984, securing worldwide recognition for his company.

Instant Web Forges Alliance
CHANHASSEN, MN—The Instant Web Companies announced it has formed a strategic alliance with Johnson/Anderson & Associates, an envelope specialist. The deal allows both companies to outsource from each other and combine their resources to provide better service for each company's customers. Other terms of the deal will see Johnson/Anderson acquire Instant Web's Jet envelope presses, and Instant Web will become a core supplier of envelope blanks to Johnson/Anderson.

Quebecor World Acquires Printer
MONTREAL—Quebecor World has reached an agreement to acquire 75 percent of Grafica Melhoramentos S.A., in Sao Paulo, Brazil, from Companhia Melhoramentos de Sao Paulo (CMSP). The transaction will soon give Quebecor World two facilities in Latin America's largest economy. The company is building another facility in Recife, Brazil's fourth largest city.

Rainier, Graphic Press Net Deal
SEATTLE—Prepress house Rainier Color has formed a strategic alliance with Graphic Press in Los Angeles, one of the leading, high-end commercial printers in Southern California.

With this strategic alliance, Rainier Color and Graphic Press are creating color standards and calibrating their equipment so that the companies are able to work together.

Merrill Adopts SEC Filing System
ST. PAUL, MN—Merrill Corp. announced that its Financial Document Services (FDS) business was the first major filing agent to convert its EDGAR filings to the new Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) Web-based filing system, which utilizes Extensible Forms Description Language (XFDL) format.

CDS Names Brown VP and GM
MEDFORD, OR—CDS Documentation, a Kelmscott Communications company, hired Steve Brown as vice president and general manager. Brown will be responsible for all aspects of the CDS operations.

C2 Media.com, Xerox Strike Deal
NEW YORK—Graphics service provider C2 Media.com has reached a $9 million contract with Xerox that will see it acquire 16 Xerox DocuColor 2045 digital color presses. More than 2,000 DocuColor 2000 series units have been installed since its June 2000 launch.

Mark Andy Acquires Comco
CHESTERFIELD, MO—Mark Andy, a manufacturer of narrow web presses, has acquired Comco, a supplier of flexo printing presses.