THE NEWS on April 15 that Cenveo was closing Anderson Lithograph and merging it into its Los Angeles-based ColorGraphics facility marked a sad day for the U.S. printing industry. With a national reputation dating back to 1951 as a provider of ultra-high-quality web and sheetfed offset output; highly responsive customer service; and an unwavering commitment to sustainability—long before environmental stewardship became fashionable—Anderson Litho was an industry stalwart.
WHEN JOHN Sandstrom passed away in 1990, his eight children were suddenly left in charge of his printing operation. Having grown up in the graphic arts business, the Sandstrom siblings took the reins of their family’s Milwaukee-based business, HM Graphics.
WHAT IS there not to love about the state of Pennsylvania? “This is the land of Ben Franklin, and his most conspicuous craft is printing,” notes Eric Roberts, director of sales for Philadelphia-based Bartash Printing. Roberts echoes his fellow Philadelphia-area and eastern Pennsylvania printers when it comes to the chief advantage they enjoy as businesses: the ability to reach as far north as New England and as far south as the Carolinas.
Printing Impressions' Commercial Printer News for May 2009
Make sure your heaters are on only when you need them.
MARIETTA, GA—The EPI Companies, which ranked 112th on the 2008 Printing Impressions 400 list with sales of $51 million, has gone out of business. A vendor of EPI Companies, speaking on the condition that he not be identified, told PI that the general commercial and direct mail printer had closed its doors recently.
NORWICH, NY—A fire broke out at Sun Printing last Friday night when the exhaust fan on a press overheated and set a nearby pile of paper waste ablaze, according to The Evening Sun. None of the 16 employees on duty were injured. Employees were able to douse the flames with fire extinguishers but the Norwich Fire Department needed to dismantle the chimney from the building's roof to ensure the fire was out, the paper reported.
NORTH HAVEN, CT—Martin Printing has shut its doors, leaving more than 30 employees out of work, according to the Hartford Courant. The company's 150,000-square-foot facility and three presses will be auctioned online April 30. The printer lost business from one of its largest clients, ING Direct, which opted to halt all printing until 2010.
MONTREAL—Quebecor World's continuing journey to emerge from bankruptcy protection is certainly not without pain. The struggling printer has notified Tennessee state officials that it will close its Memphis facility, leaving 111 people out of work, the Memphis Daily News reported.
EAST LONGMEADOW, MA—A small fire prompted the evacuation of 50 third-shift employees at a Hasbro Inc. printing plant early Tuesday morning, according to The Republican. There were no reported injuries. The fire broke out around 1:30 in the electrical panel of a press. Employees were able to extinguish the fire before firefighters could arrive, but heavy smoke prompted the evacuation. The facility here is home to the company's games division, according to the paper.
