Offset Printing - Sheet-Fed

MUCH LIKE the historic city it calls home, Pearl Pressman Liberty Communications Group (PPLCG) has numerous tales to tell from a 100-year-old past steeped in printing tradition. Following in the fabled footsteps of Ben Franklin, this Philadelphia-based company has endured the tests of time, disaster and radical change in the industry. It all started in 1906, when two teenagers, working in a Philadelphia print shop, decided to go out on their own. The sons of Russian and Latvian immigrants, Manuel Pearl and Charles Pressman scraped together $60 and purchased a foot-powered press, assorted type and some paper. They worked out of Pressman’s bedroom in the

THERE ARE those who believe that offset printing is well aware of its mortality, in light of advances and inroads made by its younger and better connected cousin, digital printing. But even if offset technology is on the clock (and not everyone can agree), the lead time to its possible demise is fairly substantial. So before you convert that stacked web press into a glorified set of monkey bars, consider the major benefits that many printers have reaped by having hybrid technologies under one roof. In some cases, both offset and digital are being leveraged for the same job, as they each offer advantages

It’s a rarity to hear about a new printing facility being built from the ground up in today’s graphic arts world. But that is just what Williams Printing, an RR Donnelley company, celebrated when it opened a new 130,000-square-foot facility located near Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in 2005. But, then again, Williams Printing does not consider itself your Average Joe Printer. During the past 80 years, Williams Printing has built a reputation for outstanding quality, service and innovation. And although RR Donnelley is now the world’s largest provider of print and print-related services—and Williams is among the largest commercial printers in the Atlanta area—both pursue a

PASSION IS a powerful emotion—and a positive method—when a bit of reason is incorporated. A great company isn’t successful based solely on its business practices. Its success comes from the spirit of its workers. At Payne Printery, its employees exude passion. Payne Printery began as a one-man, single-color print shop, and was purchased in the 1930s by John Robert Moore. Moore decided not to change the company’s name because it had a good business reputation. After the purchase, Moore moved the shop a short distance from Plymouth to Dallas, PA, where it continued to produce one-color materials such as raffle tickets, business cards and letterhead.

In a traditional industry like the graphic arts, VistaPrint has found success by taking a bit of a non-conventional, forward-thinking approach. It all started with the vision of Robert Keane, president and CEO, when he founded the company in 1995. Keane’s idea included developing technology that delivers high-quality, low-cost graphic design and printing to small businesses and consumers while still providing premium customer service. VistaPrint is applying the principles of computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM) to drive out costs and improve response times. It connects its customers directly to its CIM chain by providing a layout program that they can use on the company’s Website,

Paul LeFebvre is nothing if not brutally honest. He made some fatal business mistakes in the past and paid the ultimate price, suffering through the bankruptcy of his Des Plaines, IL-based company, LeFebvre Intergraphics. Closing down the shop in 1996 was a bitter pill to swallow for the past inductee into the Printing Impressions/RIT Printing Industry Hall of Fame. The company was growing out of control. He had purchased large quantities of paper and kept stocking up on it, but the value soon plummeted from $7 million to $4 million as prices fell. People in strategic positions at the company weren’t making the

AUTO DEVICES to speed makereadies. Ever-increasing press unit requirements. Convertible and dedicated perfecting configurations. Unique coating capabilities. As U.S. sheetfed commercial printers strive to differentiate themselves from their competitors, they increasingly opt for more customized press solutions. And, once they decide to buy a new offset machine, the ability of their chosen press supplier to deliver the order within a short time frame is crucial to sealing the deal. That market trend, in part, is what drove the Komori Corporation to build its new Tsukuba sheetfed press manufacturing facility near Tokyo, which went into full operation in December with the second phase completion of an

The sheetfed offset printing market continues to feel pressure—be it from rival markets or outside forces such as pricing battles and shrinking run lengths. As more economical digital print runs extend, and affordable web press runs shorten, manufacturers involved in the small- and medium-format (29˝ and smaller) sheetfed space are equipping their wares with the capabilities needed to compete—and win. “The competition from the web market is becoming more noticeable, but when it comes to the short-run color market, web presses have a number of things going against them,” contends Michael Iburg, product manager, KBA North America. “On a sheetfed press, makeready time is much

By Erik Cagle Senior Editor It wasn't long ago that large and extra-large format sheetfed offset presses were considered primary tools for the package printing market. In Europe, notes Ken Kodama, vice president of sheetfed sales for Mitsubishi Lithographic Presses (MLP U.S.A.), these oversized machines were not used just by folding carton producers, but also by publication and commercial printers. But the productivity of the super-sized press and its ease of use is winning over favor among U.S. printers in the commercial sector. "The manning for a large-format is similar to a 40˝ press, so the makereadies are very similar," Kodama says.

Fresh, intensity-riddled faces swarmed the lobby of the Houstonian Hotel, most of them young enough to appear in auditions for an MTV reality show. But aspiring actors these youngsters were not—they hoped to become role players in the ever-growing printing industry dynasty best known by its stock symbol: CGX. It was late July, and the sixth annual Consolidated Graphics (CGX) National Associates Meeting was in full swing. Despite the fact that most of the participants’ drivers licenses indicated a birth date in the 1980s, these participants boasted a confidence, an eager aggressiveness and a tireless optimism regarding their present and future roles with the