Heidelberg

MILFORD, OH—About two years ago, Robert Wickens and George Lajti came up with a plan. The president and CEO, respectively, of then-Cincinnati-based Edge Graphics wanted to accomplish three things: one, find a site for a new, bigger facility with ample room for growth; two, embark on a $5 million equipment expansion project; and three, convert to a fully digital workflow. Two years later: mission accomplished. In an ambitious undertaking, Edge Graphics—which specializes in high-end commercial work—accomplished all three items on its agenda, with a little time to spare. According to Wickens, Milford—a Cincinnati suburb that won out over several sites in the Queen

Xeikon, Chromapress User Groups Unite LAS VEGAS—Xeikon digital press users came together recently to hold the first annual meeting of the Xeikon Digital Printing Association (XDPA). Activities included the election of a board of directors for the new group, which was formed through the consolidation of the former Chromapress Printing Association (CPA) and the Xeikon Users Association (XUA). The primary reason for the merger was Xeikon N.V.'s acquisition of Agfa's Digital Printing Systems business unit. As a result, Xeikon America and Canopy LLC, Xeikon's North American distributor, took over responsibility for supporting Chromapress users. "XDPA brings together two groups that share common goals," notes

BY ERIK CAGLE Accessories are to folding machines what cherries are to cheesecake—sweet. Then there's chocolate cheesecake, strawberry cheesecake, blueberry cheesecake. On the folder side, there's the need for product/card tipping, product sampling with peelable gluing, plow folding and the like, not to mention old standbys like scoring, slitting and perforating. Make no mistake about it, printers and trade finishers still seek units that are easy to operate, with short setup times, quick makereadies and capable of outstanding production levels. But auxiliary equipment can greatly augment the humble folder. The aforementioned features are among the most requested by customers, according to Wayne Pagel, president

As Von Hoffmann continues to augment its hold on the educational market, the company takes on new facets that allow it to be a one-stop shop. BY ERIK CAGLE Truth be known, the Von Hoffmann story doesn't begin in 1903, when the printer was founded. Nor does it start in the early 1960s, when the company found a niche in educational book printing. Not even 1990, when the family owned Von Hoffmann was sold, or when it was sold again a few years later. Try 1997, when the St. Louis-based company began to acquire complementary businesses that have helped catapult it to a

MENOMONEE FALLS, WI—An extensive expansion plan currently in progress at Arandell's Menomonee Falls, WI, headquarters—which includes the addition of new equipment—is expected to increase overall capability by 20 percent. "Growth in the catalog marketing sector has been extremely healthy for the past several years," states James F. Treis, Arandell executive vice president of sales and marketing. "Given the variety of services that we provide to catalog marketers, we undertook the expansion program at this time as a means of demonstrating our commitment to the industry as a whole and to our customers in particular." The plan includes additional facilities for storage that will

These recently named company presidents are rolling up their sleeves to catapult their companies to new heights. BY SCOTT POLK Bruce ThomasPresident and CEOCadmus Communications, Richmond, VAWhen Bruce Thomas was 18 years old, his father thought a factory job would be a positive experience for his son. So Thomas, who had recently graduated from high school, went to work for a stamping factory in Cleveland. About the same time, there was a sanitation worker strike in Cleveland and the uncollected garbage was beginning to pile up in bins at the stamping factory. Finally, the company arranged for dump trucks to come and ship

GPO Appropriations Approved WASHINGTON, DC—Congress has approved funding for the Government Printing Office's (GPO) Congressional Printing and Binding Appropriation to the tune of $71.4 million for fiscal year 2001, down nearly 3 percent from the $73.2 million approved for fiscal year 2000. The appropriation is used to cover the costs of printing work that the GPO performs for Congress, such as the Congressional Record, bills, reports and hearings. Congress also ticketed $27.9 million (down roughly 6 percent from 2000) for the salaries and expenses appropriation of the superintendent of documents. The funding is used to cover the costs of distributing government publications as required

Purup-Eskofot announced that Jodi Gross has joined the company as marketing manager. Gross brings to the company nine years of sales and marketing experience in the graphic arts industry. MAN Roland has appointed William Ford sales manager for half-size and pre-owned sheetfed presses for its upper Midwest territory. Ford comes to MAN Roland after 17 years at Oxy-Dry. Also, Steven Baker has been appointed district sales manager for sheetfed presses for northern Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Baker, who has 34 years of experience in the printing industry, joins MAN Roland from Epic Products International. Douglas Zirkelbach has been appointed sales manager for half-size and

A Digital Evangelist FRANK SCOTT has managed to become one of the graphic arts industry's recognized authorities on digital ad delivery, while still keeping up with the demands of his work for Time Inc. As director of digital development, Scott was part of the team that converted Time's New York-based magazines to computer-to-plate production and established its partnership program to solicit ads in digital format. After working for more than 20 years on the publishing side of the industry, Scott has moved onto new challenges by joining the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (GATF) staff as vice president and director of research. Since this is

INDIANASYRACUSE, IN—The Image Group recently achieved its 100 millionth impression on one of its six-color Akiyama offset presses. The sheetfed press, shown here with Bob McKee (left) of Akiyama and James Plummer Sr., president and CEO of The Image Group, was installed in 1986. NEW YORKHENRIETTA, NY—Tucker Printers has installed a new Heidelberg Speedmaster CD-102-6+LX at its facility here. With the press are (from the left) Dan Tucker, president of Tucker Printers, and Whitey Link, sales representative for Heidelberg USA. ARKANSASSPRINGDALE—The Morning News has purchased a TECSA 2470 copydot scanner from Graphic Enterprises Inc. (GEI). CALIFORNIASAN Diego—Dam Bindery has installed a Minuteman saddle