Japs-Olson Co.

BY ERIK CAGLE Don't be fooled. When it comes to the overall health of the direct mail marketing segment, many of the big hitters within the commercial printing sector are well positioned, entrenched even, for the economic storm that has struck the country. Top 10 -- Direct Mail Printers   Company SegmentSales(millions) TotalSales (millions) 1 Quebecor WorldMontreal $845 $6,500 2 Vertis Inc.Baltimore $397 $1,986 3 Banta Corp.Menasha, WI $231 $1,538 4 R.R. Donnelley & SonsChicago $210 $5,254 5 Wallace Computer ServicesLisle, IL $186 $1,692 6 Moore Corp.Stamford, CT $158 $2,260 7 Japs-Olson Co.St. Louis Park, MN $102 $128 8 The Instant Web Cos.Chanhassen,

BY MARK SMITH The basic concept has been given many names. Digital Smart Factory. CIM—computer integrated manufacturing. CIP4—International Cooperation for the Integration of Processes in Prepress, Press and Postpress. Or, you can simply call it "process automation." Welcome to system integration in the digital age. The terminology alone is confusing enough. System integration used to be a fairly straightforward problem in the graphic arts arena, even if productive solutions were sometimes hard to come by. The challenge was to get different pieces of electronic prepress equipment to communicate and work together efficiently in a unified workflow. While the digital revolution was redefining the front

BY MARK SMITH Bindery automation has long since ceased to be an oxymoron, but the back end of the process hasn't seen quite the same digital revolution as in the prepress and press arenas. Touch pads and automated setup features have become commonplace, but operators are not sitting around looking at computer screens all day, as one trade binder owner put it. The fundamental nature of the work hasn't changed all that dramatically. Faster makereadies and more efficient material handling have been the primary focus of efforts to automate binding and finishing operations. Cutting and folding probably are the two areas that have

If you know the name of a printing company that you think appears on the Printing Impressions 400 list, but you're not sure of its ranking, here's an easy way to locate that firm. Simply find the company in the alphabetical listings on this page. In addition to each company's name and headquarters location, a corresponding number appears indicating that firm's ranking on the Printing Impressions 400. ABS Graphics (Addison, IL) 400 Action Printing (Fond du Lac, WI) 353 Adams Business Forms (Topeka, KS) 96 AdPlex Inc. (Houston, TX) 102 Advance Business Graphics (Mira Loma, CA) 153 AFL Web Printing (Voorhees, NJ)

Editor's note: Company rankings for the current and previous years are based on figures reported in 2000. Therefore, companies that revised their 1999 revenues may have changed their '99 ranking as compared with the ranking that appeared in last year's Printing Impressions 500. Similarly, the percentage change in sales is calculated on the most recent information provided.2000 Ranking:Previous Year's Ranking:Company: Total Sales (millions):Previous Year's (millions):Change (%):Principal Officer:Employees:Primary Specialties:Web Offset Units:Sheetfed Offset Units:Other:Ownership:Plants:5142Publishers Printing/Publishers Press, Shepherdsville, KY$160.40$166.30-4Nicholas X. Simon1,750PUB 100%100100Private 2  2000 Ranking:Previous Year's Ranking:Company:Total Sales (millions):Previous Year's (millions):Change (%):Principal Officer:Employees:Primary Specialties:Web Offset Units:Sheetfed Offset Units:Other:Ownership:Plants:5252Phoenix Color Corp., Hagerstown, MD$160.00E$141.00+13Louis LaSorsa900BKS 100%61520Private 4  2000 Ranking:Previous Year's

BY SCOTT POLK As printers continue to determine how to capitalize on the Internet to further business, perhaps no segment may be affected by cyberspace more than direct mail. A projected 100 million people will be connected to the Web within five years, and direct mail will play an important role in guiding those people to the Internet. According to a study by the Printing Industries of America, dotcom startup companies looking to establish brand equity will account for much of that business. By 2003, however, the study cautions that the direct mail industry will begin to encounter considerable competition from electronic media.

The stakes are high and the iron-producing players are few in the world of 40˝ and larger sheetfed presses. Today, manufacturers are looking at what printers want in a press tomorrow. BY ERIK CAGLE The crystal ball is working overtime at manufacturing facilities around the world. While you make your way at DRUPA 2000 through the hundreds of thousands of people cramming the aisles of the 18 buildings at Messe Dusseldorf, the R&D people, the tech heads and marketing gurus are looking past the present. They're thinking DRUPA 2004. Phrases float through their brains: increased automation, but what's left on the press?...what is the

Celebrating its 25th (silver) anniversary, Graphics of the Americas 2000—held February 4th to 6th in Miami Beach—was the first international printing and converting trade show of the new millennium. But, unlike the Y2K fears that generated false media headlines as the new millennium approached, this event lived up to all of its advanced billing. Catering to both the U.S. and Latin American graphic arts industries, Graphics of the Americas 2000 featured more than 23,000 attendees and 1,500+ exhibit booths encompassed within more than 500,000 square feet of exhibit space. For the first time, the show occupied all four halls of the Miami Beach Convention

BY ERIK CAGLE Total direct marketing sales in the United States will clear the $2 trillion mark in five years, with nearly $765 billion estimated for business-to-business sales in the year 2000, according to findings made by the Direct Marketing Association (DMA). Thus, on the whole, the industry appears to be in good shape. That statement is not entirely accurate, though. Even with a double-digit compound annual growth rate, there are key issues that will influence the market, particularly business-to-business considerations for those who profit from the manufacture of direct mail. Top 10 Direct Mail Printers CompanySegmentSales(millions)Total Sales(millions)1Quebecor World*Montreal$554.00$6,160.002Banta Corp.Menasha, WI$254.00$1,340.003R.R. Donnelley & SonsChicago$250.00$5,000.00 4Mail-WellEnglewood,

BY ERIK CAGLE The world of direct mail is an exclusive one in terms of overall printing sales figures. According to the annual ranking of the 500 largest companies done by Printing Impressions, the top two North American direct mail printers—Quebecor Printing, headquartered in Montreal, and the Banta Corp. of Menasha, WI—topped $600 million in combined sales. The third and fourth largest companies on the top 10 list—Wallace Computer Services of Lisle, IL, and World Color Press, Greenwich, CT—combined for roughly half of that figure. Top 10 Direct Mail Printers CompanySegmentSales(millions)Total Sales(millions)1Quebecor PrintingMontreal$382.80$3,480.002Banta Corp.Menasha, WI$228.00$1,200.003Wallace Computer ServicesLisle, IL$176.80$1,360.004World Color PressGreenwich, CT$140.00$2,000.005The Instant Web CompaniesChanhassen, MN$89.60$112.006Japs-OlsonSt. Louis Park, MN$66.00(E)$110.00(E)