The Print Council

Award Winners Honored in China SHANGHAI, CHINA—Jonathan Leslie, CEO of Sappi Limited, and Ronee Hagen, CEO of Sappi Fine Paper North America, presented Bob Coppinger of Kirkwood Printing, Wilmington, MA, with an International Printer of the Year award. Sappi Limited presented awards to nine printers out of 6,000 entries at a gala event held here recently to recognize excellence in print craftsmanship. The only winner from the U.S., Kirkwood Printing took top honors in the annual reports category. Mitsubishi Lithographic Presses (MLP U.S.A.) has joined The Print Council, an industry coalition dedicated to building the market for print. Jeff Pieper has been promoted to senior vice president

Printer Lauded For Energy Conservation VERONA, WI—By changing all of its work-area lighting from metal halide lights to fluorescent fixtures made by Orion Energy Systems, Park Printing House saved 45 percent (45,290 kilowatt hours per year) on its lighting bill and collected an award for its efforts. Dickinson Press, in Grand Rapids, MI, has bolstered its management team with the addition of Michael Linder as vice president of sales and chief marketing officer and Paul Heroman as vice president of operations. Long-time New England printing executive Duncan Todd has been named president of Daniels, a Merrill Communications Co. In a move to reinforce the company's position,

Jetrion will move into a new 35,000-square-foot facility in Ypsilanti, MI, in early 2006. The company also has announced the addition of Pitman Co. as a distributor of its ink-jet systems and inks. Kompac, a division of Day International, is celebrating the successful installation of its 100,000th Kompac automatic dampening system. In other news, the company announced the addition of three new team members: Mike Scaglione as director of sales worldwide; Charles Gray as director of supply chain management; and Carmen Costa as marketing manager. Böwe Bell + Howell has launched its Website, www.bbhsupplies.com, offering an expanded product line and supported by a 24-hour

Read this entire column and you could score $1,000 or a great Mañana Man golf shirt. Come on now. It's only 1,381 words. Our industry gets a bad rap. I know. It depresses some of you who are embarrassed and lie. You tell your friends and family that you're in IRS audit and collections, or in the sludge reclamation business, or you are involved in swamp- land real estate sales. Your mama can handle your brother being sent to the big house for 15 to 20, but would go into cardiac arrest if she knew you work for a printer. Print buyers take us

PITTSBURGH—In celebration of the final stage of the consolidation of Printing Industries of America and the Graphic Arts Technical Foundation into one organization, a dedication of the newly renovated world headquarters was held recently. Chairman of the Board James Mayes Jr. and Michael Makin, president and CEO, cut the ribbon marking the entrance to the newly refurbished building. Another highlight of the event was the naming of the Ray Roper boardroom, in honor of the late PIA president. CHICAGO—Jesse Williamson has been named the 2005 Sheetfed Executive of the Year by NAPL and PIA/GATF. Williamson, president of Williamson Printing in Dallas, received the award

BY MARK SMITH Technology Editor This time of year, even the most dedicated printer is far more likely to be pondering a trip to the beach than the Windy City in the fall. Nonetheless, planning for PRINT 05 & CONVERTING 05 is well under way. Billed as this year's largest industry expo for the international graphic arts community, the event is scheduled to run September 9-15 at the McCormick Place Complex in Chicago. The Graphic Arts Show Co. (GASC), which puts on the exposition, and a group of industry vendors recently took part in a pre-show media event that highlighted coming attractions. MediaDays

Ennis Acquires All Royal Stock MIDLOTHIAN, TX—Printed business products specialist Ennis Inc. has acquired all of the stock of Arlington, TX-based Royal Business Forms for $3.7 million in Ennis stock. Royal Business Forms posted sales of $12 million for its fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, 2004. Royal Business Forms opened its doors in 1959. Dollco Purchases Roland 700s OTTAWA—Dollco Printing, one of Canada's largest privately owned commercial printers, has acquired a pair of MAN Roland 700 presses, a five-color and a 10-color unit, to complement its sheetfed, heatset web and coldset press arsenal. Integrated into the installation are an in-line sheeter, coater and perfecting. Dollco

Future of Print Extends Beyond PI 400 Printers Although this special issue features our annual ranking of the 400 largest printing companies in the United States and Canada based on annual sales, the future of print itself is a topic that's just as important to the quick printer located in Anytown USA as it is to the establishments that made the Printing Impressions 400 list. Printers of all sizes must unite to support various initiatives that help promote our industry. One still-emerging effort is The Print Council, a business development initiative dedicated to promoting the greater use of print media through education, awareness, market

ALEXANDRIA, VA—The Print Council, a business development alliance dedicated to promoting the greater use of print media, has elected a five-member board of directors. The new leaders include: * Niels Winther, president and CEO, Heidelberg USA; * Paul Reilly, chairman, president and CEO, Mail-Well; * Yves Rogivue, CEO, MAN Roland; * Roy Grossman, president and CEO, Sandy Alexander; and * J. Kenneth Garner, president, United Litho. The first order of business for the board, reports Grossman, is to find a chairman or CEO to help get The Print Council off the ground, with the board serving in an advisory role. Much of the structure

News Fit for Printing Extra! Extra! Read all about it. The graphic arts industry is launching a new campaign to promote the use of print as a replacement for, and complement to, other media. I know, grizzled industry veterans might point out, other efforts have been tried in the past—typically losing steam over time. But this effort has some of the biggest industry guns behind it as founding members, including vendors such as Agfa, EFI, Heidelberg, IBM, MAN Roland, Scitex Digital and Xerox, as well as prominent printers like Mail-Well, RR Donnelley, Quad/Graphics, Sandy Alexander and Franchise Services (the parent company of PIP