Valassis Communications

(Editor's Note: Company rankings for the current and previous years are based on figures reported in 2002. Therefore, companies that revised their 2001 revenues may have changed their 2001 ranking as compared with the ranking that appeared in last year's Printing Impressions 400. Similarly, the percentage change in sales is calculated on the most recent information provided.) 1 ('01: 1) Quebecor World, Montréal, Canada Total Sales (millions): $6,300.00 Previous Year's (millions): $6,500.00 Change (%): -3 Principal Officer: Charles G. Cavell Employees: 40,000 Primary Specialties: PUB 26%; ADV 21%; CAT 17%; DM 13% Web Offset Units: 3,156 Sheetfed Offset Units: 985 Other: 808 Ownership: Public

Editor's note: Company rankings for the current and previous years are based on figures reported in 2001. Therefore, companies that revised their 2000 revenues may have changed their '00 ranking as compared with the ranking that appeared in last year's Printing Impressions 400. Similarly, the percentage change in sales is calculated on the most recent information provided. 2001 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: 11Quebecor World, Montréal, Canada$6,500.00$5,000.00+30Charles G. Cavell44,000PUB 29%; ADV 20%; CAT 17%; DM 13%3,156985808Public160  2001 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: 21R.R. Donnelley & Sons,

Schmidt Acquires Rapid ReprintBYRON, MN—Publishing industry solutions provider Schmidt announced that it has acquired Rapid Reprint, a quick turnaround article reprint production company based in White Bear Lake, MN. Schmidt, a web offset printer, specializes in the production of direct response vehicles such as magazine and direct mail inserts, as well as the production and distribution of card packs for the publishing industry. Valassis Installs QTI Systems DURHAM, NC—Valassis Communications has purchased a Ribbon Control System 4000 (RCS 4000) and a Register Guidance System V (RGS V) with ink guiding and phaser control for the second of its MAN Roland Lithoman presses. Both systems were

BY CHRIS BAUER Although it may not be as flashy as a star-filled TV commercial during the last episode of "Survivor" or halftime of the Super Bowl, many companies are finding refuge from high advertising costs in a weakened economy by going a more traditional and cost-effective route—newspaper inserts. In a recent Wall Street Journal article, Livonia, MI-based Valassis Communications, a leading printer of coupons and newspaper inserts, reported it is reaping financial benefits from the slowing economy. As advertisers look for ways to lure customers into their stores with sales and other ways to save, Valassis is providing much of the printing of

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:1 1Quebecor World*, Montreal, Canada$6,540.00$6,160.00+6Charles G. Cavell44,000PUB 29%; ADV 20%; CAT 17%; DM 13%3,156985808Public 160*Parent: Quebecor Inc., Montreal, Canada  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:2

BY CHERYL A. ADAMS There are two sides to every story. And, likewise, the pros and cons, the pluses and minuses, the advantages and drawbacks. Whatever you call them, where there is one, there is the other. Good and bad have coexisted since the beginning of time. And so it is with the story of in-line and off-line finishing: There are advantages and drawbacks to using each technology and trade offs—speed vs. specialty finishing, high-volume price break vs. value-added extras—that ultimately go with the business...the business of web press finishing, either in- or off-line. But the finishing business is good these days—booming, in

Valassis Communications is the coupon guru, the originator of the free-standing insert—that four-color coupon booklet, which has become a household commodity, if not phenomenon, as a modern day, money-saving device. Now, it's revolutionizing the way consumers clip coupons by offering "virtual savings" online. BY CHERYL A. ADAMS If you've ever saved money with one of those Sunday newspaper coupons, chances are, you have Valassis Communications to thank. And you'll be even more thankful in the new millenium, when, beginning this year, Valassis is printing and distributing a record number (44 weeks!) of free-standing inserts (FSIs) in Sunday newspapers nationwide. And, that's not all.

It is only appropriate that change is in the air for the printing industry, with a new millennium and workflow-altering technologies banging down the door. Not-so-subtle changes are already evident in Printing Impressions' 10th annual executive compensation report, which showcases 20 of the industry's highest paid executives at publicly held printing companies. A new executive adorns the top of the list in the form of Marc P. Shore, chairman and CEO of New York-based Shorewood Packaging. He replaces David A. Brandon, former CEO, president and director at Livonia, MI-based Valassis Communications.Shore received $1,893,000 in salary and bonus, plus $149,625 in other compensation for a

Gurus of management love to publish books with titles like "Reinventing the Corporation." And while many of this genre provide useful information about breaking down corporate barriers—usually internal ones—they assume that the reader works in a large corporate environment. Sadly, this is of little help to managers of the average commercial printing company or trade shop, whose employees are often numbered in two digits. Yet, the impact of technological change is just as large in a 25-person prepress firm as it is for a giant corporation such as Applied Graphics Technologies. Therefore, this month's pontification will try to address workflow re-engineering in our little

There's more to this critical printing ingredient than what comes in the can—tons of trust, good communication, lots of technical support, a competitive price and, of course, quality. BY CHERYL A. ADAMS Ink isn't just ink. One size doesn't fit all. Otherwise, there wouldn't be thousands of formulations—each with its own set of requirements, which may vary depending on the type of press, printing process, product and substrate used, as well as the product's end use and the environment in which it will be used. With so many applications and different ink formulations, how does a printer know which ink to buy? Which is