Managers Flock To Baton Rouge For SUPDMC

MORE THAN 100 in-plant managers from all parts of the United States gathered in Baton Rouge for the 32nd annual Southeastern University Printers and Digital Managers Conference (SUPDMC) in early October. Hosted by Mike Loyd and his team from Louisiana State University (LSU), the conference offered a mixture of Cajun hospitality and professional development.

Tim Vellek, vice president of Ricoh’s new Production Printing Business Group (PPBG) delivered Monday’s keynote. He argued that in-plants need to keep up with market demands in the form of new services while managing their internal images. It is vital, he said, for in-plants to be perceived as strategic contributors to the mission of the parent organization. This involves understanding how your customers view you and adopting a strategic mindset.

Vellek described Ricoh’s new PPBG, an alliance that creates high-end digital solutions for in-plants and other graphic arts segments, as well as software and content management solutions. Vellek also announced that Mike Loyd, who recently retired from LSU, is joining PPBG. Mike’s duties are still being developed but will likely include working with in-plants.

Barbara Pellow, group director for InfoTrends, delivered Tuesday’s keynote. She noted that upheavals in the printing industry also affect in-plants. Most notably, while overall demand for print volume is increasing, the cost-per-click is declining. She observed that organizational expectations of in-plants are changing from “service provider” to “strategic contributor.” Trends that will significantly affect in-plants and the services they provide include toner and ink-jet color, Web-based job submission, variable data and multi-channel marketing.

Understanding ‘Real Costs’

Gary Williford of the University of Tennessee led a session to help attendees understand their “real costs.” He used a method that he called “The 3 M’s”: man, methods and machines. Williford explained that managers should use “The 3 M’s” to analyze and justify costs. He also demonstrated why rush charges might not be appropriate.

“If you recover all of your costs in your regular shift,” he noted, “the hourly cost to work overtime is actually lower than your fully loaded hourly rate, and premium charges for overtime are unnecessary.”

Debbie Pavletich, IPMA president and manager of the in-plant at Briggs and Stratton, described her experiences in justifying her in-plant’s continued operations through several outsourcing studies. She identified factors that contributed to the continued operation of the in-plant, including:

• Costs that are 15 to 50 percent lower than commercial alternatives and contribute directly to the firm’s bottom line

• Consistently high quality

• Outstanding customer service, trust and confidentiality

• Knowledge of the culture of the business

Rosemary Chase, former copyright manager at George Mason University, led a session on copyright policies. She noted that copyright compliance involves not only published materials but also music and video content. Having a copyright policy is not enough to keep the content owners from scrutinizing our practices.

“We should all be looking at our policies for what they say about analyzing fair use on a case-by-case basis,” she noted.

Chase advised the audience to identify situations where permissions may be required and to share that information with appropriate administrators. At Cornell, for example, a university copyright policy posted on the Web site was revised after the university received a letter of complaint from the American Association of Publishers (AAP). The complaint identified weaknesses in the university’s policy on the use of protected materials online. She also discussed liability issues and the differing perspectives on faculty and administrators.

Consultant Vic Barkin, formerly the in-plant manager at the University of Northern Arizona, described what it means to be a “green” printer. He told attendees that organizations are adopting corporate social responsibility (CSR) statements to demonstrate their commitment to sustainability, and he offered a roadmap for in-plant managers planning to implement a social responsibility strategy.

Copier Management

Ann Watson, associate director of Printing Services at LSU, and Suzanne Smith, another LSU manager, led a roundtable discussion on copier management. They described the results of LSU’s recent copier/multifunction device (MFD) bid solicitation, which included color devices and wireless printing for computer labs. The LSU Copier Management Program includes 377 departmental copiers and 21 convenience devices, as well as three university employees and one on-site vendor service person. Cost per copy for the guaranteed quantity is 2 cents, with overs dropping to $.006 each. Several attendees also operated copier management programs, so many ideas and best practices were exchanged.

Joe Goss of Indiana University, Jennifer Bowers of Florida State University and Jimmy Robinson from the University of West Alabama led a roundtable discussion of issues and concerns in contemporary in-plant management. Attendees shared several common issues, including the migration of print from offset to digital production, and equipment financing. One problem that seems to be gathering momentum is the use of cell phones and MP3 players by production workers, which several managers noted were increasing in frequency.

Ray Chambers, higher education consultant and former VP/CIO at Juniata College, described the status of the print-to-FedEx-Kinko’s link on current versions of Adobe Acrobat and Reader. Adobe has committed to releasing version 8.1.1 of Reader without the FedEx-Kinko’s link sometime in October. It has also promised to form a Print Advisory Council to help guide the development of Web-to-print functionality on future Adobe products.

Fearing underrepresentation of in-plants on the Council, Chambers presented a slate of additional in-plant managers to Adobe CEO Bruce Chizen on August 9, but Adobe representatives have yet to commit to additional in-plant representation.

Chambers suggested that conference attendees become familiar with the threats and concerns of in-plant operations and share them with administrative leadership in their areas. The admissions, development, information technology and marketing units should all be concerned about uncontrolled, off-campus printing.

SUPDMC wasn’t all about education though. Monday evening, attendees were treated to a Fais Do Do (Cajun dance party) at a local Cajun restaurant and music venue. On Tuesday, a “tailgate” party offered a taste of French Quarter entertainment and an opportunity for attendees to show off their school colors. After tours of LSU’s printing plant and copy and mail center, SUPDMC attendees spent Wednesday afternoon and evening in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter.

Next year the University of Texas at Arlington will host both SUPDMC and the Texas Association of College and University Printers (TACUP) in a joint conference. It will take place October 6-9 in Fort Worth, Texas. IPG

Ray Chambers, CGCM, MBA, is CEO of Chambers M­anagement Group, an international consulting practice delivering document management and organizational development solutions to decision makers in higher education and government. He has invested more than 30 years managing and directing printing plants, copy centers and document management facilities. He is a frequent speaker at events sponsored by IPMA, Xplor, ACUP and others. Most recently, he served as vice president and chief information officer at Juniata College. Chambers is currently a doctoral candidate studying higher education administration. Contact him at: raychambers@earthlink.net