Running a Growing In-plant

MANY IN-PLANT managers find their way into the graphic arts industry by accident. But for Robert Delgado, following in his father’s footsteps and running a print shop was always part of the plan.

As Print Shop/Mailroom/Facility Manager for Western Growers, an Irvine, California-based agricultural association and insurance provider, Robert Delgado knows that pursuing a printing career was the right move. Working in his father’s shop as a teenager, he knew that graphic arts provided stability.

“Printing seems to be pretty good whether the economy is slow or not,” he says. So even though he attended Golden West College, in Huntington Beach, Calif., as an automotive engineering student, he immediately began taking graphic arts classes.

Delgado ran the press in the college’s print shop, and upon graduation his teacher recommended him for his first full-time job as press operator for a commercial shop. In 1984 he took a job as pressman for Western Growers, but only stayed there a year before accepting a job running a four-color press for a large commercial printer. During this time, he did some moonlighting with Kenny the Printer, a local quick printer. He also did the occasional odd job for Western Growers.

A student of the industry, Delgado quickly proved his worth to Western Growers as a decision-maker.

“I would give them advice on how to run jobs,” he recalls. When the manager position became available, Western Growers offered him the job. At first, he turned it down because he was making decent money running seminars with Kenny the Printer. But they called again.

“I threw a number at them and they took it,” he muses. So in 1988 he returned to Western Growers as their in-plant manager. He’s been there ever since. November 14th will be his 20-year anniversary with the company.

Right away Delgado was faced with a few challenges.

“We were running in the red,” he admits. “They were choosing to outsource the work. That’s why it was challenging, because I had to find a way to get that work back in here.”

Delgado runs his shop like a business. He approached things that way from day one.

“We had a Chief 17. Run time was slow, set up was slow. Quality was iffy. When they asked me to take the managing position, I told them, ‘You have to get rid of that press; it’s killing you. Get an A.B.Dick in there, get a new [Itek] camera.’ They agreed to it.”

Run times decreased from three weeks to one while quality improved. Work began to stay in-house again.

Since then, Delgado has kept the in-plant as state-of-the-art as possible. Folding equipment was added and the shop switched to digital prepress. The in-plant grew from a three-person operation to the seven-person shop he has today. But this growth presented a new problem.

“We noticed that the electronic age was starting to kill some of our volume of work,” Delgado recollects. So about five years ago he started insourcing work. “I started asking around—friends I would surf with or people I knew.” Now the in-plant has roughly 20-25 insourcing clients, all obtained through word-of-mouth.

A Passion for Printing

Delgado loves what he does. “I care about it. It’s my passion. I train my employees that way. I make sure that every job that goes out of here is a quality job. It’s a reflection of us. It’s a reflection of them... I think that’s the key factor to a successful business.”

According to Delgado, one key to good management is to show the staff that you’re not afraid to get your hands dirty. “I have no problem going in and helping them,” he enthuses. “That’s huge for managers, that you’re not above them. You’re not afraid to go in and help them in any way you can. It’s a big morale booster.”

An active and vibrant 46-year-old man, Delgado surfs, water skis, works out regularly and pays homage to his automotive background by rebuilding muscle cars. His wife, Shannon, was his graphic designer at Western Growers for 11 years before moving on to the marketing industry. They share many of the same passions.

The couple has two teenage children. Their son Dale plays football and their daughter Lauren is a cheerleader and runs cross country.

“None of them are interested in printing,” Delgado laughs. “Probably because they get tired of mom and dad talking shop talk all the time.” IPG