Mark McCarty: A Road Well Traveled

Twenty years ago, you wouldn't have found Mark McCarty in a print shop. Back then he spent his days driving around the plains of Kansas selling auto glass. But with a degree in Printing Management and a deep love of the craft, he couldn't stay away forever. In 1992 printing lured him back. Today he is Printing Services Manager at Missouri State University in Springfield.

McCarty began his printing career when he was just 16, working at a local mom-and-pop shop called Hutto Printing in his hometown of Winfield, Kansas.

"I worked mainly in the darkroom, but I did deliveries as well," says McCarty. "I took pride in the craftsmanship that was still part of the printing industry at the time before computers." Not that he has anything against computers; McCarty just yearns for the days when printing was done with your hands and your head and no computers were involved. For example, he used to hand set type for funeral announcements on a letterpress, a job he enjoyed. When he was with friends and saw a sign that he'd helped print, he would proudly tell them "Hey, I did that."

After graduating from high school, McCarty enrolled in college at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas. He earned his degree in Printing Management, then went to work for a large commercial printer.

But then he abruptly switched gears and decided to venture into auto glass sales with his brother. It provided excitement: he could travel, and he liked meeting lots of different people on the road. He did this for 13 years. Once he got married, though, he realized he needed to grow roots.

"In the back of my mind, I knew I always had that degree in printing. I always liked working with my hands and love cars," says the admitted NASCAR fanatic.

Though he misses the people he befriended on the road, McCarty doesn't regret his decision to return to printing. In his absence, though, the printing industry had changed drastically. Still, in 1992 he landed an interview with Emporia State University—an interview that lasted four hours.

"They were grilling me," McCarty recalls. Despite his long hiatus, he impressed them with his knowledge and was offered the job of assistant director of Printing Services.

Back to School

McCarty's skills clearly hadn't taken too much of a hit during his absence, as the in-plant won First Place in the four-color magazine category in In-Print 97, using a two-color, 26˝ Komori press.

"I was proud that we won," McCarty recalls. "We beat the best: BYU. The photography design was awesome."

To brush up on his skills, he took classes on software, like Quark. He still has a yearning for the days when computers weren't such a keystone in the industry, though.

"We are in a green button world," he laments. "It might look good on a computer and on a laser printer but that doesn't mean when you run it on a press it will keep that quality. Computers improved image and color for sure, but there is always the issue of design. You need a good designer."

In 1999, McCarty migrated to Missouri State University where he now manages the five-employee in-plant. Recently, one of the toughest issues he's had to deal with has been budget cuts.

"I had to lay five people off," he reports, sadly. "Some of these guys had 25 years in. It was tough."

With a portion of his staff gone, McCarty, teamed up with Postal Services, which is located in the same area. Now the staffs help each other out when workloads get heavy (e.g. hand assembly, bulk mailings).

To increase revenue McCarty says the in-plant is going to begin insourcing work from local non-profits, schools and government agencies over the next few months. He sees potential additional revenue of $150,000 a year.

McCarty, who loves hunting, fishing and camping in his spare time, says what he most enjoys about returning to the printing industry are the people.

"I've got a good crew," he boasts. "I couldn't do it without them. The way I motivate them is simple: I wouldn't ask them to do anything I don't do myself. And I'm always on hand to help out.

"It's not an 'I' thing," he concludes, "it's a 'we' thing." IPG