In-plant Events

Your competition over the next five to 10 years will only get stronger. Without a solid financial foundation, your in-plant will be unable to fund the new investments necessary to compete. To help you survive and grow, xpedx has once again contracted with Prime Digital Printing to conduct free in-plant workshops in several cities. Called “MBA of Finance,” these are brand new workshops that go much deeper than the previous seminars. They will provide in-plants with strategies to help them get senior management to make the investments necessary to successfully take on the competition. The first three workshops in Chicago, Philadelphia and Charlotte went well. The

The College and University Print Management Association of Canada (CUPMAC) kicks off this weekend in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Hosted by Memorial University of Newfoundland, the 39th annual conference will feature popular printing industry speaker Frank Romano. Bob Neubauer, editor of In-Plant Graphics, will also give two presentations to the group.

FOR THE first time since its initial meeting in 1964, the Association of College and University Printers (ACUP) returned to Massachusetts recently for its annual conference. And despite some stiff conference competition—ACUP kicked off just days after the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association conference wrapped up in Las Vegas—ACUP 2006 was a smashing success, drawing 130 managers from around the world. A number of first-time attendees from the New England area joined conference regulars from as far away as Alaska, the U.K., Australia and New Zealand. A large contingent from California was also on hand, building enthusiasm for ACUP 2007 in San Francisco—not

IT MAY not be a new topic, but on-demand printing can still pack a room—or a trade show floor, as was the case at the recent AIIM On Demand Conference and Exposition. More than 20,000 visitors from 50 states and 62 countries traveled to Philadelphia in May for the annual event. Waiting to greet them were some 450 exhibitors, all displaying their latest wares. Despite the show’s successful two-year run in Philadelphia, though, the city will not be hosting next year’s event (and no, the annoying cab strike on the first day had nothing to do with it). Questex Media Group, the

Philadelphia’s two-year run in hosting the AIIM and ON DEMAND expos came to an end yesterday with the conclusion of the technologies show at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The event will move to the Boston Convention & Exposition Center next spring, April 17-19, 2007. The show’s producer, Questex Media Group, is based in Newton, MA. As for the ON DEMAND Conference and Expo, it handed down Best of Show awards in six general categories. Standard Finishing Systems won in the bindery and finishing equipment category for its Standard Horizon BQ-470 perfect binder. Océ North America pulled down top honors in the printing equipment category with

IPG Editor Bob Neubauer was behind the camera at the recent IPMA conference, speaking with managers about some of the best ideas they have implemented in their operations. The resulting video, which was shot during the vendor fair, can be seen by clicking on this link: http://new.ipgonline.com/video/ipg0606ipma.html

THOUGH PRINTING equipment may have grabbed most of the attention at the On Demand show last month, bindery equipment had a strong presence too. From desktop folding units to floor model perfect binders, the show had a range of post-press gear. IPG visited with all of the major vendors at the Philadelphia show and collected information on their latest products for the in-plant market. One bindery highlight at the show was the Standard Horizon BQ-470 fully-automated four-clamp perfect binder. Standard Finishing Systems was awarded Best of Show honors for this product in the bindery category at On Demand by judges from BERTL, a

JOHN HURT spoke quite candidly when he addressed the crowd at April’s IPMA conference. The International Publishing Management Association has gone through some hard times, he said. Membership and conference attendance has declined, and a lack of clear business and recruitment policies have hindered growth. All that is changing now, continued Hurt, IPMA’s international president. Not only did this year’s IPMA conference in Las Vegas draw an increase in attendees over last year, it generated a profit for the first time in years. The association’s cash flow has been positive for more than six months, he added, its sponsorships are increasing, it has enacted

Xplor joined up with Graphics of the Americas last month to bolster its conference. Did it work? By Bob Neubauer AFTER WATCHING attendance at its conference dwindle since the booming days of the '90s, Xplor International teamed up with the successful Graphics of the Americas (GOA) conference this year, putting on a joint event last month in Miami Beach that drew about 24,500 attendees, according to organizers. The partnership seems to have been a wise move, as it freed Xplor from the task of organizing a trade show, allowing it to concentrate on its educational mission. GOA, in turn, got a host of

SITUATED ON the banks of the Cape Fear River, Wilmington, N.C., is rich in both history and great food. It was also home to the 2005 Southeastern University Printing and Duplicating Managers Conference (SUPDMC), held in October. Hosted by Don Harty, manager of Printing Services at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington, and Roland Falana, general manager of Office Products & Services at Duke University, this year's conference was also rich in education and entertainment. With approximately 60 in-plant representatives and 16 vendors in attendance, the conference focused on the changing face of printing. Sessions covered document management, in-plant closings (and how to prevent