In-plant Profiles

Since joining the in-plant at Portland General Electric, Wes Friesen has worked hard to strengthen its team atmosphere while adding equipment and services. By Bob Neubauer Wes Friesen has been a busy man for the past six years. Since taking over as manager of Billing & Remittance Services at Portland General Electric, which includes printing and automated mail, he has been hard at work revamping the 11-employee in-plant—upgrading equipment, adding services and building a team atmosphere. The operation's success is evident from the handful of recent awards it has won. "I really have enjoyed both printing and the mail functions," Friesen says. "I find

Smaller formats, chemistry-free alternatives and a variety of imaging technologies are motivating in-plants to successfully—and profitably—bring computer-to-plate imaging in-house. By Vincent De Franco Doug Fenske is one of the growing number of in-plant managers who have realized the benefits and profitability of converting to a computer-to-plate (CTP) workflow. "It's just awesome," he enthuses, referring to the productivity gains he's enjoyed since leading the transformation of the Minnesota State University at Mankato Print Center to CTP. According to Fenske, the range of new opportunities and benefits includes perfect registration, faster imaging speeds and significant process improvements. "It's just so cool," he says.

Hobby Lobby's in-plant has gone from a one-man, one-press shop when it started five years ago, to 14 employees, four presses and a new HP Indigo digital color press. By Bob Neubauer Brad Smith can still remember the good old days. "It started off small—one press, one person," recalls Smith, offset printing manager for Hobby Lobby's Oklahoma City-based in-plant. But he doesn't have to think back very far to summon up this memory. It was the fall of 1999, five short years ago, when he was hired to run the new Hamada 234 the company had ordered to print its forms. Having spent 12

After working in Alaska government print shops for 32 years, Harold Pence is about to retire. By Kristen E. Monte In 1972, Harold Pence began working on his first press, an A.B.Dick 360. More than 30 years later, and on the brink of his retirement, he still feels that printing is in his blood. Pence, Duplicating Services manager of the State of Alaska's Legislative Printshop, was born and raised in Illinois. After graduating high school in 1967, though, he was looking for a change, so he moved with his mother to Douglas, Alaska, a small island across the channel from Juneau. He has been

The three largest state government in-plants are all on the West Coast. Despite budget cuts and calls for privatization, they continue to thrive--but changes are afoot. By Erik Cagle Don't let the calendar fool you. It may not read 1849, but tremendous wealth is still being mined in the largely untapped western portion of our country. Instead of prospectors dredging local waterways for gold nuggets, though, government in-plants are reaping a fortune by producing print and communications-related products for their respective agencies. Look at the figures. Each of the three West Coast states cracked the top 10 list on the In-Plant Graphics Top

Jennifer Bowers has excelled in printing from Colorado to New York. Now she's putting her experience to good use at Florida State University. By Joe Ranoia Printing is in Jennifer Bowers' blood. Her father taught the subject at Purdue University. "I'm a university brat," she quips. "Probably that connection got me interested in graphics." Bowers took that connection and turned it into an accomplished career, finally landing in Tallahassee as director of Printing and Mailing Services at Florida State University. Bowers, 45, grew up in South Bend, Ind., before moving to Colorado. While in high school she took a job at a small

The Association of College and University Printers conference took place in IPG's home town of Philadelphia this year, drawing 95 managers from four countries. By Bob Neubauer Philadelphia may be a showplace of American history, but for printers the city carries a separate significance thanks to local legend Benjamin Franklin. After opening one of the city's first print shops here, he went on to make a name for himself as a printer and patriot. So when the Association of College and University Printers came to town recently, how could the group get through its three-day conference without a visit from old Ben? On

Most In-Plant Graphics readers can take just a cursory look down Fortune magazine's 500 list and quickly spot dozens of companies whose in-plants have been profiled by IPG. That's because so many of these successful companies know that having an in-plant to provide quick, confidential printing is critical to their success. It's rather telling that the number one company on the Fortune 500, Wal-Mart, also maintains one of the largest, busiest in-plants in the country. To find out just how important some of these Fortune 500 companies feel their in-plants are, IPG talked with eight of them, focusing on the insurance, retail,

As the IPMA conference pulls into Philadelphia this month, Jim Leake will be there to introduce people to the city he loves. By Erik Cagle The International Publishing Management Association (IPMA) conference visits Philadelphia this month, and Jim Leake is in heaven. The president of the Philadelphia chapter of IPMA and a 10-year member, Leake loves to interact with people. The association and the conference provide the opportunity to both teach and learn, and herein lies the value for Leake, senior graphic services specialist for the National Board of Medical Examiners. "The IPMA is an invaluable resource in learning about this trade, and a

Leases were running out and equipment was looking old, so the State of South Dakota Central Duplicating made new installations for the new year. The Pierre, S.D., in-plant was awarded a state bidding contract on November 12; by December 31, six Xerox machines were up and running. "Our leases ran out in November, so we had to do something different," says Manager Gloria Schultz. This 12-employee in-plant upgraded with three Xerox 6135s, two Xerox WorkCentre Pro 90s and a Xerox 6100 to replace a pair of DocuTech 5800s, one 135 and one 5100. According to Schultz, the in-plant does all state printing, such