IKON Office Solutions

Missouri's State Printing Center has relocated, along with the state's mailing operation, into a 250,000-square-foot building about seven miles from the State Capitol. "Because so much of what we print gets mailed anyway, it's really nice to have us all here together," says State Printer Rodney Vessell.

At Metro, the transit agency serving the St. Louis region, the five-employee in-house printing and mailing facility recently executed multiple, multi-faceted initiatives that have resulted in improved quality, increased efficiency and major cost savings. The in-plant has been supporting Metro for more than 20 years, producing platform schedules, training and employee documentation/manuals, forms, business cards and stationery, newsletters and board meeting materials, among other jobs. The facility also houses a full-service mail center. Both printing and mailing functions are considered part of Metro's Office Services department.

IPG Editor Bob Neubauer recently visited four different New York City in-plants to learn about their operations.

New York was decked out for Christmas when IPG Editor Bob Neubauer went there to visit four in-plants: NBC, Metropolitan Museum of Art, AXA Equitable and the NY Presbyterian Hospital.

Dale Zipkin knew his shop needed a better color printer. The 10-employee in-plant for the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT) union was using older color devices from Canon and Konica Minolta, but maintenance problems were hindering productivity. Splitting jobs between the two printers wasn't working out either.

Printers are by transitioning from traditional print shops into marketing service providers. To find out how and why they are differentiating themselves in this way, IKON Office Solutions (now a Ricoh company) and The NAPL Network are offering half-day, hands-on workshops in four cities.

Last Friday, Ricoh completed its acquisition of equipment distributor Ikon Office Solutions. Today, IPG learned that Canon has severed its retail dealer agreements with Ikon. Ikon will no longer be an authorized Canon dealer or service provider.

Though several in-plants’ Ikon dealers have reassured them they will see no cutbacks in service of Canon equipment purchased through Ikon, Ikon’s access to Canon’s higher levels of tech support may eventually be impacted. There may also be delays in getting Canon parts and supplies.

IT’S A good thing Catherine Chambers isn’t afraid of a challenge, because that’s exactly what she got when she accepted the position of manager of Printing & Mailing Services for the State College Area School District in State College, Pa. “I replaced an excellent manager [Gary Burris] who’d been in the position for 38 years,” she explains. “It was my job to take an analog print shop, complete with three offset presses, and bring it into the digital age.” And with more than 20 years of experience in managing print, copier and mailing functions in higher education and the private sector, Chambers was

To bolster its distribution capabilities, Ricoh plans to acquire Ikon Office Solutions, the only remaining large, independent, U.S. distributor of printers, copiers and MFPs. This follows the June acquisition of Danka Office Imaging Co. by Konica Minolta Business Solutions USA. The $1.617 billion Ricoh/Ikon deal, ambitiously targeted to close during the fourth quarter of 2008, has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies, though it still requires approval of shareholders and North American and European antitrust authorities. Ricoh Americas Corp., a wholly owned U.S. distribution subsidiary of Tokyo-based Ricoh Co., Ltd., will facilitate the acquisition by merging its own subsidiary, Keystone

In late June, Konica Minolta Business Solutions USA completed its acquisition of Danka Office Imaging, strengthening its distribution capabilities. Now Ricoh is about take the same approach. The company just announced plans to acquire Ikon Office Solutions, the only remaining large, independent U.S. distributor of printers, copiers and MFPs. The $1.617 billion deal, ambitiously targeted to close during the fourth quarter of 2008, has been approved by both boards of directors, though it still requires approval of shareholders and North American and European antitrust authorities. “Ikon has terrific strength in areas that complement Ricoh’s growth strategy,” says Shiro Kondo, president and CEO of