Xerox Corp.

Canon plans to buy Dutch copier and printer maker Océ for 730 million euros ($1.09 billion), challenging rivals Ricoh and Xerox in a hunt for growth during the sector downturn.

IPG has just posted a video of last year's National Government Publishing Association conference, in Belleview, Wash. (Better late than never.) Attended by 82 government and university in-plants, the conference included a tour of the State of Washington Department of Printing, a large web and sheetfed offset plant with a unique envelope converting operation.

Last week government and university in-plant managers from all over the country converged on New Orleans for the 33rd annual National Government Publishing Association conference. Inspired by the New Orleans location, several speakers spiced up their presentations with Louisiana food and drink, and most attendees were spotting wearing Mardi Gras beads at one point or another.

NEW ORLEANS' devastation at the hands of Hurricane Katrina was witnessed on TV screens worldwide. But seeing the aftermath first hand, as attendees of the recent National Government Publishing Association conference did, left a far more poignant impression.

FOR 10 YEARS, copying services at Villanova University School of Law were provided by Xerox under a facilities management contract. There were, however, some strings attached. The university had to supply the toner. And students had to bring their own paper.

AFTER STARTING up an extensive digital in-plant almost three years ago, the Church of Scientology has decided to replicate this success with an even more ambitious in-house printing operation. Just a few months from now the church plans to open a new offset printing plant in Commerce, Calif., 15 minutes from downtown Los Angeles.

Like many in-plants, the Printing and Mailing Services department at the University of St. Thomas, in St. Paul, Minn., is in the midst of a digital transition. In fact, just a few short weeks ago the 24-employee shop made the decision to get rid of its one remaining offset press—an ABDick 9850 duplicator with a T-head that was being used exclusively for envelopes.

TONY CAROSI caught the printing bug at an early age. Now the director of Print Operations for CVS/pharmacy, the Woonsocket, R.I.-based pharmacy, health and beauty aids giant, Carosi recalls a mandatory graphic arts class turning into a life-long love of the printing industry.

Gustavus Adolphus College shed the label of being a “Xerox shop” when Brad Johnson, director of Printing Services, purchased two high-speed Canon printers: a monochrome imagePRESS 1110P and a color imageRUNNER C5185.

Though some in-plants have replaced the word "Printing" in their names with "Communications" the University of Delaware's in-plant has just done the opposite. The 19-employee in-plant has rechristened itself "University Printing," after years of being called the "Graphic Communication Center."