Pauline Gindlesperger Reflects on 75 Years in the Print Industry
CHAMBERSBURG, PA— March 15, 2010—Pauline Gindlesperger remembers the print industry before the benefits of e-mail, the Internet, digital photography, digital printing or even photocopying. Less than a couple of decades back, she recalls how every proof had to be snail mailed, hand delivered or picked up. Communications was by landline phones or in person. Edits often required someone with a steady hand cutting out copy with an XACTO knife and then pasting down the correction. Photos were processed in darkrooms using chemicals. Faxes were sent using landline phones that required synchronization by the sender and the receiver. U. S. mail was the way to send and receive letters and packages.
She knows because at age 92 she is completing her 75th year in the industry.
"Never in my dreams would I have imagined that we could do what we can do today," she said. "After World War II, for instance, we thought mimeograph machines were phenomenal. They were replaced by the first photocopiers in the 1960's and look where we are today with computers, digital printing and wireless communications. It really is remarkable what I can do just sitting at my computer. It's wonderful."
She began her career at age 17 and worked in the local paper mill where her first responsibilities included managing the mill's printed label requirements. She rose from clerical positions to become the mill's business manager which included oversight of all of the mill's printing. Ten years later during World War II, she bought a local printing company.
"We specialized in job work, book binding and the ruling of ledger sheets. I bought the company without knowing the first thing about printing," she recalled. "But business is business, and I thought that printing would make a good investment. As soon as my money was in, I had to make some hard management decisions. Once implemented, I was able to add some additional printing from Washington as well as some label printing from the local paper mill. It worked out as one of my best investments. I remember having a 100% ROI the first year."
Back then, Mrs. Gindlesperger said the print industry had just embraced large rotary presses that could print millions of copies a day. The rotary press feeds a continuous stream of paper through drum-shaped cylinders and was much cheaper to operate than any of its predecessors. Printers also were beginning to use smaller jobbing presses – more agile, less cumbersome to set-up than the rotary press. Letter presses capable of printing small-format pieces such as letterheads, business cards and envelopes also became popular. Offset printing was not yet widely used and linotypes and hand-set type were called modern.
A true revolution for the print industry occurred with the introduction of the photocopier by Xerox in 1959, Mrs. Gindlesperger said. About 15 years later, in 1975, IBM came out with the first high-speed laser printer, the Model 3800, for the business market, and, Mrs. Gindlesperger said this had a real impact on small jobs that otherwise would have come to a professional printer. The first mass-market household model photocopier was the HP LaserJet, which was released in 1984, and that too cut into work that would have been brought to a print shop.
But, Mrs. Gindlesperger said photocopier and fax machine advances pale compared to what has happened since the Internet was introduced in the 1990s. "We are so use to instantaneous communications now, we think nothing of it," she said. "The speed with which we can send e-mails with attachments, like proofs, is mind boggling. The Internet era has hurt and helped the print industry. Printers are so much more efficient today because of it. However, so is everyone else and the need for printed documents is on the decline. Look at what has happened with the U. S. Post Office because it raised its prices and caused the drastic drop in direct mail pieces."
Mrs. Gindlesperger admitted that at first, she was very skeptical about computers. "Now, I have to be pulled away from mine," she quickly added. "The computer is like my lifeline to the rest of the world. Our business certainly has changed because of them."
Computerization makes it possible for e-LYNXX to provide the sophisticated services that it offers to printers and print buyers today. Chambersburg-based e-LYNXX Corporation is the company that Mrs. Gindlesperger's son, William, began after he grew the family's print business, retired from it and became a consultant and an inventor. His first post-print shop firm, formed in 1975, was ABC Advisors. That name was changed to e-LYNXX in 1999 as the business began to diversify.
"My mother was supportive as I formed ABC Advisors and then e-LYNXX, and her advice has been invaluable as we have grown over the years," said William Gindlesperger. "She has been a key advisor as the company evolved from working with printers, assisting them to win work from the U. S. Government Printing Office, to the significant services that we now offer to assist print buyers in the United States and Canada to improve their print procurement process and reduce their costs for procured print at the same time."
e-LYNXX's developed the computerized communications and workflow system that supports the procurement methodology that William Gindlesperger invented and had patented. Mrs. Gindlesperger assisted with the patent filings. That was in 1998. The first patent (U. S. Patent No. 6,397,197), awarded in 2002, makes it possible for e-LYNXX's American Print Management division print buyer clients to reduce their hard-dollar costs for print in the 25% to 50% range. The second of the two patents (U. S. Patent No. 7,451,106) was awarded to e-LYNXX in 2008. It basically broadens the scope of the first patent, making it possible for buyers of all types of customized (specification defined) goods and services to reduce their costs.
The firm's clients today are a Who's Who of businesses. They represent most business segments including the heavy equipment construction, building materials, parcel delivery, computer hardware, retail, grocery, health care, finance, resale distributor and association sectors.
e-LYNXX was honored by Supply & Demand Chain Executive magazine in 2009 as one of the top 100 procurement firms in North America. William Gindlesperger was then honored by Supply & Demand Chain Executive in February by being included in its 2010 listing of influential procurement leaders in North America. Also in 2009, he was chosen to become a member of the Printing Industries of America's Ben Franklin Honor Society for his lifetime achievements and contributions to the printing industry
"I am really proud of my son, our company and the e-LYNXX staff," Mrs. Gindlesperger said. "We are making a difference in a way that is helping others. We help our clients become more profitable. That, in turn, keeps them in business and provides jobs. That's really important in today's economy."
"My mother is truly amazing and continues to make a meaningful contribution as a corporate officer of e-LYNXX Corporation and an important member of our team," said William Gindlesperger adding that she comes to the office every day where she still signs all e-LYNXX checks and is involved with a variety of administrative activities.
About e-LYNXX Corp.
e-LYNXX Corp., the North American procurement authority, is exclusively endorsed by Printing Industries of America (PIA) and Educational and Institutional Cooperative Purchasing (E&I) and recognized as a top 100 procurement firm by Supply & Demand Chain Executive. Founded in 1975, e-LYNXX has three divisions. • American Print Management provides enterprise print procurement solutions and patented competitive methods to reduce costs for direct mail, marketing materials, packaging and other procured print. • Patented Procurement Method grants patent licenses for supply chain optimization. • Government Print Management offers U.S. GPO bid services, access and assistance. www.e-LYNXX.com – 888-876-5432