50th: Long Road to Automation — From High Touch to Hi Tech

Michael Bruno, executive director, Technical Association of the Graphic Arts: By the time another quarter century has passed, we will have seen development of totally computerized systems from original to output, which will mean ink-on-paper, toner-on-paper or display terminal--which itself will not necessarily be a cathode tube, but a flat plasma display. [Kudos to Bruno for mentioning flat displays, but he probably would have been surprised that it took about 20 years for such displays to become commonplace.]

o Doing More with Less

James Niesen, executive director, Binding Industries of America: Continuing mechanization will be the single most influential factor (in the bindery). Through the use of robotics, the industry will continue to increase volume and, consequently, there will be more printing produced without an increase in the number of employees in the industry. [Good as far as it goes, but doesn't anticipate the trend of printers bringing postpress in-house.]

Gilbert Bassett, executive director, Graphic Arts Technical Foundation: Prepress will all be done in a system that will output directly to the press without going to film, or any other assembly. It will all be combined to an in-line function, electronically powered, somehow. [Not bad, but given that the year was 1982, the "somehow" is awful vague.]

Charles Alessandrini, president, National Association of Printers and Lithographers: From the management side, the proliferation of computerized management information systems, especially as related to time and materials data collection, will be the significant development. [Unfortunately, the industry has a spotty record of fully utilizing this technology, even among users.]

o Down Memory Lane

There's a degree of pride that comes with being one of the two Printing Impressions editorial staff members who can lay claim to actually having lived the last 25 years (and then some) of the industry's history. From a technological standpoint, among the firsthand memories that stand out are: