Y2K--A Common Cause

Sized to Fit
Given that a company which generates $10 million or less in sales annually is going to have different problems and needs than a company the size and scope of R.R. Donnelley, discussion groups can be geared for all participants. Smaller printers can get access to the intranet site and some of the meeting reports.

"I wanted to make sure we could reach as many people as possible," Horton remarks. "The Graphics Century Project is a proactive, positive program on Y2K. I receive fliers every day about Y2K programs, and it's all scare tactics. We're not taking that approach."

The project is also taking advantage of legislation passed recently to encourage the dissemination of Y2K ideas and plans. Through the Y2K Information Disclosure Act, participating companies will be granted limited liability for disclosing plans and readiness. The association's project provides the industry umbrella.

Out in the Open
"By doing this, we're able to bring competitive companies together to discuss Y2K—an issue that they normally wouldn't discuss," Horton says. "By being a part of the project, you're provided with that umbrella of protection. The Justice Department has come out and said that kind of competitive information exchange is not in violation of anti-trust laws."

It is Horton's hope that the project picks up more and more smaller printers as the clock ticks off to the year 2000.

"The industry is going to be pretty well prepared, and it's especially true of the larger and medium-sized companies," he remarks. "Companies under $40 million to $50 million in sales need to be doing more and that's where the affiliate program comes in."

For more information on joining the Graphics Century Project, call Virgil Horton at (703) 519-8194 or e-mail him at vhorton@gca.org.

Tips on Bug Dissection

To find a Y2K bug, you need not think like a bug. Quad/Graphics' Pat Maher, the industry chair at the Graphics Century Project, can lend a hand.