Mailing/Fulfillment - Postal Trends

ASKING WHAT kind of impact  that a recessional economy has on direct mail campaigns is like asking how many beach-goers will be turned away by an approaching hurricane. Sure, there are those who will want to brave it, but most people prefer to take a wait-and-see approach somewhere safe.

WASHINGTON, DC—With mail volumes continuing to dwindle and added costs mandated by the Postal Act of 2006, the U.S. Postal Service finished its 2008 fiscal year with a net loss of $2.8 billion. The loss came despite cost-cutting measures in excess of $2 billion, including 50 million fewer work hours. However, mail volume plummeted by 9.5 billion pieces to 202.7 billion, a decline of 4.5 percent compared to 2007. The USPS also cited the national economy and the use of electronic mail as reasons for the decline.

MONTREAL—Transcontinental Direct USA, the U.S. direct mail subsidiary of Transcontinental Inc., will consolidate production from its Warminster, PA, facility to its plant in Hamburg, PA. The move will result in the elimination of 460 positions, though employees will be offered the opportunity to apply for available positions in Hamburg. The transfer of production should be complete by January 2009.

CHANHASSEN, MN—With a dramatic decline in mail volume reducing the need for the facility's core of acquisition mail, IWCO Direct announced it was closing its Elm City, NC, facility, leaving 380 workers without jobs.

BALTIMORE—Vertis Communications has successfully consummated its prepackaged Chapter 11 plan and its merger with American Color Graphics (ACG). The new company will be headquartered here under the Vertis Communications brand. As a whole, the network boasts 100 worldwide locations and roughly 8,000 employees.

MARYSVILLE, OH—October 23, 2008—Univenture, Inc., is the award winning inventor and manufacturer of a wide array of eco-friendly products for direct mail, digital and document storage and packaging.  The company will feature its comprehensive line of eco-friendly products and solutions at Graph Expo on October 26-29 at McCormick Place South in Chicago, IL in Booth 1582 located in the Mailing and Fulfillment Center.

ROCHESTER, NY—Oct. 22, 2008—Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) today unveiled its Mail Shop in a Box program, a simple way for commercial and quick printers to add mailing services to their business. Xerox also announced a collection of new business development tools and services – including Web-based sales training and Webinars on industry trends.

HENRIETTA, NY—October 2008—At Graph Expo in Chicago , in booth 2070, Lake Image Systems will introduce the IntegraJET L400 Inkjet Printing System.  An entirely new concept, the Lake Image Systems IntegraJET L400 Inkjet Printing System provides the most accurately matched printing in the industry, at the output of an inserter, stitcher, or card attacher, while enabling the use of thermal, solvent, and UV-based printhead technologies.

GAITHERSBURG—October 21, 2008—MCS, Inc., a leader in industrial and mailing inkjet technology and camera systems, is showing several new technologies for the first time at Graph Expo 2008 in Chicago, October 26-29.

NEW CANAAN, CT—Former Sandy Alexander executives Roy Grossman and Chip Stine announced they have formed MSP LLC, as a vehicle for making investments in printing-related companies with revenues in excess of $5 million.