IWCO Direct

POETS HAVE long waxed lyrical about spring and its signifying of renewal in life, with birds joyfully singing amid blooming flowers on warm, sunny days, and pixies dropping magic dust everywhere. Well, it says here that a strong case can be made for the fall season. The days increasingly become intoxicatingly cool. Leaves change colors, turning the countryside into an artist’s canvas. And Green Bay football fans are reminded of the loss of Brett Favre to the New York Jets. Add one reason to recognize fall as “the season”—Graph Expo. You need to get away from the plant for a few days. It’s

Shareholders OK Vertis Plan BALTIMORE—Vertis shareholders approved the company’s prepackaged plan of organization. Once the plan becomes effective, Vertis can proceed with its merger with American Color Graphics (ACG). The restructuring will allow Vertis to reduce debt and interest cost, refocus investments and complete both the reorganization and merger in a couple of months, according to Mike DuBose, chairman and CEO of Vertis. Direct Group Makes Investment SWEDESBORO, NJ—Direct marketing specialist Direct Group has purchased 32 Océ VarioStream 8750 systems to upgrade capacity; increase uptime, speed and operational efficiencies; and take advantage of some of the industry’s latest digital technology, including flexible color

CHANHASSEN, MN—In a bid to optimize its mailing operations, IWCO Direct plans to expand capacity at facilities in North Carolina and Minnesota, in part with equipment relocated from a plant in Melville, NY, which will be closed. The company expects to relocate up to 40 employees from that facility to the one in North Carolina, but this consolidation will result in the reduction of approximately 200 New York positions. IWCO’s goal is to qualify for the greater postage savings available to high-volume mailers while lowering its operating and logistics costs. The move includes centralizing its AMP (automated marketing program) platform at the Minnesota facility

Adam Garwolinski has been promoted to pressroom foreman with the recent installation of a fourth Komori press at Elk Grove Village, IL-based Quality Color Graphics. Dalim Software Users Organization—which offers an unbiased collaborative channel of communications between Dalim Software users, staff and resellers—has elected new officers at the 2008 North American Dalim Software Users Organization (DUO) Annual Meeting at the PGA National Resort & Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, FL. Brent Kantola, prepress manager at Rogers Printing, and Stephen White, specialist, Integrated Manufacturing, at Vertis Communications, were elected president and vice president, respectively. Thomas Kern, former director of operations for Transcontinental Direct’s facility in

Standard Acquires Veitch READING, PA—Standard Offset Printing has purchased Veitch Printing and Veitch Digital Partners for an undisclosed amount of cash, according to the Lancaster (PA) Intelligencer Journal. The deal creates a company with a potential for annual sales of $25 to $30 million. NewPage Going Public MIAMISBURG, OH—Coated paper manufacturer NewPage Group is planning an initial public offering, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The Associated Press reports that the offering price may be as much as $805 million. Some NewPage stockholders will sell shares as part of the IPO. Impact Obtains ZipSort MINNEAPOLIS—Direct mail marketing specialist Impact

CHANHASSEN, MN—Cited for its three-year annualized growth of 22.5 percent from 2004 through 2007, direct mail specialist IWCO Direct was ranked as the fifth-fastest growing private company in Minnesota during that timeframe by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal. With sales of $282 million in 2007, IWCO Direct ranked as the 78th largest private company, according…

THERE WILL come a day, sometime soon, when print buyers will come to respect the value that direct mail printers bring to the table in a consulting capacity. As for now, many printers have to be scratching their heads and wondering, “Where’s the love?” Or, better yet, why the lowball? This ain’t a commodity, pal. “I had a client who told me that my printing price was a little higher than the competition’s,” notes Paul Nichols, president of Tulsa, OK-based CP Solutions, a Consolidated Graphics company. So Nichols made the customer a tongue-in-cheek offer: He would print and mail the job for the price

CHANHASSEN, MN—IWCO Direct is introducing AMP, its automated marketing program platform. AMP was developed to meet the growing demand for specialized direct mail programs such as trigger mailings and response management services.AMP is designed to help marketers extend their relationships with clients. It focuses on relevant and timely communications, including trigger mail, event marketing and…

WASHINGTON, DC—April 2, 2008—The Print Council, a national business development initiative created to help promote greater use of printing and print media, announced that Mohawk Fine Papers Inc. the largest premium paper manufacturer in North America, has joined the organization. As a new member, Mohawk Fine Papers will work in concert with other member companies of The Print Council to help develop, maintain and expand the market for printed materials. Richard Schielke, National Business Development Manager of Mohawk Fine Papers, notes the importance of The Print Council’s mission for the industry’s future: “Commercial printing today must effectively compete more vigorously than ever against

JIM ANDERSEN is arguably the most well-known figure in the direct mail printing realm. The president and CEO of Chanhassen, MN-based IWCO Direct was a key advocate in the decade-long struggle to enact postal reform, which was finally achieved at the end of 2006. He met with politicians and sat down with key leaders of other industries to protect the interest of their common goal: a viable, enduring U.S. Postal Service (USPS). Andersen took the helm at IWCO Direct in April of 1999. As an equity partner, Andersen tapped his wide-ranging business experiences in guiding IWCO Direct—experiences that include more than 20 years in