Quebecor World

Pair Plead Guilty to Mail Fraud CHESTERFIELD, MO—A printing broker and a manager for a printing company each pleaded guilty to fraud charges related to a kickback scheme, according to the St. Louis Business Journal. Aristotle Kumpis pled guilty to two felony counts of mail fraud and Louis Drago pled guilty to one count of mail fraud. Each reportedly faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine per count, with mandatory restitution. A third participant in the kickback scheme, Elizabeth Richard, is awaiting sentencing on related charges. Kodak Names Leadership Team ROCHESTER, NY—Kodak's Graphic Communications Group (GCG) has announced its senior leadership

RRD Names Richter New CFO CHICAGO—Glenn Richter, former CFO for Sears, Roebuck and Co., has been named to fill the same role for RR Donnelley effective April 1. Richter replaces Kevin Smith, executive vice president and CFO. Richter brings big-name corporate experience to the Donnelley fold. Prior to joining Sears, he held several senior financial positions with Dade Behring Holdings. He also served various roles with PepsiCo Inc. and was a consultant with McKinsey & Co. Times Taps Goss for Controls NEW YORK—Six New York Times printing facilities are slated to receive press controls and digital inking as part of a phased press upgrade initiative. The enhancements

Leadership Award Bestowed at Show MIAMI BEACH—Warren Wilkins, president of Webcom Limited, was named Graphic Arts Leader of the Americas, North America for 2005 by the Printing Association of Florida (PAF) during Graphics of the Americas. Associates Graphic Services (AGS), Wilmington, DE, a provider of digital and traditional printing, has announced the acquisition of DocuSource, a producer of digital printing and variable data personalization. Cary Printing, Cary, NC, has hired Brant Chesner to fill the new position of operations manager. He formerly worked at Quebecor World Kingsport. Also, Sidney Copeland is the new vice president of digital printing. Copeland is the former co-owner of digital printing facility

MONTREAL—In an effort to strengthen its operating structure and improve efficiency, Quebecor World has reorganized its North American leadership structure. The translation: the position of COO for North America and its related functions has been abolished. David Boles, who previously held the position of COO, has agreed to stay with the company as a special advisor to President and CEO Pierre Karl Peladeau. The presidents of the North America business units will now report directly to Peladeau, who believes that the new structure "will better serve our customers and our shareholders going forward." The move also allows Peladeau to have a more direct relationship with operational

Predictions for 2005 And Other Ramblings The September 11th tragedy and the growing insurgency following the U.S. invasion of Iraq have reinforced, in no uncertain terms, how difficult it is to predict the future. And while we as a collective industry cannot control world events or the state of our overall economy, I do have a few predictions about what will be in store for us in the new year. Obviously, don't expect pricing pressure to wane in 2005. There still will be further industry consolidation, with those weak, underperforming shops driving down prices for everyone as they grapple to keep work—albeit unprofitable—coming

MONTREAL—Quebecor World U.S.A. and its parent company, Quebecor World, have filed suit against RR Donnelley and three former employees now working for the Chicago-based printer, alleging trade secrets violations. The suit was filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, IL. Quebecor World is seeking an injunction preventing Donnelley and the former Quebecor World employees from using or disclosing its trade secrets, and other relief. Quebecor World says it intends to prosecute the action aggressively. In a statement, Quebecor World noted it would have no further comment. A representative at RR Donnelley said the company was still reviewing the suit and did not have any

(Editor's Note: Company rankings for the current and previous years are based on figures reported in 2004. Therefore, companies that revised their 2003 revenues may have changed their 2003 ranking as compared with the ranking that appeared in last year's Printing Impressions 400. Similarly, the percentage change in sales is calculated on the most recent information provided.) 1 ('03: 2) RR Donnelley, Chicago, IL Total Sales (Millions): $8,204.50 Previous Year's Sales (Millions): $4,754.94 Change (%): +73 Principal Officer: Mark A. Angelson Employees: 44,000 Primary Specialties: SPEC 26%; CAT/PUB 23%; BF 10%; COM 9%; BKS 8% Web Offset Press Units: N/A Sheetfed Press

BY MARK SMITH Technology Editor It's only fitting that LIFE magazine should be a barometer for the vitality of the publication market. This de facto "canary in the coal mine" for the magazine publishing market recently had its third incarnation. What's significant about this latest go is that the magazine is now being distributed as a weekly newspaper insert, thereby avoiding subscription and mailing cost issues. Top 10 Publication Printers  CompanySegmentSales(millions)TotalSales(millions) 1*RR DonnelleyChicago$1,887$8,204 2Quebecor WorldMontreal$1,664$6,400 3Quad/GraphicsSussex, WI$740$2,000 4Brown PrintingWaseca, MN$320$400 5Cadmus CommunicationsRichmond, VA$302$445 6Banta Corp.Menasha, WI$184$1,418 6Perry Judd'sWaterloo, WI$184$297 8Publishers Printing/ Publishers Press,Shepherdsville, KY$160$160 9Vertis Inc.Baltimore$158$1,585 10The Sheridan GroupHunt Valley, MD$149$213 Sales figures are

by chris bauer Managing Editor Merger and acquisition activity. Monster trade shows. New faces in high places. The luck of the draw. It all adds up to just another year in the commercial printing industry. Let's take a look back at how the year 2004 played out, and who made headlines during the past 12 months. The year started out on shaky ground for the industry, with rumors that Heidelberg planned to sell off its web systems business and digital printing division, as well as reduce its worldwide work force by up to 1,000 employees. Eventually, the whispers became a reality as the other players in these

By far, the biggest development in the publication and catalog printing sectors has been the dramatic upswing in capital investment. In some cases the same equipment is slated to serve both markets, while other machines are going into plants dedicated to one or the other application. The ranks of multiple web press purchasers includes the likes of Perry Judd's and Trend Offset Printing, but vying for the title of biggest spender are Quebecor World (22 presses) and Quad/Graphics ($200+ million for a range of equipment). Dave Boles, COO, North America, at Quebecor World, and Thomas Quadracci, president and CEO of Quad/Graphics, were kind enough to