Wallace

(Editor's Note: The following was prepared by Compass Capital Partners, the printing industry's most active investment banker. Located in Radnor, PA, and headed by Chairman Harris M. DeWese, it represents only sellers and buyers of printing companies. Since 1996, Compass Capital has completed 47 transactions involving printing revenues exceeding $1.5 billion.) The U.S. printing industry is a bedrock of our economy. Yet, in this day of electronic communication, some are telling us that print-on-paper communication is about to be replaced by alternative media. Compass Capital Partners has been following the printing industry for 12 years. We have made our living from representing buyers and

With every sale there is a "paper trail." The demand for printed materials such as receipts, invoices and promotional material increases with every transaction. That is why financial institutions, Fortune 500 companies and retail giants are turning to Wallace Computer Services—the provider of Total Print Management (TPM)—to help them implement and execute their sales and retail operations by ensuring that invoices, tracking labels and promotional literature support each purchase efficiently. Wallace, a 92-year-old company with sales of nearly $1.6 billion, is one of North America's largest fully integrated printing companies. To execute TPM, Wallace strategically audits every variable that relates to the printing and distribution

Lisle, IL—Wallace Computer Services has begun a review of operations following lower-than-expected earnings for the most recent quarter and the resignation of its CEO. Officials believe the drop in earnings are due to continuing softness in the high-quality color marketing and promotional printing market, as well as issues relating to the 1998 acquisition of Graphic Industries. Wallace officials are in the process of developing an action plan that could result in a restructuring to deal with under-performing assets and rationalization of certain product lines. The move follows the resignation of Chairman and CEO Robert J. Cronin, 55. Board member Neele E. Stearns Jr. was

CHICAGO—The eighth annual GATF/NAPL Sheetfed Conference brought 420 attendees and 53 sponsors together recently to hear predictions of the future and case studies of innovative success stories. Consultants Frank Romano and Ray Prince offered some technology projections for the next couple of decades. Prince reminded the audience that printing press development has historically followed five-year time frames, adding that enhancements have invariably been driven by demands for higher productivity, not quality. He expects several new digital presses and many new robotic and automation advancements to be introduced at DRUPA 2000. Presses of the future will be simpler (to operate, not maintain!) with reusable plates/cylinders,

If you think that you can't grow in a mature market, then your paycheck doesn't come from Wallace. The business forms-cum-commercial printing giant knows how to make a stagnant niche look like a bonanza. Up until recently, Wallace drew the bulk of its business from forms, a segment that the company estimates is dropping 4 to 6 percent annually. But you would never guess that from Wallace's sales. "Our market share is about 6 percent of the forms market as a whole," explains Bob Cronin, president and CEO. "And when you have the value-added differentiator that we have in a marketplace, you can grow