From the Editor: Conference Call
Spring is on the horizon. (Well, in my opinion, it’s been Spring all Winter here in Philadelphia, with lots of light-jacket days in January — but I digress.) Spring is the season for conferences in the in-plant world, and if you haven’t given them much thought, here’s one reason to do so: managers who attend conferences earn more money. It’s true. According to our new salary survey, conference attendees’ salaries are 9.2% higher than those of managers who stay at home.
Fortunately, there are many to choose from, each geared toward slightly different niches. There’s Xplor (March 28-30; Orlando, Fla.), billed as “The Customer Communications Conference.” Then the Association of College and University Printers (ACUP+) holds its 52nd conference in Cincinnati (April 2-6) for both higher-ed and school district in-plants. (Here's the site, but turn down your sound before clicking. You were warned.)
The Inkjet Summit is next on my schedule (April 24-26; Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.), and while it’s focused on all printers interested in production inkjet technology, this year we have added a track just for in-plants, which will cover their particular concerns and challenges as they move into inkjet.
Just days after that ends, IPG will host a brand new, one-day in-plant conference in Washington, D.C., that builds on our previous Digital Printing in Government and Higher-Ed Conference. Called the In-plant Innovators Conference, the May 9 event will present innovative ideas to help in-plants transform their businesses and add more value.
A month later, the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association (IPMA) will convene in Pittsburgh. As the largest in-plant event of the year, it’s always packed with educational sessions and excellent networking opportunities.
One new in-plant event that just popped up is the Western New York In-plant Event, an informal gathering of in-house print and mail centers in upstate New York. Catherine Chambers, director of Print & Mail Services at Alfred State, orchestrated the conclave, which will take place in Rochester. She envisions it as a way for in-plant staff members, who never get to go to conferences, to meet staff from other in-plants and compare notes. She values professional development of her staff, but has little funding for it. This event is one inexpensive solution.
“I believe that the value of the day will come from us introducing ourselves to each other, talking about our shops, and touring one of the larger insurance in-plants in Rochester,” she says. She hopes this “grass roots session” inspires regular educational events for in-plants in New York state.
It's not unheard of for in-plants to have regional gatherings. The Texas Association of College and University Printers (TACUP) has been meeting for many years. And in California, in-plants in the California State University system have gotten together to discuss their common challenges and ways they can work together. But this is a first for the Northeast, where in my experience managers seem more reluctant to get together. IPG will be sure to report on the event in an upcoming issue.
Bob has served as editor of In-plant Impressions since October of 1994. Prior to that he served for three years as managing editor of Printing Impressions, a commercial printing publication. Mr. Neubauer is very active in the U.S. in-plant industry. He attends all the major in-plant conferences and has visited more than 170 in-plant operations around the world. He has given presentations to numerous in-plant groups in the U.S., Canada and Australia, including the Association of College and University Printers and the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association. He also coordinates the annual In-Print contest, co-sponsored by IPMA and In-plant Impressions.
