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GraphicNews UPDATE
June 27, 2016
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Printers Beat Patent Troll
A patent troll, High Quality Printing Inventions (HQPI), dropped its infringement lawsuits against a group of printers that refused to give in and settle. The shell company owns a 1996 patent involving template design-to-print that was originally owned by Moore Business Forms and then transferred to R.R. Donnelley. HQPI started filing lawsuits in January against many printers that have eCommerce storefronts. While some defendants did settle, others banded together and refused to, even as the settlement amounts were steadily decreased by HQPI. The expense of having to litigate without the certainty of winning was apparently too great for HQPI. This should provide motivation for not giving in to the extortionist efforts of patent trolls. HQPI's legal counsel is the same law firm representing CTP Innovations, the troll that Printing Industries of America has battled with over two CTP workflow-related patents.
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New PIM Members!
Welcome!
UNL Print, Copy, Mail, Merchandising & Distribution Service
Contact: John Yerger, General Manager/Director - jyerger2@unl.edu, phone: 402-472-5113
Contact President David Radziej for prospective new members or if looking to be a PIM Member. Email davidr@pimw.org or call 612-400-6203.
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PIM Member OMET Amercias, Inc. Open House!
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Upcoming Events & Classes
61st Annual Minnesota Golf Outing - Keller Golf Course
Registration is open! Sign up, this event was a sellou
t last year! Sponsors are needed, lots of opportunities.
Tiburon Golf Course, Omaha, NE Registraion is open! Sponsors needed, lots of opportunities.
Wednesday, August 9th. Register Mark Your Calendar!
The 9th Annual Women in Print Luncheon Sponsored by Bremer Bank
Thursday, October 6th at Embassy Suites Minneapolis North from 11 am to 1:30 pm. Keynote speaker will be President/CEO of SeaChange, Wendi Breuer.
The Manufacturers Alliance will allow PIM Members to attend all Manufacturers Alliance Workshops at the MA Member price. Email
kdavis@pimw.org if you would like to sign up anyone from your team to any of the workshops.
https://www.mfrall.com/
"Virtual" iLearning Workshops. Are you finding it hard to get sales training for your team members or wanting to have new team members get in Intro to the Graphic Arts? Sign up for the "Virtual" iLearning Workshops to be held at the PIM training room in Minneapolis. There will be 8 Sales Sessions, offered two at a time and an Intro to the Graphic Arts offered in two - four hour sessions.
Schedule a
Red Cross CPR/First Aid Class at your company. Contact kdavis@pimw.org.
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PIM Paper Drive
The 41st Annual Surplus Paper Drive donation of paper will take place Friday, September 16th back at Veritiv in Brooklyn Park. Details will be provided in July. This is a reminder to start setting aside your surplus donation. Questions or to sign up early email Kristin Davis, kdavis@pimw.org. Thank you to Veritiv for hosting! Thank you to Anchor Paper, Carlson Print Group, C. J. Duffey, Fresh Color Press, GLS Companies , Ideal Printers, IWCO Direct, Japs-Olson, Mankato Packaging, Meyers Printing, Nahan Printing, Midland Paper Company, Quantum Graphics, SeaChange Print Innovations, Target Corporation, The Bernard Group, The First Impressions Groups, The Good Printer, Western Graphics & Wilcox Paper for the 2015 donation.
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Sales Compensation Survey - Results Now Available
Is there a type of sales compensation plan which is better than another for print providers? This question is asked quite often by industry executives, and it was one of the goals of the recent survey conducted by the Printing Industry Midwest and other Printing Industries of America affiliates this past spring. The answer, which was no surprise, was there are dozens of ways to compensate sales reps.
There were over 700 individuals who were part of the survey, and while pure commission is still the preferred method (49%), there were dozens of variations in how those reps were paid. Commission rates ran from 4% to 12% on gross sales while other plans paid on value-added with rates ranging from 6% to 15%. An interesting bit of information was that nearly 1/3 of the companies paid salaries with a commission incentive. As with pure commission plans, commission basis had multiple variations, some paying commissions when certain monthly goals were met or when certain profitability targets were gained - or both!
To order your copy, contact Ben Dally, Director of Finance, PIM. bdally@pimw.org 612.400.6207
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PIM members continue to utilize the services of Paul Gutkowski, PIM's Director of Safety and Environmental Services. And, they are avoiding costly OSHA fines! Contact Paul for training, audits and other services that will secure your efforts to provide a safe workplace and environmentally responsible business. paulg@pimw.org 612.400.6205.
The final date for the complete implementation of the revised Hazard Communication/ Right-to-know standard was June 1, 2016, including the conversion of all Material Safety Data Sheets to Safety Data Sheets and the updating of your Right-to-Know program. If you have not completed this since the above deadline has past, please contact Paul immediately.
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Quick Links to Printing Industries of America Resources
Introducing the SEVEN MINUTE SOLUTIONS
Welcome to the new Printing Industries Press resource designed to offer quick, reliable, and actionable remedies for some of the everyday problems graphic communications professionals face.
FREE Seven-Minute Solutions PDFs
PIA rolls out first certification program...the
Improvement Professional in Print (IPP) certification program validates expertise of printing industry professionals who help companies achieve operational excellence by using the concepts of Lean Manufacturing, Continuous Improvement, or other quality systems.
2016 Best Workplace in the Americas Competition
deadline Sept. 30,
PARTICIPATE
Financial Performance Assessment for Printers
A quick, affordable and useful way for printers to promptly determine their strengths and weaknesses and get a template for improved performance. C
ontact Tai McNaughton@printing.org, 412.259.1756.
PARTICIPATE
The Dynamic Ratios 2016-2017 survey is now open.
The New Dynamic Ratios have four survey options PIM members can choose from to participate and will also be able to still access the traditional reports.
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Quick Links to Member Buying Power Programs
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PIM members have free access to the job and resume posting services on PIM's website. To post a job and/or view resumes, contact Kathy Monroe, 612.400.6200, kmonroe@pimw.org.
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Looking for Assistance:
A PIM Membershas an
Electro Sprayer System
for offset presses. The company responsible for the
Electro Sprayer System
was purchased by
Harris and Bruno
recently and they have stopped making parts for these sprayers. They need help finding parts and looking for a solution or a contact? Is there any PIM Members having this same issue?
Any help or direction would be appreciated, please contact Kathy Monroe if you have any information. kmonroe@pimw.org
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Be on the Lookout for the Annual Wage & Benefit Survey
Steps to participate will be released shortly, be on the lookout for this.
The current
Wage and Benefit Survey Results
are available. Contact Ben Dally, bdally@pimw.org, 612.400.6207.
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Artwork and your news submissions for the upcoming issues of
Graphic News can be emailed to kdavis@pimw.org. Thank you, General Marketing Solutions for printing and mailing, HP for covering the clicks, and Veritiv for donating paper for 2600 personalized copies.
Ad Rates
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Printing Industry Midwest / 612.400.6200 / www.pimw.org
About PIM
The Printing Industry Midwest (PIM) is the trade association for graphic arts and communication companies in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
PIM is an affiliate of the Printing Industries of America (PIA), offering members the products and services that enhance their growth, efficiency and profitability. PIA is the largest graphic arts trade association, representing an industry with approximately one million employees.
The mission of the Printing Industry Midwest is to be the leading resource to enhance the strength and profitability of the printing, graphic communications and related industries through advocacy, education, safety and environmental information.
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