PIA/GATF board grants PINE jurisdiction in Connecticut
PINE president meets with area printers; hosts financial ratios seminar in Meriden
Printing Industries of New England has been granted the additional jurisdiction of the state of Connecticut to service graphic communications companies there and deliver its broad range of products, programs, and assistance.

The board of directors of the national trade association, Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF), approved the measure at its November administrative meetings.

Approximately 600 printing and graphic communications companies in Connecticut generated $2.6 billion in printed goods in 2005 according to the annual Print Market Atlas, a statistical analysis on the size of the nation’s printing industry compiled by the PIA/GATF Economics Department.

Connecticut represents New England’s second largest state print market after Massachusetts. Combined, New England printers generated approximately $12 billion in printed goods in 2005.

Largest association in New England
PINE got its start as The Master Printer’s Club of Boston in 1887 when representatives from 33 Boston area print shops approved a charter to create a group to help companies work on common issues.

There have been several name changes over the organization’s 119 years, but providing services to members to help them operate as productively and profitably as possible has always been the organization’s mission.

The association broadened its service area throughout the 1950s to encompass a larger geographic swath of New England as printers well beyond Boston and Massachusetts sought the organization’s services. It has grown over the years under the name of Printing Industries of New England and operates today with a staff of 12 from its own headquarters building in the center of its territory in Southborough, Mass. about halfway between Framingham and Worcester, Mass.

PIC/WM & PIC serve Connecticut
Throughout this time, two similar groups existed in Connecticut serving the industry in that state. In the late1990s, Printing Industries Connecticut/Western Massachusetts and the Printing Industries of Connecticut merged to form one association serving the Connecticut area. As this happened, the territory of western Massachusetts was assigned to PINE and firms in that area began being served by the association.

Three years ago, as result of a challenging business economy, PIC began to look for options to cease independent operations. Following a search and evaluation, it chose to merge with the Association of Graphic Communications (AGC), the New York City-based regional affiliate of PIA/GATF. “PINE was asked to make a presentation to the leaders of the organization but they decided to join AGC,” noted PINE president Jim Tepper. “Western Massachusetts was assigned to us as part of the change and we have been servicing that territory since.”

Tepper also noted that while PINE didn’t actively solicit Connecticut printers over the past few years, several inquired about joining PINE and have done so through cooperative arrangements between the organizations.

Over the past year or so, AGC, the New York City affiliate, reported it was having financial difficulties and adjusted programming and staff accordingly.

While the national association has no control over the business activities of regional affiliates, it does have the authority to decide service area jurisdictions. Seeing the financial difficulty at AGC, and working in cooperation with the leaders of AGC, the national board voted in the best interests of the industry in Connecticut by allowing PINE to now service that area.

“We wouldn’t be re-introducing ourselves to the Connecticut industry if there wasn’t a need for the broad business support services we provide,” Tepper said.

PINE hosts seminar in Meriden
Tepper traveled to Connecticut several times over the last two months to meet with business owners and former volunteer leaders to explain PINE’s services in depth. In one meeting he was accompanied by PINE chairman Tom Gardner, owner of Curry Printing in Westborough, Mass. They met with a major printer and former leader of the Connecticut and AGC groups and among the items discussed were the common issues faced by printers that PINE addresses ranging from environmental assistance to human resources.

PINE hosted its first event in Connecticut last month, an evening dinner meeting where Stuart Margolis of the MargolisBecker accounting firm, provided attendees an overview of the value of using the annual PIA/GATF Financial Ratios to gauge the financial performance of individual firms.

“We were very well received,” Tepper said. “We had about 20 people from the region’s printing industry with us and several made a point at the end of the evening to thank us for bringing this event to them. Stuart’s presentation on combating a competitive marketplace was right on target.”

PINE is planning a similar event Jan. 18th. Ron Davis, Ph.D., chief economist of PIA/GATF, will talk about the economic outlook for printers in the coming year.

“We’re interested in helping Connecticut business owners and managers grow their companies — just as we do every day for owners and managers of our 430-odd member companies spread across the rest of New England. We hope to attract all interested parties to the meetings we schedule and invite companies to investigate what we offer in way of assisting them.”

Tepper said he welcomes direct calls from owners and managers from any printing and graphic communications company in Connecticut and elsewhere across New England should they want to learn how PINE can help.

Tepper’s direct line is 508-804-4101. PINE can also be reached at 1-800-365-7463 or through its web site at www.pine.org.