“I wish we would have saved our pieces!” We occasionally hear this exclamation as the BIA Product of Excellence Awards draws nearer (the 2014 entry deadline is February 21, in case you were wondering!) Aside from forgetting to save your year’s best examples of flawless postpress craftsmanship, many of you in binding, finishing, and custom lose-leaf manufacturing have questions about how to submit your entries. So, we have put together seven mistakesthat can bemade when entering the 2014 Product of Excellence Awards—and how to avoid them. We can’t wait to see your entries! Here’s hoping your craftsmanship is deemed the “best of the best” in 2014! #1: Not checking the production date Only submit pieces produced between February 2013 and February 2014. If they were not produced in this time frame, they are not eligible for entry.  #2: Choosing the wrong category Look carefully at the categorydescriptions and choose the appropriate subcategory for each piece. This way judges can recognize its best attributes, and you increase your chances of winning. However, judges reserve the right to move an entry to a different category if they feel it better meets the criteria for that category. To help you identify the right category, consider: The equipment used to produce the piece The type of process used How the piece is used See more on rules and judging. #3: Providing incomplete details Be sure to complete all information on the entry form. If your product entry forms are not completed thoroughly, they may not qualify for the contest. #4: Missing submission forms Attach an entry form to each piece you submit. Remember to submit two copies of each entry and attach the entry form to one copy. This way, the judges can properly identify your pieces and in which category they belong. #5: Stapling the entry form to your piece When attaching the entry form to your piece, place it inside the piece, use a paper clip, low-adhesive tape, or other non-damaging binding agent. Please do not staple! Staplingthe form to your piece can cause imperfections and disqualify it from the competition. #6: Sending pieces in late It can take some time and deliberation to choose which pieces to submit. Start early, because the deadline for entries is February 21, 2014. In early March, we will begin judging your pieces. If you have any last-minute questions, don’t hesitate to contact Mike Packard, Director, Binding Industries Association, at mpackard@printing.org. #7: Not entering the Product of Excellence Awards It may seem like a no-brainer, but if you don’t enter, you can’t win! Honorees get a one-up on the competition because their success is published industry wide. You will not only receive a plaque to...

“I wish we would have saved our pieces!” We occasionally hear this exclamation as the BIA Product of Excellence Awards draws nearer (the 2014 entry deadline is February 21, in case you were wondering!) Aside from forgetting to save your year’s best examples of flawless postpress craftsmanship, many of you in binding, finishing, and custom lose-leaf manufacturing have questions about how to submit your entries. So, we have put together seven mistakesthat can bemade when entering the 2014 Product of Excellence Awards—and how to avoid them. We can’t wait to see your entries! Here’s hoping your craftsmanship is deemed the “best of the best” in 2014! #1: Not checking the production date Only submit pieces produced between February 2013 and February 2014. If they were not produced in this time frame, they are not eligible for entry.  #2: Choosing the wrong category Look carefully at the categorydescriptions and choose the appropriate subcategory for each piece. This way judges can recognize its best attributes, and you increase your chances of winning. However, judges reserve the right to move an entry to a different category if they feel it better meets the criteria for that category. To help you identify the right category, consider: The equipment used to produce the piece The type of process used How the piece is used See more on rules and judging. #3: Providing incomplete details Be sure to complete all information on the entry form. If your product entry forms are not completed thoroughly, they may not qualify for the contest. #4: Missing submission forms Attach an entry form to each piece you submit. Remember to submit two copies of each entry and attach the entry form to one copy. This way, the judges can properly identify your pieces and in which category they belong. #5: Stapling the entry form to your piece When attaching the entry form to your piece, place it inside the piece, use a paper clip, low-adhesive tape, or other non-damaging binding agent. Please do not staple! Staplingthe form to your piece can cause imperfections and disqualify it from the competition. #6: Sending pieces in late It can take some time and deliberation to choose which pieces to submit. Start early, because the deadline for entries is February 21, 2014. In early March, we will begin judging your pieces. If you have any last-minute questions, don’t hesitate to contact Mike Packard, Director, Binding Industries Association, at mpackard@printing.org. #7: Not entering the Product of Excellence Awards It may seem like a no-brainer, but if you don’t enter, you can’t win! Honorees get a one-up on the competition because their success is published industry wide. You will not only receive a plaque to...

Creating a high-performance culture and an active program of continuous improvement results in better quality, efficiency, and a competitive advantage that’s hard to match. It can also earn you a 2014 Managing for Improvement Award. For Western Graphics, a 50-employee commercial printing company in St. Paul, Minnesota, and its CEO and owner, Timothy Keran, performance excellence is never an afterthought. Its constant striving to get better is what has allowed the company to prosper. An innovator who has spearheaded his company’s successful CI efforts, Keran was recently honored as the 2013 recipient of Printing Industries of America’s Managing for Improvement Award for creating real and lasting improvements for Western Graphics.  How can executives lead their companies to higher performance levels? Here are the three core beliefs that Keran has instilled at Western:personal continuous improvement, engagement,andgoals and values. 1.     Look first at your personal continuous improvement efforts. Keran knows that accomplishing continuous improvement is more than just collecting plaques on your wall. Successful leadership starts from within. He focused on developing himself over the last 20 years in the industry. Then, turning his concentration to his employees and his company values, Keran was able to create a strong culture that incubates positivity and drives the company’s continuous improvement initiatives. For these reasons, Keran was selected as the 2013 Managing for Improvement Award recipient.   2.     Make sure your employees are engaged. Western’s employees are motivated to help clients reach their goals and objectives because Keran has ensured they have an active voice in the company. Employees are expected to submit improvement ideas to which management listens carefully. The company wants to know what employees are thinking and keeps them focused on improvement—they receive brief daily performance reviews and quarterly one-on-one coaching conversations with management. For these reasons, if you work for Western Graphics, chances are you enjoy your work and will go above your requirements to truly “own” each project and delight your customers. 3.     Make sure your corporate mission, goals, and values are clear. Defining your company’s mission and values tells your employees and your customers who you are and what they can expect from you. It can empower employees who can be given more decision-making freedom with the caveat that they make decisions consistent with the corporate values. Western Graphics clearly articulates its responsibilities to its customers: 1) Help them reduce their print spend 2) Lower their time spent on managing print 3) Improve their print effectiveness These goals have focused Western’s improvement efforts. The application of Lean management practices has helped the company drive wasted time and resources out of its processes.   The results? Because of their improvements in the last five years, Western Graphics has...

Creating a high-performance culture and an active program of continuous improvement results in better quality, efficiency, and a competitive advantage that’s hard to match. It can also earn you a 2014 Managing for Improvement Award. For Western Graphics, a 50-employee commercial printing company in St. Paul, Minnesota, and its CEO and owner, Timothy Keran, performance excellence is never an afterthought. Its constant striving to get better is what has allowed the company to prosper. An innovator who has spearheaded his company’s successful CI efforts, Keran was recently honored as the 2013 recipient of Printing Industries of America’s Managing for Improvement Award for creating real and lasting improvements for Western Graphics.  How can executives lead their companies to higher performance levels? Here are the three core beliefs that Keran has instilled at Western:personal continuous improvement, engagement,andgoals and values. 1.     Look first at your personal continuous improvement efforts. Keran knows that accomplishing continuous improvement is more than just collecting plaques on your wall. Successful leadership starts from within. He focused on developing himself over the last 20 years in the industry. Then, turning his concentration to his employees and his company values, Keran was able to create a strong culture that incubates positivity and drives the company’s continuous improvement initiatives. For these reasons, Keran was selected as the 2013 Managing for Improvement Award recipient.   2.     Make sure your employees are engaged. Western’s employees are motivated to help clients reach their goals and objectives because Keran has ensured they have an active voice in the company. Employees are expected to submit improvement ideas to which management listens carefully. The company wants to know what employees are thinking and keeps them focused on improvement—they receive brief daily performance reviews and quarterly one-on-one coaching conversations with management. For these reasons, if you work for Western Graphics, chances are you enjoy your work and will go above your requirements to truly “own” each project and delight your customers. 3.     Make sure your corporate mission, goals, and values are clear. Defining your company’s mission and values tells your employees and your customers who you are and what they can expect from you. It can empower employees who can be given more decision-making freedom with the caveat that they make decisions consistent with the corporate values. Western Graphics clearly articulates its responsibilities to its customers: 1) Help them reduce their print spend 2) Lower their time spent on managing print 3) Improve their print effectiveness These goals have focused Western’s improvement efforts. The application of Lean management practices has helped the company drive wasted time and resources out of its processes.   The results? Because of their improvements in the last five years, Western Graphics has...

Interview with Erica Aitken, President, Rods and Cones, Inc. Color workflow innovation is one of Erica Aitken’s main focuses as founder and president of her company, Rods and Cones. We asked Erica, one of our featured speakers at this year’s Color Management Conference, about some of the challenges her clients face with color management today, as well as her insights and recommended solutions. Q: Erica, with today’s technologies rapidly changing, our daily workflows are being affected. Where can print and graphic arts professionals find solutions? What are the resources you recommend most often for those beginning their search for the perfect color management system? Erica Aitken: I have found webinars to be efficient and very beneficial resources. Workshops and conferences can offer great hands-on experience and networking. But when clients are looking for go-to guidebooks for everything on color management, the Color Management Handbook: A Practical Guide is a handy resource for every aspect. The guide is well organized, you can keep it right on your desk, and it’s there when you need it. Also Datacolor, whose Spyder monitor calibrating system you may know, publishes a very good book about color management. It’s called Calibrate Your World and is available at no cost on their website. This excellent 90-page digital book explains digital color, calibrating cameras and monitors, making ICC profiles, etc. If you’re beginning your search for the perfect color management system, read these booklets and come talk to me at the conference with your questions. Q: You’ll be speaking at the 2013 Color Management Conference about one major challenge expanding technology has created: color management on tablet devices. Can you give us one tip to improve customer proofing on tablets? EA: With pleasure. I found that color managing iPads is still very much in its infancy and, as it’s often the case in very young industries, people try to find the right approach to something that they’re not even sure is needed. I will outline what’s available today and how effective today’s existing iPad color management solutions are. Q: You help your clients evolve with new technologies and optimize their color workflow.  You’ve worked in-depth with streamlining and automating workflows in addition to marketing and developing your business. As an industry professional, what are you most looking forward to at this year’s conference? EA: What excites me the most about this year’s Color Management Conference is the introduction of tracks geared toward brand managers and creatives. It makes sense since color is critical from beginning to end, and it’s easier to control color if it’s considered right at the start of a project. The most efficient workflows are the result of communication between creator and prepress/printer at every stage of...