Graphic Arts Online & IPA Top 50 North American Premedia Leaders

An Adobe-sponsored survey finds an even split: diversified printers and dedicated premedia firms divide the field between them.

By Lisa Cross, Senior Editor -- graphic arts online, 5/1/2007

Premedia: having outgrown the restrictions of “prepress” alone, the industry has transformed itself. Still formally known by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce as “Prepress Services, North American Industrial Classification 323122,” players in this market are branching into all things that precede print, or any visual medium.

Half the firms responding to Graphic Arts Monthly and trade association IPA's survey of North American premedia operations were primarily engaged in the printing business: Premedia accounted for less than 50% of annual revenues. The rest sell principally premedia work, and have been reinventing offerings and internal operations to capture a share of an estimated $8-billion market.

This survey asked for counts of staff involved in preflighting, proofing, retouching, separation, image assembly, platemaking, photography, data management, workflow and other media (Internet, CD/DVD, Video, Broadcast). Drops in revenue from type- and imagesetting, page composition and scanning coincided with internalized file creation at agencies, publishers, and consumer products firms.

Things are moving. Accumulating print assets and increasingly complex workflows find clients seeking expertise of premedia experts in asset management.

A few printers probably underestimated head count for premedia staff, if activities (e.g. workflow and data) are also managed for print. This likely skewed data one way or the other in cases so noted. Sponsored by the Adobe Solutions Network Print Service Provider Program, the survey was conducted by Mark DiVito, group research director, Reed Business Information.

Rank	Company Name Location, CEO	Latest Annual Sales ($000)	% of Total Sales	Prior Sales ($000)	% Change	Premedia Locations	Premedia Employees	Sales Per Employee $	Primary Market
1	Schawk Inc. Des Plaines, IL, David Schawk	550,000	> 50%	562,000	-2%	160	3,600	152,778	Packaging
2	SGS International Louisville, KY, Henry Baughman	290,100	> 50%	272,800	6%	35	1,273	214,297	Packaging
3	Group 360 Chicago* Chicago, IL, Mark Rutte	189,750	> 50%	N/A	N/A	6	1,500	126,500	Corporate
4	Quad/Graphics Sussex, WI, Joel Quadracci	163,000	1% - 10%	162,000	1%	24	708	230,226	Publications
5	RR Donnelley Premedia Technology Chicago, IL, Tom Quinlan	157,000	> 50%	150,000	5%	42	1,627	96,497	Retail
6	Vertis Communications Irving, TX, Mike Dubose	103,000	1% - 10%	110,000	-6%	7	500	206,000	Retail
7	The Caps Group Chicago, IL, John Reilly	80,000	> 50%	76,000	5%	6	600	133,333	Corporate
8	Quebecor World Montreal, QB, Wes Lucas	55,600	1%-10%	58,300	-5%	12	360	154,444	Catalogs
9	Transcontinental Premedia Group* Brampton, ON, Luc Desjardins	37,950	1% - 10%	N/A	N/A	4	300	126,500	Retail
10	American Color¹ Stone Mountain, GA, Richard Davis	37,100	11% - 25%	41,200	-10%	6	N/A	N/A	Retail
11	GA Communications Brentwood, TN, Stephen Dyott	28,000	11% - 25%	24,000	17%	5	300	93,333	Advertising Agencies
12	Stevenson, The Color Company Cincinnati, OH, Jeff Stevenson	21,500	> 50% 1	8,600	16%	1	120	179,167	Packaging
13	Graphic Systems Group LLC New York, NY, Ken Madsen	21,000	> 50%	18,588	13%	1	142	147,887	Corporate
14	Phototype Cincinnati, OH, David Olberding	21,000	> 50%	20,000	5%	3	150	140,000	Packaging
15	Widen Enterprises, Inc. Madison, WI, Reed Widen	16,700	> 50%	16,700	0%	1	110	151,818	Corporate
16	Astoria Graphics New York, NY, Ronald Koff	15,000	26% - 50%	15,000	0%	2	10	1,500,0002	Corporate
17	Bert-Co. Industries Cerritos, CA, Charles Stay	10,000	14%	N/A	N/A	2	N/A	N/A	Packaging
18	Colorscope, Inc. Monterey Park, CA, Joseph Cha	10,000	> 50%	10,000	0%	4	75	133,333	Catalogs
19	Penn Industries Cerritos, CA, Jeff Alkazian	10,000	20%	N/A	N/A	1	N/A	N/A	Corporate
20	Tanaseybert New York, NY, Eric Bernstein	10,000	11% - 25%	10,000	0%	2	60	166,667	Advertising Agencies
21	Integracolor** Mesquite, TX, Larry King	9,630	10%	N/A	N/A	2	N/A	N/A	Corporate
22	Affinity Express Elgin, IL, James Daleen	9,347	> 50%	6,298	48%	6	920	10,1602	Corporate
23	The EPI Companies Marietta, GA, William Woods, Jr.	8,025	15%	6,000	34%	2	30	267,500	Corporate
24	The Matlet Group Pawtucket, RI, Gary Stiffler	6,000	4%	N/A	N/A	4	N/A	N/A	Corporate
25	Phipps Graphiques*** LaSalle, QC, Jeffrey Mahar	5,690	> 50%	5,510	3%	1	25	252,000	Advertising Agencies
26	Digital Color Image Pennsauken, NJ, Rich McGee	5,625	26% - 50%	5,620	0%	1	13	432,6922	Packaging
27	CSI Austin, TX, Charles Sack	5,000	11% - 25%	5,500	-9%	1	25	200,000	Advertising Agencies
28	Platinum Imaging Dallas, TX, Damien Gough	5,000	> 50%	4,500	11%	1	25	200,000	Advertising Agencies
29	Lazer Incorporated Rochester, NY, Ken McCurdy	4,700	> 50%	6,000	-22%	3	29	162,069	Corporate
30	Ripon Printers** Ripon, WI, Andy Lyke	4,111	10%	4,451	-8%	1	N/A	N/A	Catalogs
31	Hatcher Press San Carlos, CA, Brice Tarling	4,000	26% - 50%	3,700	8%	1	10	400,0002	Corporate
32	Continental Web Press** Itasca, IL, Kenneth Field	3,925	14%	N/A	N/A	2	N/A	N/A	Catalogs
33	Cincinnati Precision Plate* Fairfield, OH, William Painer	3,795	> 50%	N/A	N/A	2	30	126,500	Packaging
34	Digital Color, Inc. Menomonee Falls, WI	3,000	> 50%	2,900	3%	1	15	200,000	Corporate
35	Hughes Integrated, Inc. Plainwell, MI, Robert Hughes	3,000	>50%	2,500	20%	1	15	200,000	Packaging
36	Midstates Printing Aberdeen, SD, Roger Feickert	3,000	9%	N/A	N/A	3	N/A	N/A	Corporate
37	Chapman Printing Co.** Huntington, WV, Marshall Reynolds	2,903	2%	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	Corporate
38	Williams & Partners, Inc. North Reading, MA, Walter Williams	2,900	> 50%	2,400	21%	1	15	193,333	Advertising Agencies
39	Custom Direct, Inc., Roselle, IL, John Georgas	2,860	> 50%	2,500	14%	1	9	317,778	Catalogs
40	E.U. Services Rockville, MD, Art Simpson	2,825	7%	N/A	N/A	1	N/A	N/A	Corporate
41	PGI Companies Minnetonka, MN, Jeffery Brower	2,500	7%	N/A	N/A	1	N/A	N/A	Corporate
42	Shapco Printing Minneapolis, MN, Joel Shapiro	2,500	9%	N/A	N/A	2	N/A	N/A	Corporate
43	TotalWorks, Inc.* Chicago, IL, Gail Ludewig	2,404	> 50%	N/A	N/A	1	19	126,500	Catalogs
44	Halftone* Hackensack, NJ, Patrick Martino	2,277	> 50%	N/A	N/A	1	18	126,500	Publications
45	Impressions Inc.** St. Paul, MN, Mark Jorgensen	2,117	5%	1,988	6%	N/A	N/A	N/A	Packaging
46	HK Graphics Inc. Everett, MA, Chris Keshishian	1,700	> 50%	1,300	31%	1	11	154,545	Advertising Agencies
47	Colorfx, Inc.** DeMoines, IA, John DeVries	1,567	5%	N/A	N/A	2	N/A	N/A	Corporate
48	Preferred Marketing Solutions* Louisville, KY, Nigel Travis	1,518 0%	N/A	N/A	1	1	2	126,500	Corporate
49	Tri-Graphic Printing Ltd. Ottawa, ON, Doug Doane	1,196	11% - 25%	1,083	10%	1	15	88,333	Books
50	Digital Xpress Cincinnati, OH, Del Skeens	1,100	1% - 10%	100	1,100%	1	2	550,0002	Corporate
Information provided by companies via online and mailed surveys. Notes: * Estimate, based on PIA/GATF averages of $126,500 sales per premedia employee Figure calculated based on sales % from premedia *Converted from Canadian ¹Projected: based on nine months ²Estimated headcount may skew figures.