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Here's what's covered in today's "HOTLINE"
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Gala Registration is OPEN!
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Industry Executives of the Year Named: Fran Ussery in TX & OK & Colleen Pruetting in MO & KS
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PIA MidAmerica Well Represented at this Year's President's Conference
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LEAN in Action: DFW ABCO Presentation & KC Round Tables
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- "Hire KC Youth" Job Fair March 24th
- Two Top Area Presenters to Speak at the Continuous Improvement Conference April 8-11
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Ransomware Threat Grows; Small Businesses At Risk
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Welcome NEW Member - Stouse from New Century, KS
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Introducing Print Powers America -
Major Industry-wide Advocacy Initiative
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Calendar of Upcoming Events
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TIME TO REGISTER!
The WINNERS have been selected and you should have received an email if you won an Award of Excellence or Best of Category Award. Please plan to attend the gala to go on stage and receive these awards as well as those surprise announcements of who has achieved Specialty Awards, Division Awards and Best of Show honors.
The work our members submitted this year was no less than
AMAZING
with STEEP
competition. You should be extremely
PROUD
of your award accomplishments knowing that your talented work was selected among hundreds of entries. All entries will be displayed at both galas, People's Choice in KC on May 1st and at Printoberfest in both cities this fall. People's Choice and Printoberfest promote print to marketing professionals, creative professionals and print buyers.
Registration is now open for both events.
There is even a contest for the best chocolate bar wrapper design in both cities and one lucky winner will open the chocolate bar with the
GOLDEN
ticket for a fantastic prize! We can't wait!
We will honor Fran Ussery
, with Ussery Printing as our Industry Executive of the Year in DFW and
Colleen Pruetting
, with Maywood Printing as our Industry Executive of the Year in KC. Join us to congratulate each
of them.
We will also recognize a Print Champion from Texas or Oklahoma
and
Print Evangelists in Kansas or Missouri
! Nominations have been accepted for these spectacular industry reps and NOW is the time to go online to vote. Each nominee will be recognized on stage at the galas and the winner will be announced.
Print Champion / Print Evangelist Criteria:
- Provides industry support to all with a giving attitude.
- Is an active participant in growing & sustaining the print industry.
- Has a respected reputation among others in the industry.
- Makes a positive impact on those around them.
There is no age limit or minimum to years of service in the industry.
To vote in Texas & Oklahoma click
HERE
To vote in Kansas or Missouri click HERE
Sponsorship opportunities are still available but you'll need to hurry to get your company name listed in the program & Circle of Excellence
. With over 250 attendees in both cities and PIA MidAmerica promoting your brand on social media and more, this is an inexpensive way to advertise! Contact Stacy Steiner in Kansas City at
[email protected]
or Dave Pierson in Dallas at
[email protected]
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Fran Ussery
Named Texas & Oklahoma
Executive of the Year!
The team at Ussery Printing was excited to
hear that Fran Ussery was announced as our
Texas &
Oklahoma Industry Executive of the Year!
Fran joined Ussery Printing in 1978 and her leadership has led the company to their success ever since.
Join us on April 5th at Globe Life Park to congratulate Fran and celebrate her achievements.
(Colleen Pruetting was announced as the Missouri & Kansas Industry Professional of the Year in
the last HOTLINE issue and will be celebrated
at the gala at Arrowhead Stadium on April 26th.)
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PIA MidAmerica Well Represented at President's Conference
The President's Conference earlier this month offered exciting opportunities to network, innovate your business and prepare for the future. All attendees were motivated to
bring back inspirational ideas to their staff.
A special thank you to our credit card processing partner,
CardConnect for sponsoring a dinner for our region's members.
San Antonio did not disappoint. The River Walk offered beauty on the water with a variety of shops, restaurants and, sites to see.
The tour of PIA MidAmerica member,
Shweiki Media,
in their hometown will be hard to top next year
. They welcomed us with a mariachi band, margaritas, authentic Mexican food and much more. All attendees received gift bags
and a large photo print of the group. What a
fantastic facility! Thank you to Gal Shweiki
for hosting!
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LEAN in Action
TEXAS & OKLAHOMA
Mike Stoker, ABCO's LEAN Champion presented to a group of industry professionals in Dallas on March 8th.
The key take-a-ways were practical ideas and resources for your organization as you navigate your Continuous Improvement journey!
Mike shared how ABCO has made good progress with their 6S implementation throughout the plant, A3 reporting, Kanban systems, and Standard Work being followed. He shared their successes
and failures
throughout their journey and
what he
and the organization have learned from them.
MISSOURI & KANSAS
In Missouri & Kansas the PIA MidAmerica LEAN troopers allied together and fortified their Lean initiatives. Their "Special Forces" Teams, discussed four topics of choice. Each team was joined by an experienced Lean Facilitator. The after the discussions, an elected member of
each "Special Force" reported their findings to the entire troop.
The attendee at this interactive session experienced the opportunity of sharing and obtaining ideas from their colleagues in small group settings. What a great way to get to ask questions of each other one on one!
To learn more about our PIA MidAmerica LEAN In Action Program email Dave Pierson in Texas & Oklahoma at
[email protected] or Stacy Steiner in Missouri & Kansas at
[email protected]
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Danny Belknap of
Performance POP in Dallas named
2018 Environmental Health & Safety Professional
Thank you to Danny Belknap for keeping our industry workers safe! He has consistently made a positive impact on implementing injury reduction processes and regulatory compliance.
Danny will be recognized with the 2018 Regional EHS Award at
the awards gala on April 5th at Globe Life Park.
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"Hire KC Youth" Job Fair March 24th!
PIA MidAmerica & MCC are teaming up with "Hire KC Youth" for a Job Fair on March 24th. We have reserved 5 booths for our members at this event. This is a GREAT opportunity to interview and potentially hire 18 to
24-year-old youth for regular full-time employment,
part-time, temporary or apprenticeships.
They will be prepped with dress code requirements and information about the companies attending. They will also have completed "Hire KC Youth's" online job application and job board profiles. They've been trained for interviewing and hiring standards and will have resumes for the event. (
There will be other industries/companies attending. This is not exclusive to PIA members.)
Join us for this well-attended event by sending your RSVP to Stacy Steiner at [email protected].
For more information about Hire KC Youth click HERE
B
U
T
DO NOT
REGISTER ONLINE. We have already reserved your table for you!
Saturday, March 24th, 2018
Set-up from 8 am - 8:50 am
Event from 9:00 - Noon
MCC-Business & Technology
1775 Universal Avenue
Kansas City, MO 64102
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Two Top PIA MidAmerica Lean Experts will Speak at this year's Continuous Improvement Conference
Don't miss the chance to hear Shannon Kearney with Gill Studios and Robert Reid with Vox Printing speak at the Continuous Improvement Conference.
Shannon Kearney will present on Transforming your Business with Visual Management.
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Shannon is a Certified Lean Facilitator at Gill Studios in Lenexa, Kansas. She leads improve
ment projects related to process and continuous improvement in the areas of quality, operations, productivity, and cost reduction using Lean methodologies and tools. She also facilitates groups and teams, manages
projects, monitors sustainability, presents results, and develops metrics and measurement tools. Shannon has worked for Gill Studios for 14 years in a variety of positions that include graphic designer, digital print specialist, administrative assistant, value stream manager, and most recently, Lean facilitator. Gill Studios is a family owned company which has been in business for 83 years and employs 450 people across two plants. It prints promotional products for distributors using digital, flexography, and screen print methods. It is the most award-winning supplier in its industry and very likely the largest manufacturer of bumper stickers in the U.S.
Robert Reid's session will be on Vox's Resurgence.
Robert is in charge of manufacturing at Vox Printing and has been contributing to Vox's success for over two decades as he spearheaded the company's use of Lean manufacturing tools and technique
s. From 2012 to 2014 he also served on the advisory committee of the Continuous Improvement Conferenc
e. Vox employs about 75 people and uses cold web offset printing to produce and supply tray liners and placemats to fast food restaurants worldwide. Press runs can range from a case of just 3,000 liners to multiple truckloads. Vox's focus on communications, respect, and service to both clients and employees has resulted in a friendly, fun environment that the company identifies for a foundation of its growth and success. For each of the last 10 years, Vox has been recognized as a best workplace in the state of Oklahoma and by Printing Industries of America through its
Best Workplaces in the Americas
program
.
This year's Continuous Improvement Conference focuses on critical aspects of establishing improvement priorities, minimizing non-valued added activities, and unleashing the many talents of employees in the quest for operational excellence. Check out the details at
http://ci.printing.org/
April 8-11, 2018
Continuous Improvement Conference
Chicago, IL
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Ransomware Threat Grows; Small Businesses At Risk
A recent uptick in hackers using ransomware to take their victims' data hostage means that organizations should aggressively move to back up data - and teach employees how hackers work.
According to PC Magazine, in a ransomware attack, criminals deploy malicious code through email or websites. The code then encrypts computer data so that the company can no longer access it. Criminals then demand payment for unlocking it.
The technique has been very successful. Ransomware reports have risen exponentially in the last couple of years. Some extremely high profile cases have made big news, such as the United Kingdom's National Health Service, which paid more than $100,000 in ransom and incurred $1 billion in damages.
However, small businesses are just as likely - or more likely - to have a ransomware attack. In fact, according to PC Magazine, some criminals exclusively target small business, which rarely has the IT resources in place to prevent such attacks. One attack on a small business can not only disrupt commerce but likely poisons relationships with larger companies.
Employees themselves are often responsible for letting the hackers in by downloading malicious files through email. These email attachments can masquerade as innocuous PDFs, but, in fact, they are executable programs. No one should ever click on an attachment in email if they do not recognize the sender. Even legitimate websites can often host malicious programs and one visit to such a website can mean ransomware infection. Malicious links or popups to update extensions, for example.
Preparation is key. Constantly update all computers. Updates might be a pain, but hey are critical since updates often address security issues. Cyber-criminals love old operating systems. They know how they work. They may not know yet how to compromise the newest and best systems. Experts recommend deploying so-called hosted endpoint security to manage computers, networks and, mobile devices. These inexpensive programs are provided by companies like F-Secure, Webroot Secure and, Avast.
Finally, a great step to take in avoiding ransomware involves finding a backup solution to fall back on in case the defenses fail, and the data is already being held for ransom. Sophisticated solutions exist that allow a company to maintain several layers of backups that can be rolled back to a time before hackers compromised the data just like nothing ever happened.
If you are attacked, should you pay? Experts say no - easy to say but not easy to do if you are facing catastrophic data loss. But remember, these are criminals. There is no guarantee they will restore your systems after you pay and every chance they won't.
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Welcome NEW Member ~
Stouse
Stouse is a trade only, wholesale, specialty printer. They serve the entire US and proudly produce in-house with materials made in the USA. Their core business product suite includes decals, magnets, roll labels, plastics, signs, banners and more. In addition to their catalog offerings, they provide a wide variety of custom printed items. With over 40 years of industry experience, their goal is to be fast, high quality, and flexible with second to none service.
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Print Powers America |
Introducing Print Powers America -
Major Industry-wide Advocacy Initiative
PIA National has launched a new campaign entitled Print Powers America, a major industry-wide initiative committed to collectively voicing the tremendous economic influence, consumer impact, and environmental stewardship made possible by print and packaging companies across the country. This multi-faceted advocacy initiative combines lobbying, grassroots action, and public affairs to promote and protect the printing and graphic communications industry.
"Printing Industries of America has long had a presence in Washington and has notched significant legislative and regulatory wins on behalf of companies throughout the industry," said Bryan Hall, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Printing Industries of America. "We believe it is time to raise the volume of our collective voices to match the combined economic might of our industry."
The centerpiece of Print Powers America is a fabulous new website, www.PrintPowersAmerica.com that provides valuable information on the dramatic economic, environmental, and consumer impact and reach of print and packaging.
"Now more than ever, the industry as a whole needs to rally behind a powerful advocacy initiative which will shine a spotlight on print's importance and relevance in today's economy," said Michael Makin, President & CEO of Printing Industries of America. "Print Powers America is open to ALL print and packaging companies, regardless of membership status in PIA. Contribution levels are tiered by number of employees so that the smallest print shop to the largest corporation can be equal partners in support of this cause."
For more information about Print Powers America, visit www.PrintPowersAmerica.com.
Together, We Can Power Print into the Future.
Support Print Powers America Today.
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MEMBERS RECEIVE 10% OFF YOUR FIRST PURCHASE
OF OFFICE SUPPLIES
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