Even though people are managing more and more of their lives on computers, smart phones and tablets, there's still an abundant need for paper and ink. That means there is plenty of room for inventive commercial printers, like Knepper Press, to thrive.
Knepper, located near the Pittsburgh International Airport, serves more than 600 customers, including most major corporations located within a 200-mile radius. It prints magazines, catalogs, direct mail and political campaign mailings, among other products. Knepper CEO Ted Ford says the company can take on more advanced jobs and complete them quickly because nearly all of its profit has been poured back into the business.
As a result the shop has machines that are capable of printing both sides of a sheet of paper in color at the same time, for example. Knepper's presses can also run up to 65,000 sheets of paper per hour and fold them at the same time. And a growing number of customers is taking advantage of the company's ability to customize individual pieces within a large order, such as inserting each prospective student's name on hundreds of college catalogs.
“We've got pretty much everything we need here in terms of equipment,” Ford says. “We've got a complete repertoire for where we want to be.”
While many other printers have cut back on their payrolls, Knepper has been able to hire some talented workers and now employs about 190. “When you're not growing, it's hard to keep people as happy,” Ford says.
Source: Ted Ford, Knepper Press
Writer: Rebecca VanderMeulen