PGAMA is always on the lookout for new and improved member benefits to offer.  Sometimes however there are a suite of benefits that are already available to our members but are not as aggressively promoted as some and that is the case with our “financial insurance” package of Slow Pay, PGAMA Credit Check and PICB Collections Service.  Each, in their own right, are powerful tools to help your business but taken as a package they create a best practices process and could make a major difference to your cash flow and bottom line.

 Slow Pay is a repository of member reports on clients that have not paid their invoices.  Once you enroll, you should regularly monitor the site and make sure that a new customer has not been reported as a late pay.  This service is free to PGAMA members and could be considered your first line of defense in deciding if and how to do business with a new client or perhaps a client that is returning after an absence of some time.  If you are unfortunate enough to have a slow pay client, this is where you would report it.  Contact Esther Slansky at PGAMA office or email her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and she will enroll you in the program and explain how it works. 

PGAMA Credit Check  At PGAMA we give you choices when it comes to credit checks.  Our in-house credit check service is free to members and easy to access.  Just contact Debbie Woolbright  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call the PGAMA office and she will send you a form to fill out. Once you return it, we spring into action checking the information that you obtained from your customer. Based on the information you learn from our credit check, you can make an informed decision about how you will handle the financial arrangements with your new customer.  If you want more, PGAMA has a partnership with Experian, a major international credit bureau.  This service has a cost associated with it, but all PGAMA members receive a discounted fee.  The major difference is that Experian provides you with a credit score and has a deeper reach than a normal credit check.  The choice is yours! 

  PICB – a Check-IT Company  If in spite of taking all the precautions available, you make the decision to turn an account over for collection, PGAMA has partnered with PICB, a firm with a long history of involvement in the printing industry. While PICB also offers credit check services, their uniqueness in our package for PGAMA members is the collection services.  

To learn more contact Jay at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or you may wish to contact Andrea Schlack  directly at PICB.  She can be reached at 847-265-0400 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

PGAMA members working together and using best business practices can make for a stronger industry and enhanced bottom line for all.  Please don’t hesitate to contact any of us at PGAMA for further information.

by Jeff Tomlinson, President Atlantic Graphic Systems

For members of our industry, the DRUPA International Trade Fair in Düsseldorf, Germany can be described as a professional pilgrimage. The expo, which occurs every 4 years, is the “World’s Fair” of Graphic Communications Technology. 

DRUPA 2016 consisted of 19 exhibition halls, had 1,828 exhibitors and logged over 260,000 visitors from 183 countries. The industry equipment on display represented both the latest consumer-ready products as well as manufacturer prototyped technology. 

The weather in Germany is generally beautiful at this time of year and it doesn’t hurt that you can grab a beer and a brat and take in some sun in the open courtyard between exhibit halls. However, given the time and treasure required, that alone is not reason enough to attend.

So then why attend? As so often is the case in business, management is hunkered down in the day-to-day and as the idiom goes, “can’t see the forest for the trees.” The DRUPA Expo provides those print executives tasked with planning for the future, an opportunity to step out of the trees and gain perspective. At no other place and time is there such a gathering of industry peers, speakers, consultants, engineers, and manufacturers. Given the international flavor of this event, attendees from North America are also exposed to a broader take on our industry and its trends.

From my perspective as an equipment supplier, I attended in the hopes of getting a better understanding of where manufacturers are investing their R&D money and what was the overall theme of their exhibits. Here’s a quick overview of what I came away with:

Print Output Devices: While their current iterations were on display, both traditional and digital printing equipment manufacturers alike had their commercial grade inkjet print platforms featured front and center in their exhibits. Unlike currently available models, most of these second or third generation prototypes target higher quality, larger format and higher volume print segments that have traditionally been dominated by offset technology. These machines were impressive and great strides have been made in this technology since DRUPA 2012. It was evident, however, that we’re still in the pioneering phase of inkjet print technology as it relates to the general commercial and packaging segments of the market.

Binding & Finishing Machinery: As you’d expect, these manufacturers are also scrambling to keep up with developments in low and high volume digital print output. At DRUPA, most exhibits featured machinery design that focused on a very high level of automation and ease of operation. Whether it was cutting, folding, stitching, binding, die-cutting or foil-stamping, the theme was reducing the touchpoints and associated labor in the manufacturing process. Many brand new finishing platforms have been developed to replace antiquated machinery or to address processing needs not previously in existence. The varied array of these solutions was very impressive.

Perhaps the most important takeaway I had was the fact that while evolving quickly, the Graphic Communications industry is still very much a vibrant, exciting industry. New technologies were abound including expanded offerings in laser finishing, grand-format, and 3D printing. I gained a much better understanding of what is viable present-day technology and what the ultra-smart, thinkers of our industry envision in the not so distant future.

In the past year, the Wage and Benefits Survey and the quarterly Printing Industry Performance and Insight (PIPI) have been published. Participants in the studies receive the final result for FREE. If a member does not participate you will still enjoy a significant discount for the final report over the non-member price.

Additionally, from time to time, PGAMA issues our own publications under the Tool Kit Series title. Recently, The Sales and Use Tax Guide and The Air Pollution Control Guide are available upon request.

Both are FREE to members and are available by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or calling 410-319-0900 or 877-319-0906

Business Intelligence