INTERQUEST, a leading market and technology research and consulting firm serving the digital printing and publishing industry, today announced a successful sixth annual Digital Printing in Government and Higher Education Forum. The event took place in Washington D.C. on Wednesday, November 30, 2011 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel and drew nearly 100 attendees. Speakers from government and higher education shared innovative applications, opportunities and challenges in their work environments.

According to Gilles Biscos, President of INTERQUEST, "We attempt to provide an environment for education, networking, and innovation for print professionals in government and higher education. These are challenging and exciting times and we believe our attendees value the opportunity to learn from one another and find answers to the right balance of communication media as well as the role digital printing adds to the mix."

William J. Boarman, Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), kicked off the forum with the keynote presentation highlighting his organization's history of 150 years of providing publishing and dissemination services for the official and authentic government publications to Congress, Federal agencies, Federal depository libraries, and the American public. He explained the changes that have taken place which have been facilitated by technologies and systems to deliver information. "We are not just the government's printer anymore. Today we are the government's digital information platform," said Boarman.

Following the keynote, Gilles Biscos, President of INTERQUEST, Ltd., presented key trends in the publishing, print-on-demand, transactional, graphic arts and in-plant markets. He also examined the impact of the latest vendor announcements and the synergies between paper-based and electronic communications.

A panel of government and higher educational print professionals explained how they leverage new digital printing technology to improve productivity and enhance the documents they produce. Speakers included: Shawn P. Magill, Director of Strategy & Development, Defense Logistics Agency's (DLA) Document Services Headquarters; Jane Bloodworth, Former Manager, General Service Department's Printing, Graphics and Map Design Unit, the World Bank; and Stephanie Hemling, Copy Center Supervisor, Design & Print Center, University of Maryland Baltimore County.

Following lunch, executives from principal digital printing vendors provided updates of their companies' digital printing strategies and developments for the government and higher education markets. Speakers included: Eric Rahman, Vice President, Public Sector & Enterprise Business, Eastman Kodak; Blake McMahan, Business Development North America, Indigo & Inkjet Solutions, Hewlett-Packard; and John McGrorty, Production Color Director, Eastern Operations, Xerox.

Toby Cobrin, a Director at INTERQUEST presented key findings from recent INTERQUEST research in the government and higher education printing markets. Among the topics discussed were variable data and personalized communications, the synergies of electronic delivery and print, and opportunities for growth and innovation.

The day ended with a panel of users sharing their experiences with digital printing, and discussing opportunities and challenges in their print operations. Speakers included: Leslie Rutledge, Director of Graphic Services, Brown University; Scott Sigwalt, Section Chief, Printing & Media Services, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA); and Robert C. Tapella, 25th Public Printer of the United States.

The 2011 Digital Printing in Government & Higher Education Forum was sponsored by leading industry players in the market including Canon/Océ, Epson, Hewlett-Packard, Kodak, MGI and Xerox, with additional support from the Federal Electronic Document Systems Association (FEDS), the Association of College and University Mail Services (ACUMS), the Franklin Technical Society (FTS), the Interagency Council on Printing & Publications Services (ICPPS), the National Association of College and University Mail Services (NACUMS), Xplor Mid Atlantic Region (MAR), and In-Plant Graphics.

The event is targeted at government and higher education users, including publishing and graphic services, in-plants and CRDs, print and mail services, IT/data center operations, purchasing and procurement departments, and communications professionals, as well as service providers.