LIVONIA, Mich., Oct. 5 -- Valassis, the leading company in marketing services and Connective Media(TM), is pleased to announce that effective October 2001, Blaine G. Gerber will succeed William F. Hogg as the Vice President of its Durham, NC Printing Division. As Vice President, Gerber's primary objective will be managing the efficiency and implementation of new printing processes in the Durham facility. The company recently announced that Hogg had accepted a promotion to Executive Vice President of Manufacturing, succeeding Richard N. Anderson. "I am excited to have the opportunity to succeed Bill and head up the Durham Printing Division,'' said Gerber. "Thanks in large part to his leadership, Durham has a longstanding reputation of top performance and its employees are known to be talented, motivated individuals. These qualities, combined with the plant expansion and new printing equipment, position Durham to deliver high performance for years to come.'' Currently, the Durham Printing Division prints 32% of Valassis' free-standing inserts (FSI). An expansion to the facility was recently completed, which will eventually allow Durham to house up to four technologically advanced printing presses. One press was recently installed; Valassis will install another press early next year. These printing presses will allow for more efficient use of manpower, and will decrease Valassis' overhead costs by requiring less paper and increasing printing speed. Durham's long-term goal is to print 45% to 50% of Valassis' total FSI requirements. Gerber joined Valassis in 1984 after graduating from the Rochester Institute of Technology in upstate NY. He held various positions in the manufacturing group before obtaining his last position as Vice President of the Printing Operations Division. Under Gerber's direction, the Printing Operations Division completed the final phases of computer-to-plate technology, which allows Valassis to print materials from digital files instead of film. Ronald L. Goolsby will assume Gerber's former Printing Operations Division responsibilities. Gerber, whose hometown is Pittsburgh, PA, recently relocated to North Carolina with his wife, Liz, and their two children, Zachary and Jordan.