PARAMUS, NJ, DECEMBER 8, 2006 - In a new NAPL podcast, John Hyde, managing director of the Professional Services Group of NAPL (www.napl.org), the trade association for excellence in graphic communications management, shares insights on the importance of company valuation and the factors printers should consider in obtaining a valuation. "If obtaining a current and accurate company valuation is low on printers' ëto do' lists, it's time they move it front and center," advises Hyde, noting that: -- For many business owners, most of their financial worth - and their funding for retirement - reside in their company. A company valuation is the critical first step in maximizing and preserving that value. -- Owners of privately held businesses can gain a ëpoint in time' view of their company's value and insights into what really drives value in the graphic communications industry and in their marketplace. -- In addition to providing important information on a company's market value, the steps NAPL's company valuation specialists (certified Accredited Valuation Analysts) take to valuate a business can show owners how to add more value to their business more quickly. Among the issues Hyde discusses in the podcast, available at the NAPL website (www.napl.org) and on iTunes, are: -- The short- and long-term reasons why a graphic communications company would need to do a business valuation. -- What factors should be considered in a valuation. -- The importance of general intangibles in a valuation. -- Common misconceptions about the role of EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) in a valuation. -- The importance of having someone who's an expert in the graphic communications industry conduct the valuation. "We would council our clients to obtain the assistance of industry specific resources, such as NAPL that have an understanding of industry trends and challenges because those factors do come into the valuation process," said Hyde. "Valuating a graphic communications company is not like valuating a general widget maker. Doing a valuation of a graphic communications company requires understanding the type of customers it serves, the type of equipment it has, the markets it serves, and so on. The valuation is going to be a lot more efficient and more accurate if it's done by someone who understands all those things."