Pittsburgh, Pa., January 13, 2009 -- The JDF User Group, an open forum for users and vendors of JDF-enabled systems, will host its next meeting at Japs-Olson Company in St. Louis Park, Minn. on March 25-26, 2009. There will be a tour of the facility followed by a full day of meetings. The meeting topic is the business decisions and choices which are required for CIM and JDF automation. The answers will reflect CIM and JDF automations effects on profitability profitability, enhanced productivity, and brought in new customers.

Founded in 1907 by Barney Japs and G.F. Olson, Japs-Olson Company is a leader in the direct mail production and printing industry. It employs over 700 workers, operating twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week in a modern 525,000 square-foot facility. The Japs-Olson Company is a technology innovator at the leading edge of graphic arts production. The tour of the facility will provide great insight into the implementation of automation and JDF.

Multiple case studies on the use of automation will be presented by printers including Japs-Olson Company, IWCO Direct, and Democrat Printing and Litho Co. The meeting will also look at methods to integrate legacy equipment into automated workflows to increase productivity. Also, with respect to layout for different printing processes, different techniques for automating the job planning stages will be dicussed.

The JDF User Group meetings are the premier forum for the exchange of ideas and solutions relating to JDF workflow. "This group provides printers with a practical guide to JDF implementation based on best practices and experiences in the industry," says Dr. Mark Bohan, Printing Industries of America Vice President, Technology and Research.

Other upcoming meeting dates in 2009 include July 22-23 at Democrat Printing and Litho Co. in Little Rock, Ark., and November 12, immediately following Printing Industries of America's Converge Conference in Orlando, Fla. The group welcomes a wide range of users of JDF-enabled systems as well as the suppliers of those systems. All interested parties are welcome to become members. More information can be found at www.jdfusergroup.org, contacting 412-259-1706 or [email protected].