University Times

Pitt's Cathedral Publishing won the 1997 International Publishing Management Association's (IPMA) award for "Print-On-Demand Applications" among universities and colleges.

The international award was presented to Stephen McGill, print manager in Central Business Services' printing services division, during IPMA's convention last month in Reno, Nev.

IPMA is an organization of corporate, institution and government publishing and distribution professionals who provide in-house graphic design, page layout, copy, print, mail and distribution services.

Cathedral Publishing is an entrepreneurial venture of Central Business Services. It employs the latest in copying technology to produce books and customized course packets in print runs that are too small, usually 1-500 copies, for a commercial publisher or a university press to undertake.

"We've been plowing ahead, making up a lot of the specialized applications and course materials as we go," said Frank Lehner, manager and editor-in-chief of Cathedral Publishing. "It is just nice to know that what we're doing is getting some acclaim elsewhere." The past two years, Cathedral Publishing also has been recognized for excellence in on-demand publishing by the Xerox Corp. The IPMA award, however, is the enterprise's first from an independent professional organization.

IPMA annually presents awards in five categories to print-on-demand publishers in this country and abroad. Along with Cathedral Publishing, this year's winners included Texas Agricultural Extension Service in the Impact Category; AmerUs Life, Insurance Category; Tennessee Valley Authority, Government Category, and Siemens Stromberg-Carlson, Manufacturing Category.

According to the IPMA, the awards were created to raise awareness about innovative ways to use print-on-demand technology and to recognize IPMA members who continue to shift printing processes from conventional to digital methods. Cathedral Publishing and other winners were selected based on the degree of benefit they provide their customers.

"This award is really the result of a collaboration between Cathedral Publishing, our marketing efforts and publishing efforts, and the professionals at the Copy Cat, copy administration and in the printing services division," Lehner said.

–Mike Sajna