Executive Management

A Message from the President

Some Americans are beginning to see light at the end of a long tunnel. After two years of downbeat forecasts, recent polls indicate that the number of people who say the economy is improving is ticking up. That does not mean everyone's outlook is rosy, but more of us are seeing glimmers of better times ahead.

A little historical perspective might help explain the reason for optimism. The year 2009 marks the 25th anniversary of MLP USA operating as a North American division of Mitsubishi International Corp. This is the third U.S. recession to occur in those 25 years. We have been though dark times before and eventually have emerged on the sunny side.

There is a lot to learn from history. Printing companies that survived the economic downturns of the early 1980s and 1990s carried away lessons that can be applied to the current business climate.

Keeping a close eye on cash on hand, employee count and long-term strategy are crucial during any slump, business owners say.

They also recommend zeroing in on a targeted marketing strategy and recruiting top-quality employees. Rising unemployment rates offer the opportunity to hire the best talent, which can serve businesses well down the road.

Reputation is vitally important to a company's ability to continue through recession after recession. Build a solid network in one area and develop expertise there.

Improved equipment reliability can be one of the few opportunities that exist to help blunt the financial impact of reduced sales. Think of the value to be gained as a result of your presses performing in a much more predictable manner. Improved reliability leads to increased throughput while working fewer shifts, reduced quality losses and savings on labor and energy costs.

Maximizing performance through improved reliability was a key objective for Mitsubishi in developing the Diamond V3000 series sheetfed presses. The Diamond V3000 is designed to cut the amount of time required to maintain the press. Extremely durable components and mechanisms minimize printing imperfections that can degrade print quality and cause press downtime. Other features reduce power consumption.

Whether you own a new model in the Diamond V3000 series or an earlier-generation Mitsubishi sheetfed or commercial web press, we want you operating at peak performance. To that end, the MLP USA Service Department has devised a special menu to support your Mitsubishi presses.

Service programs available to Mitsubishi press users include regular preventative maintenance, press inspections, mechanical upgrades and electrical upgrades. We can tailor a program to your specific needs. Please contact your MLP service or sales representative for details or visit Press Support on this website.

Printing Green and Clean

When Shweiki Media, a publication printer in San Antonio, Texas, made the decision to increase its web printing capacity, its management traveled to Germany to attend the 2008 Drupa show. The owner, Gal Shweiki, recently recalled one of the biggest lessons he took away from the experience.

"The way the world is changing, printers really need to focus on limiting the impact we have on the environment," he said. "It's critically important for printing companies to focus on printing green and clean."

Shweiki's investigation into the latest web offset technology only served to deepen the environmental lesson. After conducting thorough research, the company purchased the first Mitsubishi Diamond MAX-S⁺ commercial web press in the United States. Mitsubishi's support for research and development of technologies aimed at minimizing environmental impacts played a major role in the decision.

The new 16-page press addresses the demands of the market, such as the need for shorter makeready time, lower startup waste and reduced spoilage caused by printing imperfections or inconsistent print quality.

"Mitsubishi brings all of the best technological innovations together in one package," Shweiki said. "This new press will allow us to perform much better in terms of reducing the amount of waste associated with print production."

Roy Kikumoto
Executive Vice President / Treasurer