Into Print, The University of Iowa Business Services' quarterly newsletter, aims to educate, inform, and entertain its readers, with a goal of fostering positive communication between the department, its staff, and its clients.

TypeStrikes

General news
Here's something for nothing: money-saving ideas for our Business Services customers
Join forces and save even more
Simple protocol for using, posting messages on DDDEO listserv
Departments offer customer training, Spring classes

Central Mail Services
University establishes precautions, procedures for handling mail
General precautions to take when opening mail
Criteria for profiling suspicious packages
Phone numbers: UI Public Safety, UIHC Safety and Security
For more information

Laundry Service
Use our forms for best results
Lost items: we can often help you find them

Materials Management
Keep November 29 open for 2001 Product Show--and popcorn!
Equipment Rental stock and price list on website
Time to update and order....

Printing Department
Department hosts panel for its SPO customers
Character Counts: Meet Kim Burda
Printing Department taking orders this year for annual calendars
Quiet heroes

We are . . .

Business Services directory

Mail services: www.uiowa.edu/~fuscmail/prices.htm
Equipment Rental: www.uiowa.edu/~fusmm/rent/rentstok.html
Printing, Document Services prices: www.uiowa.edu/~printsvc/prices/prices.html

Limit your use of office copiers and printers
Document Services is more cost effective for longer runs. Office copiers and printers provide convenience, not economy. Their cost includes the purchase price of the machine; depreciation; maintenance; paper; toner; and the salaries of those who make the copies, fix the jams, order and replace the inks and toners, and wait in line to use them. The per-copy cost will nearly always be higher than Document Services' 4 cents per copy. Sept/Oct '99

Use the paper stocked at the Printing Department instead of special-order paper
Special-order papers often must be purchased from the paper mills at premium prices. Shipping costs add to the expense. Use the paper we keep in stock for the best prices. Spring '01

Make editorial changes before the blueline stage
Changes to blueline proofs always drive the cost of a printing order up because they involve rework charges. For one order not long ago, 19 percent of the cost of an eight-page booklet came from editorial changes on the blueline. May/June '99

Know when to increase the printing quantity on your order
Increase the quantity of your printing order for items you know you will use. The bulk of the cost of printing accrues in the copy, plate, and press preparation stages. As you print more pieces, your per-piece cost goes down.

Know when to decrease the printing quantity on your order
Decrease the quantity of your printing order if the items are produced on a DocuTech and you are estimating the usage. This type of printing is termed "on-demand," and one of the benefits is that you can order and receive more pieces as you need them.

Use Rental Service
If you need electronic equipment, consider renting it. Our Equipment Rental Service provides such items as LCD projectors, digital still and video cameras, DVD players, and laptop computers. Rental Service covers the maintenance and overhead costs for its products; offers short- and long-term rental; stocks many brands; and considers suggestions, basing its purchases on demand. May/June '00, Fall '01

Order supplies from General Stores
The "core" items in particular are deeply discounted as part of the University's contract with Corporate Express. A UIHC program to increase its ordering from Stores saved the Hospital $106,600 in 18 months (see page 4). March/April '00, Sept/Oct '00, Fall '01

Buy recycled toner cartridges
They are cheaper than new ones--you can save up to 50 percent on some models--and, in most machines, they provide acceptable quality. General Stores has listed the recycled cartridges it carries on its website. Summer '01

Order toners for copy machines from General Stores
The pricing is better than from Corporate Express because Stores purchases the items directly from the manufacturer or distributor using contract pricing. Order copier toner from General Stores
May/June '00

Order office supplies online through MIGS and SIGS
Many departments still send orders to General Stores by fax and Campus Mail. You will save paper costs by ordering online through MIGS and SIGS.

Buy paper directly from General Stores
We keep a supply of both white and colored papers in stock. The State's contract with Xerox has much better pricing than the paper in the Corporate Express catalog, so we have blocked many Corporate Express paper items to prevent ordering. March/April '99, May/June '00

Go online for directories and calendars
Instead of buying the printed gray event calendars and herd books, go to www.uiowa.edu/homepage/calendar/; www.uiowa.edu/registrar/calcal.htm; and http://www.uiowa.edu/homepage/directories/.

Follow U.S. Postal Service guidelines for business reply mail
When it comes to postage discounts, we're all in this together. The Postal Service grants the University a permit to send business reply mail at reduced rates, as long as a minimum percentage of such mail meets USPS standards. If too many improperly prepared items with our permit show up at the post office, the UI risks losing the discount, which can be up to 30 cents per mail piece. Summer '01

Include endorsements on outgoing mail
Endorsements -- Return Service Requested, Forwarding Service Requested, and Address Service Requested -- tell the Postal Service how to handle your mail if the addressee has moved or the address on the mail piece is incorrect. Depending on which one you use, your mail pieces will be forwarded or returned, and you will receive notices that enable you to update your mailing list and ultimately save money on sending mail pieces that never reach their intended audience. Spring '01

Make sure to properly prepare your bulk mailing
University departments may use the UI bulk mail permit and send mail at reduced rates if their mailings meet all the Postal Service's criteria. These include a minimum of 200 identical pieces mailed to U.S. addresses only; such information as an indicia, endorsement, a return address, and a zip code; and size, shape, and weight maximums and minimums. November/December '99

Use the addressing formats established by the Postal Service
A standardized address allows mail to be sorted on high-speed optical character readers. An OCR can sort more than 30,000 letters an hour, and a fast human may accomplish 1,200 in the same time span. Handwritten addresses and incorrect address formats keep costs high.

Automate your payroll process
Sign on with Laundry to use a new time, attendance, and labor-tracking system that replaces manual time clocks and promises savings in clerical time and administrative overhead. Summer '01

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We are eliminating duplication and reducing costs, the reasons for bringing them together under the Business Services umbrella five years ago. The departments share human resources, computer, administrative, and marketing staff in various configurations.

Campus Mail and General Stores help each other with deliveries, for example. Laundry and Stores are beginning to work on a delivery process, as well. All the departments share in the marketing effort, which includes producing Into Print. Mail, Stores, and Printing share systems, payroll, and human resources functions. Mail and Stores share a computer consultant.

"Consolidating support services for the Business Services units has been an ongoing initiative," says Mary Jane Beach, Business Services' director. "This process takes time and requires everyone's cooperation to ensure that we continue to reap these benefits.

"Every manager must review positions as they come vacant with the consolidation in mind," she says. "In addition, each of them has been reviewing reorganization opportunities that would contribute to further consolidation." Jan/Feb 98, Mar/Apr '99, Mar/Apr '00

To send a message, e-mail it to dddeo-memo@list.uiowa.edu. It will be forwarded to the list of subscribers after it has been approved. Do not add attachments; placing your message in the body of the text is preferred as it transmits more efficiently. Also, do not expect a copy of your own message mailed back to you. If there is a problem sending it, you will receive an e-mail reporting any errors.

To subscribe or unsubscribe, type the appropriate command word on a line by itself in the body of an e-mail message and send it to dddeo-memo-request@list.uiowa.edu. Send only the command; don't include any other words with it and turn off your automatic signature.

The following commands are available:

help returns more detailed command descriptions.
info returns the list description.
lists returns a list of all mailing lists.
subscribe adds your name to a mailing list.
unsubscribe removes your name from a mailing list.
which returns names of lists to which you are subscribed.
who returns the list of subscribers for this list.

You may include more than one command in the message, but use just one of them on each line; the last one should be end. The results of commands, except for unsubscribe, are returned to you via e-mail.

For more information, contact Central Mail manager Chris Kula.

MIGS, SIGS: Training to use General Stores' online ordering systems; instructions are also at www.uiowa.edu/~fusmm/migs. html and ~fusmm/sigs.html. Contact Judy Rockafellow, General Stores.

Our departments will offer the following classes in the Spring:
General Stores and online ordering: Information about General Stores; includes MIGS and SIGS training.
Printing Plus: Overview of the Printing Department, its services, and how to work effectively with the department.
Producing Successful Mailings: Deliver the results you desire; maintaining a database; proper address hygiene and format; and mail piece design.

Watch the Staff Development website, www.uiowa.edu/~fusstfdv/, for information about dates, times, and registration.

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Routinely take all incoming mail to a room that is out of traffic and that has a door. Use the Postal Service, Department of Public Health, and FBI criteria listed below to evaluate each piece of mail before opening or redistribution. Post these criteria where mail and packages are opened.

Evaluate before you open mail! Ask yourself: Is this a reasonable piece of mail for me to expect? Does the address accurately reflect the name and address of the addressee? Do I know the sender? Can I consider this junk mail and discard? Do I really need to open this piece of mail?

If you receive suspicious mail, do not open it. Do not handle it more than necessary. If possible, obtain the following information: a complete description of the mail in question; the return address; the postmark and date; the addressee; and a description--approximate size, color, and material of the item (i.e. regular business envelope, brown paper wrapping, cardboard box, and so forth).

Isolate the mail piece. Notify individuals in the immediate area and call the University Public Safety Office or, at the Hospital, UIHC Safety and Security.

If mail is opened and contains a threat or unexpected substance, isolate the mail piece. Vacate and secure the room or area if possible. Notify individuals in the immediate area and move to a nearby secure room. Avoid spreading possible contamination within the building. If a sink is available in the immediate area, wash exposed skin with soap and warm water.

Notify the University Public Safety Office or UIHC Safety and Security. Be prepared to state your name, location, and phone number; the reason you consider the mail suspicious (see information below); and a complete description of the mail in question (see above).

Using the official FBI screening criteria, the UI Public Safety officers will determine whether the threat is valid. If they determine that there is not a threat, the item will not be picked up.

If warranted, officers will respond to the location of the suspicious mail, evaluate further, and secure the area if necessary. Public Safety will then assist in determining if additional assessment is needed. If further evaluation is deemed necessary, the mail item will be removed. Once examined, the sender will be notified of its contents and the item subsequently destroyed.

Be observant for suspicious envelopes or packages.
Open mail with a letter opener or other method least likely to spread contents.
Open packages and envelopes with a minimum amount of movement.
Do not blow into envelopes.
Do not shake and/or pour out contents.
Keep hands away from nose and mouth while opening mail.
Wash hands after handling mail.

Substance concerns
Protruding wires, stains, or odors.
Powdery substance on the outside.
Strange odors or stains.

Postmark concerns
Postmark city or state does not match return address.
Insufficient postage or excessive postage.
Foreign mail, air mail, and special delivery.

Packaging concerns
Unfamiliar packaging.
Unusual weight for package size.
Excessive masking tape, string, twine, etc.
Poor or incomplete packaging.
Unusual weight, given its size; oddly shaped; or lopsided.

Address concerns
Packages marked "Personal" or "Confidential."
No return address.
Wrong, outdated, or misspelled address.
Addressed to individual(s) no longer at the work address.
Misspellings of common words.
Hand-written, incomplete, or poorly typed addresses.
Incorrect titles, or titles but no names.

*Criteria established by the U.S. Postal Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Iowa Department of Public Health

Suspicious mail
DDDEO mailing list archive: 10-15-01, 10-16-01, 10-29-01
USPS Message to Customers
Anthrax
Center for Disease Control (CDC) Emergency Preparedness and Response
Bioterrorism
CDC Emergency Preparedness and Response
CDC Strategic Plan for Emergency Preparedness and Response

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Laundry Checking List: A three-part NCR form to list items to be cleaned. It asks for your department name, the name and phone number of a contact person, your Laundry ID and MFK numbers, and a list of items to be cleaned. Keep the pink copy; attach the white and yellow copies to the soiled linen. The yellow one is returned with your clean linen, and you can tell at a glance whether all items were delivered.

Blue mending tags: These 3x5-inch cards tell us when garments need repair. Fill out the department name and the service needed, then securely attach it to the soiled uniform ready for pickup.

Special Attention tags: These yellow 3x5-inch cards alert us to linens that need special processing. Fill out the department name and the reason it is being tagged, then securely attach it to the soiled linen ready for pickup.
Jo Anne Worley

To retrieve something you have lost, call the Laundry's main office and tell us your name, campus address, and campus phone number; a brief description of the item; the type of linen it was left in; and the approximate date the item was missing.
Jo Anne Worley

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Stores, UIHC hold summer fair--and Hospital saves money
Forget the pigs and birthing cows. Forget the homemade pie.

At the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, we love a fair that features paper, pens, and pencils (plus a bunch of free stuff!). Around here, everyone loves a bargain, especially when it means saving real departmental cash.

Staffers who purchase office supplies jammed the Hospital's East Room for an office supply vendor fair sponsored by the UIHC Value Analysis Program and General Stores. Besides showing off new and improved office products, the fair featured an education program to acquaint staff with a streamlined purchasing process that takes advantage of MIGS, the highly cost-effective online ordering system.

"We emphasized that General Stores should be their primary source of office supplies," said Value Analysis Program Facilitator Terri Stoner. "Since implementing the new online ordering system [nearly two years ago], we've already saved $106,600 for the hospitals and clinics."

Deb Pearson, a member of the team that helped develop the program, stressed the ease with which staff can place orders with Stores. "When users go online and type in their order, they know immediately what the discounted price is," she said. "Their orders are delivered the next day."

Stoner said a new catalog being developed by Corporate Express, the preferred vendor for General Stores, "will be customized for The University of Iowa," she said. "Unlike the old catalog, the new publication lists the actual cost, eliminating the need to calculate your discount. And these products have been selected for their cost effectiveness."
Jane Zukin

The stock at Rental Service continually changes as new equipment is acquired and the old becomes outdated, little used, or unavailable. Check the stock list and rates at www.uiowa.edu/~fusmm/rent/rentstok.html, then call for updated information.

Herd books
The 2001-2002 University Directory (herd book) is now available through General Stores. The price is $3.45; the stock number is 10000. Place orders through our SIGS online ordering system or fax a General Stores requisition to 384-3918. Student, faculty, staff, and office listings are also available online. Go to the UI home page and click "Phonebook/E-mail," or go right to the directory. The online listings are updated throughout the year.

City phone books
Telephone books are scheduled to be available in November. Those of you on our listserv will be contacted via e-mail with ordering instructions.
Gary Anderson

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"The purpose of the event was to educate UI designers about printing and proofing processes from our four major process color vendors," says Susan Pauley, the Printing Department customer service representative who organized it.

The main topics of the day were "what designers need to provide to these people to get jobs printed quickly and accurately, and what kind of proofs are available from each printer," she says.

There were also question-and-answer sessions and opportunities for the designers to talk with printers individually. Other topics that came up were what happens to a job when it arrives at the printing plant; how important are mock-ups and folding dummies; what color correction means to printers; and the costs and time frames that can be expected for the different kinds of proofs the printers provide.

Sales and management representatives from Cedar Graphics, Image Media Group, J&A Printing, and Tru Art Color Graphics gave presentations, answered questions, and showed samples. Printing Department customer service, design, and prepress staff were also on hand to answer questions.

"I typed codes that would format the type. It would come out on a punch tape--a ribbon with holes punched in it--that would be fed into a computer and output on RC paper," she says. "You could see only a few characters at a time on a screen, and that included the code! I learned to read the tape so I could tell where I was."

Today, desktop publishing technology gives her instant feedback and shows her how entire publications will look as she keys copy, arranges pages, scans photos, and processes electronic files.

Kim and her husband, Steve, who works for Facilities Services at Hillcrest, grew up near Green Bay, Wisconsin. They expect to retire north of there, where they vacation every year. "It's beautiful...and it's home. There's Nikolai National forest, a lot of lakes; it's just beautiful outdoor country."

Around here, they deer hunt. One time, "It was so cold, I'd set my gun down to try to get warm," says Kim. "I turned around and there was a big buck standing right behind me!" She and the buck were both startled--and he got away.

She prefers fishing, anyway, and is especially proud of a five-pound bass she caught by chance with a worm and bobber while Steve was casting nearby with a rod and reel and dozens of lures.

They are also renovating their 100-year-old farmhouse and have replaced the septic system, furnace, and roof. "The kitchen is torn down to the bare studs," Kim says. "It's been that way for two years!"

Even so, she cans and freezes the vegetables she grows for her family, which also includes Tara, a high-school senior who's active in sports; Steven Jr., a junior who enjoys music and Nintendo; and Timothy, a fourth-grader who, she says, "is into Hot Wheels and trouble!" (Just kidding, T.J.--she thinks you're great! So is she.)

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We are . . .