Merced printer, World Color Press, gets yet another name: Quad/Graphic
Merced's large printing plant is facing yet another name change.
Quad/Graphics Inc. has purchased World Color Press Inc., which was formerly known as Quebecor, which was formerly known as World Color Press.
The Merced plant of Quad/Graphics, on Cooper Avenue, is still open and employs about 600 people.
Wisconsin-based Quad/Graphics Inc. purchased World Color Press in early July. Shareholders of both companies, as well as the courts, approved the sale.
The merged company, with headquarters in Sussex, will be the second-largest commercial printer in North America behind Chicago-based R.R. Donnelley & Sons.
Quad/Graphics prints titles such as Newsweek, Wired and the L.L. Bean catalog. World Color prints publications such as Time, Sports Illustrated and Rolling Stone. The merged company expects to cut costs through the consolidation of U.S.-based printing facilities within the first two years following the acquisition, according to Quad's strategy.
Merced Color Press was opened in 1981, when it contracted with TV Guide Magazine to print their product. In the 1990s, People Magazine was printed at the local plant, along with Time and Sports Illustrated. In 1999, Quebecor merged with World Color Press, making it the largest independent printer in the world. Quebecor World filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2008, which allowed the company to restructure. That plan resulted in some presses shutting down.
The chairman, president and CEO of Quad/Graphics, Joel Quadracci, said he believes in the power of print.
"This is a defining moment in our company's history and for the future of our industry," Quadracci said. "Our new leadership includes the best and the brightest from both companies, building a unique team of innovative people who will redefine print for the benefit of all our stakeholders."
Reporter Carol Reiter can be reached at (209) 385-2486 or creiter@mercedsun-star.com.
This story was originally published July 10, 2010 at 1:56 AM with the headline "Merced printer, World Color Press, gets yet another name: Quad/Graphic."