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<title>Atkins Printing&#151; Maine&#146;s oldest union printer is expanding while giving
workers a share in profits article and photos by Ramona du Houx </title>
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    <td width="127" valign="top" align="left" bgcolor="#000055" height="2823"
    bordercolor="#E0EDFC"><font face="Impact" size="3" color="#E1C58E">August - Sept &nbsp;
    2008 &nbsp; ISSUE&nbsp; 18&#151;
    &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; IN THIS ISSUE:</font><p><em><font
    face="Impact" size="4" color="#E1C58E">UPDATES&#151;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </font></em></p>
    <p><a href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qptr.html"><font face="Arial" size="1"
    color="#D59D37">Property tax refunds avalible</font></a></p>
    <p><font face="Arial" size="1" color="#D59D37"><a
    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/e.html">Free Fare Fridays </a>-<span
    style="font-size:7.5pt;
font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37">for ridding the bus available in
    </span><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37">Maine</span><b><span
    style="font-family:Tahoma"> </span></b></font></p>
    <p><font color="#E8CB95"><em><span
    style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Impact;color:#E1C58E">EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS</span></em></font></p>
    <p><font color="#D59D37"><span
    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:&quot;Bookman Old Style&quot;;
color:#E8CB95"><a
    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qgov.html">Governor J.&nbsp; Baldacci&#151; </a>The
    Governor talks candidly about Maine's energy independent future with reserach that puts
    the state on the cutting edge, natural resources that can be used sustainabley, and
    businesses working with the state to make it happen</span><span
    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:&quot;Bookman Old Style&quot;;color:#E8CB95">.&nbsp; </span></font></p>
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    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37"><a
    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qpat.html">Pat McGowan </a>speaks about
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    style="font-size:11.0pt;font-family:Garamond;mso-bidi-font-family:
Garamond;color:black">&nbsp;</span></span></font></p>
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    Laura Fortman -</a> <span style="mso-spacerun:yes">&nbsp;</span>explains the states&#146;
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    style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Impact;
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  color:#D59D37">Maine</span> <span
    style="font-size:
7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37">awards communities across the
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    <p><em><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Impact;
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    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qt.html">Taxes&#151;</a>Maine&#146;s tax
    rating lowered because the old standard was misleading </span></p>
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    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qhy.html">Hodgon's Yacht expands</a>&#151;The
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    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37">Atkin's Printing&#151; </span></a><span
    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;
  color:#D59D37">Maine</span><span
    style="font-size:
7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37">&#146;s oldest union printer is
    expanding while giving workers a share in profits </span></p>
    <p><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37"><a
    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qlk.html">Locally Known Organic Farms&#151; </a>the
    largest in the Northeast plans to supply the entire region with organic greens </span></p>
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    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qmm.html">U.S. Rep. Mike Michaud&#151; </a>Economic
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    <p><em><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Impact;color:#E1C58E">GLOBAL NEWS&#151;</span></em><span
    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:&quot;Bookman Old Style&quot;;
color:#E8CB95">&nbsp; </span></p>
    <p><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37"><span
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    <p><em><span style="font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Impact;color:#E1C58E">ELETION NEWS&#151;</span></em><span
    style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:&quot;Bookman Old Style&quot;;
color:#E8CB95">&nbsp; </span></p>
    <p><span style="font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#D59D37"><a
    href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/qbo.html">Barack Obama&#151;</a> His speech
    in Berlin </span></p>
    <p><a href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/gallery/ramonaduhoux/index.htm"><img
    src="mm10.jpg" width="98" height="15"></a></p>
    <p><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1" color="#E1C58E"><strong>Please comment on any
    article, refer to which article in your email, and it will be posted on that article's
    page.&nbsp; &nbsp;</strong> email: <a href="mailto:duhoux2@tds.net">duhoux2@tds.net</a></font></p>
    <p><a href="http://www.polarbearandco.com/mainedem/index.html"><img src="mm1.jpg"
    width="51" height="15" align="right"></a></p>
    <p><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1" color="#E1C58E">Statistical information in this
    publication is obtained from state agencies and government offices.</font></p>
    <p><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1" color="#E1C58E">All photographs, articles, and
    layout are by Ramona du Houx unless otherwise indicated.</font></p>
    <p><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1" color="#E1C58E">Not authorized by any
    candidate, candidate&#146;s committee, or the Maine Democratic Party</font></td>
    <td valign="top" align="left" bgcolor="#E0EDFC" height="2823" width="602"><font
    face="Zurich Ex BT" size="5" color="#000055"><em><b>Atkins Printing is expanding with
    specialized services &amp; workers share in the profits&#151;</b></em></font><p
    align="center"><font color="#400040">&nbsp;</font><font size="3" color="#000055"> </font><img
    src="qprinter.jpg" width="500" height="335"
    alt="Jim Mitchell and his brother have turned around Atkins into a growing business. They use the technology that fits the job, from this older 1915 printer to computerized systems photo by Ramona du Houx"></p>
    <font FACE="Garamond" SIZE="3"><font FACE="Arial" SIZE="1"><p ALIGN="center">Jim Mitchell
    and his brother have turned around Atkins into a growing business. They use the technology
    that fits the job, from this older 1915 printer to computerized systems</font></p>
    <font FACE="Garamond" SIZE="2"><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Article and photos by Ramona du Houx</font></font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The Mitchells have already hired three new
    employees to meet the increased workload that has happened since Jim and Peter Mitchell
    bought Atkins Printing in Waterville last January. And with an expansion underway
    upstairs, creating a specialty digital graphics shop, they will take on additional staff.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;Many customers have expressed an interest
    in having someone help them with their designs, or to do the graphic artwork for
    them,&quot; said Jim Mitchell. &quot;To meet their needs, we are expanding on that
    service.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Atkins&#146; move to opening a street-level shop
    specializing in instant digital printing will make their business more visible and
    accessible to customers who are looking for a professional, digital printer that can also
    do every aspect of design and layout for them in a timely way. The large offset printing
    component of Atkins will remain underground, occupying 22,000-square-feet. The business
    does highly specialized printing for four-color catalogs and brochures for businesses like
    James D. Julia Auctioneer and Poulin&#146;s Antiques &amp; Auctions in Fairfield. Atkins
    also prints stationary, brochures, pamphlets, and even the napkins used at the Blaine
    House.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Pam Metten will be in charge of Atkins&#146; new
    digital department &#151; Atkins Instant Printing. &quot;AIP will be a challenge that
    I&#146;m really looking forward to. I do a lot of the layout and design work now, so
    it&#146;s an extension of what I&#146;m doing. I&#146;m lucky, it&#146;s a very supportive
    environment here, were like family.&quot; A sentiment expressed many times during a tour
    of the printing facility.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The majority of the employees have made Atkins
    their career. Such loyalty to a family owned company that&#146;s been in business nearly
    100 years is hard to find in the global economy. For Mitchell it is part of what makes
    Atkins so special.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;We have a conscientious workforce &#151;
    they take pride in their work. They are loyal to the company, and we wanted it to stay
    that way,&quot; said Mitchell.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;Ralph [Atkins] was a great employer, but he
    was ready to retire. We wondered who would take over, and we all breathed a collective
    sigh of relief after the sale,&quot; said Sam Gath who has worked at Atkins, on and off,
    for twenty-eight years in the graphics department. He said with the new technology they
    are constantly learning new computer programs to remain on the cutting edge.
    &quot;There&#146;s a new energy here, we&#146;re excited about the future and the
    expansion of the company. The Mitchells have taken us to new levels. Production goals have
    climbed. They&#146;ve brought in new business and new ways forward,&quot; he said.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Friday morning briefings between staff and
    management have led to some changes.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;Every week quarter new production goals are
    set. At the end of the week we analyze if we&#146;re making satisfactory progress towards
    those goals, where mistakes were made and how the process can be improved. At first during
    the meetings Pete and I did most of the briefing, letting people know where we wanted to
    take the company. Now, they are briefing us,&quot; said Mitchell. &quot;An employee
    mentioned that everyone should have business cards, because when he meets someone they may
    not remember who he works for, but if he had a card they would. Everyone here promotes
    Atkins; it had a family team atmosphere before we took over and that was important for us
    to continue.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="left"><font color="#000055">Atkins Printing had been struggling the last several
    years.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="center"><img src="qprinter2.jpg" width="360" height="241"
    alt="Aaron Selwood operates a new state of the art printing press &#147;I&#146;ve been here 17 years,&#148; he said &#147;We&#146;re all like family here.&#148;Photo by Ramona du Houx"
    align="left" hspace="18" vspace="18"></p>
    <font FACE="Arial" SIZE="1"><p ALIGN="JUSTIFY">Photo: Aaron Selwood operates a new state
    of the art printing press &quot;I&#146;ve been here 17 years,&quot; he said
    &quot;We&#146;re all like family here.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;It&#146;s been really exciting to take a
    company that wasn&#146;t doing all that well and turn it around,&quot; smiled Mitchell.
    &quot;And we&#146;ve only begun.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">They have also earned the reputation for being
    &quot;the printer for Democrats.&quot; It all started when Ed Muskie first ran for office,
    and he wanted a union printer. He sat down and had a talk with Atkins, and they have been
    a union printer ever since. Now they are the oldest union printer in the state, and
    because of that status and their quality printing, they are generating print jobs from out
    of state &#151; from Upstate New York and New Hampshire.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;There are places where it&#146;s hard to
    find a union printer, so they are coming to us,&quot; said Mitchell who strongly believes
    in being with the union.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">So do his employees. &quot;Being part of the
    union gives me a great sense of security; I&#146;ve got a family to think about,&quot;
    said Dan Potelle who was working packaging up a job. &quot;There&#146;s a great team
    atmosphere working here. And they have a great pension plan that was negotiated by the
    union.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The company has 27 employees, some of whom have
    been there more than 35 years. Lenny Cobb has been with Atkins for 28 years and, amongst
    other duties, is the chief operator of study older machines that are still in use for
    specific jobs, like one-color prints, or envelopes.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;I remember we did four-color separation
    printing &#151; where you take each color, one at a time, and layer them. We never knew
    how a job turned out until the end. That was stressful. The modern machines take a lot of
    that pressure off, and you can really monitor a job every step of the way,&quot; said
    Cobb. &quot;We are a family here, and when there is a job that has to get out the door, we
    don&#146;t mind a twelve-hour day. It&#146;s hard work, but being a real part of a team
    makes you proud.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Employees have been given extra motivation to do
    a job well, for now they own ten percent of the profits. Everyone has an equal share of
    that ten percent, from the janitor on up to the most senior technicianpressman.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Cobb worked on the team that decided the outcome
    of the profit sharing. &quot;We wanted to keep the family united, so making everyone equal
    made sense, everyone gets an equal piece of the pie,&quot; he said.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The Mitchells have invested in new technologies
    and will continue to invest more as the need arises to maintain quality products. The
    oldest piece of equipment, which is still used to cut out the circle for the door handles,
    dates back to around 1915. If the technology still services a need, they use it.<br>
    Hot off the state-of the art press were canvassing leaflets for an Obama campaign canvas,
    taking place over the weekend. Atkins had a two-day turnaround from when they received the
    electronic information, to designing the leaflet, to printing, folding it, and packaging
    the final product.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;There are three things that are a priority
    in the printing business: quality, making sure your customer comes first, price, making
    sure you are competitive, and speed, making sure you can turn around jobs fast and
    efficiently,&quot; said Mitchell. &quot;We do have a niche in fast turnaround quality
    printing.&quot;</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The printing world may be new to Jim, but being a
    consultant, and working with teams is second nature. He listens carefully to suggestions
    and quickly analyses what needs to be done to solve a problem. He knew that in order to be
    a success he would need to build upon the Atkins&#146; reputation and their loyal customer
    base, which he is doing.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;Maine is a great place to do business.
    People have the right attitudes and integrity. Everyone here will bend over backwards for
    a customer; we all foster good working relationships with them. We don&#146;t want the
    customer to worry about the printing aspect of the job they are doing. They have other
    things to think about. If you come to Atkins, you know you&#146;ll get a quality print
    job,&quot; said Mitchell.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Mitchell is a nephew of Sen. George Mitchell who
    grew up in Waterville. The family has special ties to the area and have witnessed changes
    in the city.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;There is a strong future in Waterville,
    with the Hathaway Creative Center, the Main Street work, Colby and Thomas colleges, the
    Alfond Youth Center, strong health organizations, and ongoing downtown revitalization
    efforts. It&#146;s an exciting place to be a small business. We all grew up here, and we
    owe a debt of gratitude to the community,&quot; said Mitchell.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Jim has three brothers and three sisters.
    &quot;Six of us have gone away only to return to Maine,&quot; he said.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Jim is Atkins&#146; President, a Dartmouth
    College graduate, and owns James F. Mitchell Co., a lobbying firm in Augusta. Peter, a
    graduate of the University of Maine, is in the semi-conductor industry and is Atkins&#146;
    chief executive officer.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;Over the years, Pete and I talked about how
    we would like to have a business in Waterville. Atkins was the right opportunity at the
    right time,&quot; said Mitchell. Their sister, Ann, who is a partner in Jim&#146;s
    lobbying firm, also helps out in accounting. Ann had worked at Atkins off and on over the
    years, and Jim worked odd jobs at Christmas time.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Every time Jim visits the shop, he ensures he
    greets everyone who is working and has a long talk with them, getting updated on the
    different aspects of the print jobs and any concerns workers may have.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">Looking after every employee is important to the
    Mitchells and so is incorporating good environmental practices into the business.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">&quot;We&#146;re going to have Efficiency Maine
    come in and do an onsite energy audit; we recycle more than 98 percent of our scrap paper,
    use environmentally friendly inks, and are looking to receive 50 percent of our energy
    from a green source by January,&quot; said Mitchell.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The company is also expecting to be FSC
    certified, which means they are helping to improve forest stewardship. And amongst other
    greening up initiatives, Atkins encourages customers to use recycled paper stocks.</font></p>
    <p ALIGN="JUSTIFY"><font color="#000055">The Mitchells are taking balanced risks to
    breathe new life into the Atkins printing world, and it&#146;s working.</font><font
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