Copier Crime - From Cleveland

Invoices do not match deliveries.

It started with three "missing" copiers, but records released by the Cleveland schools indicate the district paid for six machines in 2007 and 2008.

Invoices obtained show the district paid $160,200 to buy the six Ryobi offset duplicators from Toledo-based Superior Offset Supplies. The district paid $24,750 apiece for the machines and gave the company $11,700 for consulting on "copier-duplication requirements." The company charged a $150 hourly consulting fee.

"If they say they bought six, six are missing," he said. "Every school property has been physically checked. There's nothing."

The purchaser for the Cleveland Schools, his name listed on the invoices, is Dan Burns. Mr. Burns was placed on paid leave from the $184,000-a-year job, in December, after state auditors questioned the purchase of six machines investigators say apparently never arrived. Mr. Burns' assistant, Shenee McCoy-Gibbons, was put on leave at the same time.

Burns ultimately resigned from his job in January, 2009.

The invoices show that the district bought two machines at a time, in December 2007 and last April and May. Each bill totaled $49,500, which was just under the $50,000 limit for no-bid purchases.

As with most State/Local/Education organizations, bids are required when consulting fees exceed $10,000 - yet services for these devices were billed in two installments, one for $5,800 and another for $5,900. The invoices do not state when the consulting was done.

But it gets better...

Additionally, before Burns went to the Cleveland Schools he spent 30 years working with the Toledo School district - where he started as an offset duplicator operator and technician.

Burns left the Toledo Schools at the end of FY2006.

Total billing from Superior Offset Supplies from FY2001 through FY2006 amounts to $952K.

Most of this is in FY’s 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006 with billings of $116K, $254K, $189K and $262K, respectively

State auditors are investigating the Cleveland case with the help of Cuyahoga County sheriff's detectives. Detectives seized two laptop computers, software and files from Cleveland school district headquarters Dec. 10.
The auditors also are reviewing purchases made in Toledo under Burns' supervision.





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Print4Pay Hotel: What is "Print Management"

Art has a great article by Trevor Hoffer from PrintAudit offering up another definition of Managed Print Services.

Print4Pay Hotel: What is "Print Management"


Of course, this gets my wheels spinning as well.

I like to define a Managed Print Services Engagement as,

"...any program, provided to a client, by a Partner, that allows the client to easily track and reduce costs associated with printing, can be considered a Managed Print Service..."

The definition is broad. It is supposed to be broad.

Within a MPS offering are a score of different processes, tools and knowledge bases - all or partially applied to a client in order to help save them money.

That's all.

So in a broad sense, a copier, CPC service agreement (coupled with a lease agreement) can be considered a MPS - I would argue this should be considered an Entry Level MPS Engagement but an engagement non the less.

Check it.

Sharp Expected to Post Operating Loss: Another "First" in the Industry

NEW YORK/TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Sharp Corp will post an annual operating loss of more than $112 million which is a milestone for the company, as it is its first ever full-year loss.

Not much of a surprise for those who attended the 2009 Lyra Symposium - Sharp did not bode well, receiving a "D" on their Vendor Report Card, for their lack-luster earning trend.

Sharp is the world's No.3 maker of LCD TVs behind Samsung Electronics Co Ltd (005930.KS) and Sony Corp (6758.T).

Sharp had forecast an operating profit of 195 billion yen at the start of the financial year, which it cut to 130 billion yen in October as cellphone sales weakened. It reported an operating profit of 183.7 billion yen for the previous business year.

Panasonic to Cut 15,000 Jobs

Japanese electronics giant Panasonic is to cut 15,000 jobs worldwide and close 27 plants. The job cuts amount to 5% of its 300,000-strong global workforce.

"The company's business conditions have worsened particularly since last October, due mainly to the rapid appreciation of the yen, sluggish consumer spending worldwide and ever intensified price competition," a company statement said.

Panasonic now projecting a net loss of 380 billion yen or $4.2 billion for the year ending March 31, rather than the 30 billion yen profit it forecast on Nov. 27.

New York University to Award Vyomesh Joshi 2009 Prism Award

NEW YORK, January 28, 2009 — New York University today named Vyomesh (VJ) Joshi, Executive Vice President of the Imaging and Printing Group at HP, the winner of the 2009 Prism Award. The Prism Award is presented annually in recognition of distinguished leadership in the graphic arts and communications industry.

Sponsored by NYU’s Master of Arts in Graphic Communications Management and Technology Program, the 2009 Prism Award will be presented to Mr. Joshi during the 24th Annual Prism Award Luncheon on Wednesday, June 24th in New York City. This year’s ceremony will be held at the historical Gotham Hall located at 36th Street and Broadway.

Previous NYU Prism Award recipients include: Cathleen Black, president of Hearst Magazines; Richard M. Smith, chairman, editor-in-chief and CEO for editorial and business operations of Newsweek; Antonio M. Perez, president and CEO of Eastman Kodak Company; Anne M. Mulcahy, chairman and CEO of Xerox Corporation; William L. Davis, chairman, CEO and president of R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company; Henri Dyner, president and CEO of Sun Chemical Corporation; Janet L. Robinson, president and general manager of The New York Times; and Katharine Graham, chairman and CEO of The Washington Post.

Laura Reid, vice president of Hearst Publishing, and Terry A. Tevis, president of T.A. Tevis & Co. LLC., are co-chairpersons of this year’s Prism Committee. Mr. Tevis also serves as a co-chair of the NYU GCMT program’s board of directors, an advisory body comprising industry executives from leading companies in the graphic communications field.

The proceeds of the Prism Award Luncheon help fund student scholarships as well as student and program support for New York University’s internationally renowned Graphic Communications graduate program, which offers curricula to develop the next generation of industry leaders. In 2008, the program won the ESDF Award for Excellence in Education and Innovation in Higher Education.

Since its inception, the Prism Award Luncheon has raised millions of dollars for education.

The Graphic Communications graduate program is based within the NYU School of Continuing and Professional Studies (www.scps.nyu.edu/gcmt). As one of the University’s 15 colleges and schools, NYU SCPS has for over 70 years focused on creating applied professional programs for people who are already in the workforce. In addition to the Graphic Communications Management and Technology program, the school offers industry-focused Master’s degrees in areas such as publishing, direct marketing, public relations, fundraising, human resources management, real estate, construction management, hospitality industry studies, tourism and travel management, and sports management.

Tickets for the June 24th Prism Award Luncheon are available from $750 per person to $6,000 for a Sponsor’s Table of eight, and $10,000 for a Co-Chairmanship (which includes a dais seat as well as a table of eight). Reservations and additional information are available from the NYU SCPS’s Office of Special Events. Please contact Anna Condoulis at 212‑998‑7003, by fax at 212‑995‑4130, or by e-mail at ac5@nyu.edu.