Declaring war on paper waste - 'War on Waste' by Roger Dickeson
American Printer

Why printers must imp rove their scorekeeping

Roger Dickeson wrote "War on Waste" ("WoW") in 1974. Thanks to the paper shortage of the mid-1970s, and the combined efforts of Dickeson and Norman Scharpf, president of the Graphic Communications Assn. (GCA) (Alexandria, VA), the book became a bestseller. But when paper became plentiful again, printers' interest waned.

"Like most ideas that are popular for a time, the impact died down," says Dickeson, who, after obtaining a masters degree in accounting and a law degree, practiced law for 13 years before joining a midsize print shop as CEO in the mid-1960s.

Dickeson didn't, however, desert the war on waste. He wrote a second book, "Printrol" (short for Print Control), in 1977.

"WoW" gives a broad overview of printing waste, and discusses the need to measure and control printing to reduce waste. "Printrol" carries the discussion even further and presents Dickeson's direct-cost accounting system developed specifically for the printing industry.

OBVIOUS WAY TO CONTROL COSTS