Raw

Top: TTW should simplify the composing process for inexpensive titles and adopt a new composing method to raise productivity, aiming for up to a 10 % reduction in composing costs.

1. Why the change is needed  
   - Composing accounts for ~40 % of hard‑back and 50‑55 % of paperback costs, the largest production expense.  
   - Measured productivity trails industry benchmarks by 20‑50 %, indicating weak efficiency.  
   - The department is overloaded: chronic understaffing, recent loss of two compositors, overtime > 50 % over budget, and frequent late jobs.

2. What to do  
   - Pilot a simplified workflow on selected low‑complexity titles, removing or retiming quality‑control checks, and measure quality and customer impact.  
   - Conduct a methods study to identify alternative composing techniques that could boost productivity across all titles.  
   - Use pilot results to refine the process and scale the new method company‑wide.

**Omitted:** interviewee names (Roy Walter, Brian Thompson, George Kennedy), the proposal to compare with three other printers, the note that managers disagree about cost levels, union claim details, and the broader staffing/pay‑rate narrative beyond the points captured above.