Craftsmanship, Commercial Print Technology, and the Heart of Thysse

Tour a Modern Print Facility with Dean Bott

Before retiring in 2024, Dean Bott, Thysse’s President, took one last walk through our Oregon, Wisconsin headquarters—a space he helped shape during his nine-year tenure with the company and more than fifty years in the printing industry.

Dean was known for giving the best tours in the building. For guests who truly loved the craft of printing, those tours could stretch for hours—filled with stories, insights, and small details that revealed just how much he cared about this work and the people behind it.

When Dean announced his retirement, we couldn’t let him leave without capturing one of those tours in video form. This series preserves his knowledge and perspective—a lasting look at the people, processes, and principles that make Thysse: Where You Go With Your Brand®—from the perspective of a true print expert.

What IS Commercial Printing? How Thysse Puts Ink on Substrates

Every brand relies on consistent, high-quality messaging to drive awareness, build equity, and drive growth. Commercial printing is about reproducing those messages, colors and overall brand experience in physical form. There’s a lot more to it than putting ink on paper, at Thysse.

Commercial printing is often described as “custom manufacturing”. Unlike most types of manufacturing where industrial equipment, teams and workflows are aligned to produce the same thing at scale, commercial print is a different animal. Variable substrates, graphics, exact colors, page counts, trims, folds and bindings change and feed into a truly dynamic manufacturing environment.

In this clip, Dean walks through Thysse’s digital toner, high-speed inkjet, and offset printing. These complement Thysse’s wide format technologies, which extend the same color control to signage, display graphics, and environmental branding. Together, these platforms allow Thysse to reproduce color accurately across every substrate, device and asset type produced here.

Watch how these three print platforms combine to ensure every substrate—paper, board, or synthetic—carries your brand exactly as intended, backed by G7 Master Certification for unmatched color accuracy.

Dry Toner Printing at Thysse: Fast, Flexible, Personalized

Dean often emphasized that technology should support creativity—not the other way around. Thysse’s digital toner presses enable short-run printing and variable-data personalization with remarkable efficiency and quality.

See how Thysse’s digital print technology brings agility to marketing teams—handling quick-turn booklets, personalized mailers, and print-on-demand collateral for local Madison clients and beyond.

High-Speed Inkjet Printing: Inside Thysse’s HP A2200

Speed and personalization are key to today’s most effective marketing programs. In this video, Dean showcases Thysse’s HP PageWide A2200 roll-fed inkjet press, a powerhouse for high-speed, variable-data printing and direct mail.

Take a look inside one of southern Wisconsin’s most advanced inkjet systems and see how Thysse combines direct mail production, automation and data-driven personalization to help brands engage audiences at scale.

Offset Printing at Thysse: Craft Meets Innovation

Offset printing remains the benchmark for long-run quality and brand consistency. Dean takes us inside Thysse’s Heidelberg six-color press, where automation, LED-UV curing, and G7 color management work together to deliver exceptional results for high-end collateral and packaging.

See how Thysse’s offset printing services blend craftsmanship with innovation to achieve vibrant, durable, and color-accurate results for our clients.

Inside the Bindery: From Flat Sheet to Finished Piece

Printing is only half the story—what happens next transforms it into something memorable. Inside Thysse’s bindery and finishing department, Dean explains how flat press sheets become beautifully finished materials through cutting, folding, die cutting, gluing, and stitching.

Watch how automation and craftsmanship come together to produce everything from pocket folders and stitched booklets to retail packaging and custom marketing pieces—all under one roof in Oregon, Wisconsin.

Inside Thysse’s Mail Inserting & USPS Processing

Once printed, every mail piece must be assembled and verified with absolute accuracy. Here, Dean demonstrates Thysse’s camera-based inserting systems and USPS mailing services, ensuring each envelope and insert set is perfectly matched and ready for delivery.

Watch how Thysse’s direct mail processing and match-mail verification maintain total mail integrity—giving clients confidence that every campaign reaches the right recipient, on time and in compliance.

Wide Format Printing at Thysse: Big Impact, Every Surface

In Thysse’s wide format printing division, ideas scale up and come to life. From retail signage and event graphics to architectural and environmental branding, Dean showcases how Thysse produces large-scale visuals with exceptional detail and color accuracy.

Explore how Thysse’s wide format printing services help brands make bold, beautiful statements across wood, metal, acrylic, vinyl, and other specialty materials—right here in southern Wisconsin.

Fulfillment & Brand Portals: Where Print Meets Logistics

Not every printed piece ships the day it’s produced. Many move through Thysse’s print fulfillment center, where logistics, technology, and inventory management converge. Dean highlights how custom-built Brand Portals give clients real-time control over their printed assets, promotional items, and signage kits—all stored and shipped directly from Dane County to locations nationwide.

See how Thysse’s fulfillment services and brand portal software streamline complex distribution programs—reducing costs, eliminating errors, and accelerating turnaround times for regional and national brands alike.

Sustainability at Thysse: Smarter Energy, Smarter Packaging

The tour concludes with Thysse’s commitment to sustainability. For Dean, sustainability isn’t a buzzword—it’s built into how Thysse operates. From solar-powered printing to renewable paper sourcing and right-sized packaging, sustainability shapes every stage of production.

Discover how Thysse’s investments in eco-friendly printing and packaging innovation—including on-site solar power that supplies much of our Oregon, WI facility—reduce waste, conserve energy, and strengthen local manufacturing for a greener future.

A Legacy of Leadership and Craftsmanship

As Dean steps into retirement, his legacy remains visible in every part of Thysse—from the technology and processes he helped refine to the culture of craftsmanship he championed.

Dean’s tour wasn’t just a farewell—it was a way to preserve the knowledge and spirit that shaped Thysse’s culture.

His legacy lives on in the team that carries that spirit forward—continuing to innovate, explore new technologies, and push the edge of what’s possible. Every day, Thysse looks for new ways to create value, elevate brands, and deliver outcomes that move our clients—and our craft—forward.