AMHERST, NEW YORK— Printing Industries Alliance (PIA) and the Graphic Arts Association (GAA) have announced a consolidation that forms one of the nation’s largest regional trade associations for the printing industry. The combined organization will launch officially on January 1, 2023 as the Print & Graphic Communications Association (PGCA). Several years in the making, the merger was approved this summer by the two groups’ boards of directors and finalized by a vote of the members in the fall. The decision, says the leadership, creates a rich set of complementary services that PGCA can make available to every member. PGCA’s headquarters will be located at PIA’s present office in Amherst, NY, a suburb of Buffalo. The group will be led by co-presidents Timothy Freeman, currently president of PIA, and Melissa Jones, president of GAA. Both say the response from their members to the idea of a merger was favorable from the start, given the trend toward consolidation that has been reshaping the industry as a whole.