IPI’s largest operation, the Anamosa plant consists of six individual shops: Filters, Housekeeping & Laundry, Sign, Graphic Arts, License Plates and Braille. Each shop operates independently in terms of budget, sales and profit/loss. IPI's Business Office is also located at IPI's Anamosa office.
- The Filters division offers nearly any type of HVAC filter but is best known for its quality pleated filters offered at outstanding pricing. Air Filters were first introduced in 2005. Ten associates work in the shop daily.
- The Sign Shop is one of Anamosa’s largest shops in terms of sales and associate hours. From MUTCD signs to street markers to vehicle decals, the Sign Shop can meet most customers’ signage needs. A number of specialty products such as banners round out the Sign Shop’s offering. With sales over $3 million per year, the shop employs about 40 incarcerated individuals receiving over 85,000 hours of training annually.
- From one-color envelopes to full-color catalogs, Graphic Arts is a full-service print shop and can produce nearly any printed piece. The shop employs about 15 incarcerated individuals that learn skills such as layout, production, preparing files for printing, operating printers and offset presses and bindery. The Graphic Arts division also includes two associates who specialize in engraving projects. From interior signage to custom plaques and awards, they use their talents to bring unique projects to life every day. With sales annually of over $500,000, associates receive about 25,000 hours of associate training annually. The print shop has been in existence since 1918.
- The first License Plate shop was constructed in 1925 to produce number plates for issuance in 1926 and 1927. One of the most vastly changed of the IPI shops; the current License Plate shop is a compact, efficient shop that averages twelve associates and two IPI staff with sales of $1 million to $2 million annually. The shop produces over 1.2 million license plates annually for the Iowa Department of Transportation.
- Providing warewash and laundry chemicals to institutions and jails across Iowa, the Housekeeping & Laundry division employs five to ten associates and brings in sales of over $600,000 annually. The original “Soap Shop” opened in Anamosa in 1926.
- The Braille Division at Anamosa transcribes print materials into Braille, reproduces Braille materials already transcribed and produces Braille business cards. Incarcerated individuals train from six months to over a year to receive certification in Literary Braille, Nemeth Code (For Mathematics), Music Braille and Literary Proofreading by The Library of Congress - National Library Services for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. The shop employs an average of twenty associates.
For more information on the Anamosa plant, please contact Plant Manager Luke Fowler at 319-462-3439 or
luke.fowler@iowa.gov.