Page 29 - Print 21 Magazine May-June 2019

Inplant
schools are still running inplants, there is even a resurgence as it allows them to manage costs and come up with quicker print.
Thomas says Konica Minolta
has range of printers for inplants from the high level colour machines AccurioPress C3080 and C3070, and the monochrome AccurioPress 6120, all of which can come with inline booklet making, to reduce costs and improve turnaround times.
In colour printing the company
says versatility and reliability are now combined in the AccurioPress C3080 digital colour print system, which it says is “empowering print professional to surpass their requirements for on- demand printing.”
The company says that with print speeds of 81ppm and a 4399 A4 sheets per hour productivity
(2113 SRA3 sheets per hour) the C3080 will manage those print deadlines with ease.
The performance is matched by the extended capabilities of long sheet duplex, up to 762mm, and professional envelope printing.
The company describes the 6120 as a “fast monochrome press that can handle high volume print demands with ease.” It prints 120ppm output in high resolution and has a duty cycle of 2.5 million pages per month. According to the company the addition of dual side colour scanning of up to 240ppm makes this system an all-rounder, with proven print technology that delivers reliability and print consistency for trouble- free high volume monochrome printing. Thomas says, “Inline booklet-making is a major benefit for inplants.”
According to Thomas, as far as private colleges and schools are concerned, for communications
to parents and promotion to prospective parents, print is the key platform. He says, “Websites and emails are not kept and info soon disappears, but print can be put on fridge, into the notices basket, onto the kitchen or coffee table.”
Thomas also cites the wifi link between teachers iPads and workflow, which can see teachers create a test on their tablet, upload have it printed straight away if necessary.
There is a host of print technology available to inplant printers. Henryk Kraszewski,
senior product manager, industrial and commercial solutions at Ricoh, says inplant printers are looking for several factors when it comes to choosing a digital print solution. He says, “The first thing that inplant printers require is print equivalent to what is available from commercial printers – and on a similar, broad array of stocks.
“A key requirement is ease of use
– often operators are not printers by trade, so simplicity is key to ensuring high quality print jobs can be turned around quickly.”
Inhouse finishing is another
key requirement – either in-line
or off-line – with ease of use again paramount. Having printing equipment inhouse loses its edge and advantages if print work can’t be finished on site. Lastly, with floor space often at a premium, a small footprint is a key advantage.
The most popular solution Ricoh offers for inplant operations is the Ricoh Pro C5200S series. Kraszewski says it offers the print quality required, the ability to
run a broad variety of substrates and applications, is compact, easy to use, available with an array of in-line finishing choices, and has
a low acquisition price, enabling a rapid ROI.
A step up from the Pro C5200S series is the Pro C7200X series, which offers higher performance and the capability to run a broader array of stocks combined with the ability to run a special colour – like white, clear, neon yellow, neon pink or invisible red – to add value to print jobs.
Ricoh has also had success with the Ricoh Pro C9200 series into high-volume inplant operations. This is a high performance digital colour jobbing machine capable of handling up to 1 million prints per month.
Finally, there is still some demand for black-and-white print. The soon-
to-be released Pro 8300S series offers robust mono production capability with high quality print on a
Inplants: work stays within the organisation
similar array of stocks to the Ricoh colour solutions (plus NCR).
According to Kraszewski inplants opt for Ricoh as it, “Can provide inplant print operations with a complete end-to-end solution: a choice of printing equipment to suit business requirements, an array of in-line and off-line finishing options, software to automate processes, comprehensive operator training, dedicated telephone support, and extensive service and support. Production printing equipment –
and finishing and software – can
be incorporated into fleet deals and Ricoh Finance can provide attractive finance options.”
When it comes to finishing Kraszewski says inplants want both inline and offline systems, depending on application. “The preference is
for in-line with the production of saddle-stitch booklets, stapling and hole punching. Off-line is the choice for cutting, folding and ring-binding. Ricoh offers an array of choices for in- line or off-line to enable production of fully-finished print jobs,” he says.
Ricoh partners with EFI to offer MarketDirect StoreFront as a web-to-print solution that is easy
to implement, cloud based, and available on a subscription basis. Kraszewski says, “This is something that inplants are implementing in order to easily manage print requests from across the business, simplifying the process of in-house customer requesting template-based jobs or bespoke work.”
For many inplants it is about the flexibility of the offering, it is the entire production line, from design, web to print, wide-format, cut- sheet digital, finishing, delivery. Inplants like the uni in Queensland
may also manage external print, the multi-function
units scattered around the buildings, as well as being
a scanning hub, a postal service and, digital post.
New technology – hardware
and software – and a new
breed of manager is providing
inplants with the opportunity to step up to a new era in
printing. 21
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