If you needed additional affirmation concerning the importance of digital printing for the industry, the Printing Industries of America/Graphic Arts Technical Foundation (PIA/GATF) has proclaimed 2006 as "The Year of Digital Print."
The association is planning a full year of activities, events, publications and educational efforts to encourage printers to explore digital printing, expand their current levels of involvement, or embrace the full potential of digital printing for their companies.
For firms that have already begun the trek down the digital path, the need to finish this digitally produced work has become even more important than in the past.
According to "The Market for Print Finishing Technologies," a report produced by the Print Industries Market Information and Research Organization (PRIMIR), "as digital printing gains broader acceptance in the printing community, use of specialty finishing equipment can be expected to grow. Already, digital printers offer integrated cards and labels to their customers, as well as foil stamping, embossing and ultraviolet coatings."
This is the case at Brooks Litho & Digital Group, North Amityville, NY, notes David Brooks, president. The company utilizes an HP Indigo UltraStream 3000 and Heidelberg QM-DI to produce jobs such as sell sheets, folders, postcards, displays and business cards.
The typical turnaround time on a digital job at Brooks Litho is between two and three days, the company president reports, but often overnight and same-day turnarounds are necessary. Run lengths typically require 250 to 500 12x18" sheets to be produced. A Digicoater Premier from K-2 Systems is counted on to help finish the jobs.
"Prior to the Digicoater and the new 4.0 inks for the UltraStream, scratching, rub-off and scuffing were always a problem," Brooks reports. "More challenging is when variable data jobs―which are personalized and unique―have to be finished. It's imperative that strict quality control procedures are adhered to at the finishing stage."
The finishing route taken often depends upon the end use of the piece―such as if it is going to be mailed or handled repeatedly and if there is heavy ink/toner coverage. Brooks Litho will either varnish, aqueous coat or UV coat those types of projects. Jobs must be printed with control numbers or codes and physically inspected after the finishing stage, Brooks adds.
"Since the variable data jobs are often small runs, this is not so much of a problem as it would be for large runs," he advises. "We have not yet reached a point where it is cost-effective to invest in sophisticated electronic control devices."
Sudhir Ravi, owner of TVP Color Graphics (left), and Glenn Toole, vice president of marketing for Xeikon, celebrate the purchase of a Xeikon 5000 digital press.
A similar story is told in Streamwood, IL, where TVP Color Graphics (Think Variable Print) has evolved into a new 4.5-acre, state-of-the-art digital printing facility. The showpiece of the company's new digs is a Xeikon 5000 digital color web press. The new addition makes four Xeikons for TVP―a Xeikon 32, Xeikon 320, Xeikon 50D and the Xeikon 5000. The company also utilizes two Konica Minolta 8050s. To finish work coming off of these digital machines, TVP relies on equipment from Rollem International for slitting/scoring/perforating, Heidelberg Stahl for folding, as well as gear from Morgana Systems for hand scoring.
"You need a finishing capability that is as varied as the capabilities that the equipment is capable of producing," advises Michael Intrator, director of sales.
TVP Color Graphics is a major printing solutions provider to Chicago's print community and also provides overflow capacity to some of the largest printing companies in the Midwest. The company focuses on producing effective, customized print communications and developing lasting client relationships.
The Windy City-area printer utilizes Xeikon's new in-line Print Protector, which applies a special coating that helps prevent damage to direct mail pieces from postal mailing sorting systems, Intrator reveals.
"Its main application is better slip resistance to minimize scuffing, and also the elimination of some of the static problems that digital printing presents," he explains.
Pre-production planning and careful attention to detail goes a long way when dealing with postpress requirements for short-run, highly personalized pieces, Intrator adds.
"The only other way to deal with it is to wait until the end of production―after printing and bindery―and repeat the finishing when the spoilage has been made up," he says. "This does happen in our business; it is part of the reality of variable data production."
Another company banking on digital technology is St. Louis-based Jerome Group, a full-service direct marketing firm that recently completed a new phase of capital investments key to Jerome's print-on-demand services.
Chief among the additions are four new Xerox Nuvera laser printers, which increase Jerome's sheetfed variable digital printing capacity by 35 percent. The new printers give Jerome the ability to laser approximately five million pieces per day. Jerome also has purchased a third HP Indigo press for increased capacity and to create customized materials in color.
With this phase of investment, the company has spent more than $7 million in new equipment to support its variable data digital printing capabilities over the past five years.
"These improvements are not just about capacity and speed," stresses Luke Teboul, vice president of operations. "We also strive for the highest possible degree of accuracy and integrity."
On the back end, the company has also expanded its abilities with several purchases, including:
* Three new B?we Bell + Howell camera inserters, which will complement the new laser printers to match pieces on-the-fly and ensure accuracy.
* An Ibis bookletmaker for DocuCentrix, an exclusive digital service developed by Jerome that allows clients to personalize and mass produce marketing and membership materials on-demand. Docu-Centrix enables clients to create benefit booklets, brochures, enrollment materials, prospectus booklets, catalogs and other bound materials―all customized by individual.
* The Avery Wavetronix Checkweigher, which makes sure that every mailing contains the proper amount of material by checking the pack weight of each piece on the assembly line.
Jerome Group uses an arsenal of digital devices, including two Océ continuous laser printers; three Danka 9110s; two Xerox DP 155 laser printers; one Xerox 6135; and three HP Indigo presses. Finishing is handled by equipment from Bourg, Standard, Duplo, Baldwin, Ibis and Xerox.
"We use in-line finishing for very short runs, and that reduces problems," concludes Executive Vice President Ken Brown, noting that Jerome's runs can consist of as few as one piece or as many as 500,000. "Everything is highly personalized booklets, cards or letter packages."
With one-of-a-kind products such as these, perfection on the back end is a top priority.