Making the Switch In Santa Fe
Located about four miles from the state capitol building in Santa Fe, N.M., the state's Printing & Graphic Services operation has been serving New Mexico for a quarter century. For most of that time, the shop has focused on black-and-white reproduction of business cards, letterhead and forms. High-quality color work, however, was eluding it, and as the demand for this work increased, the in-plant found itself losing business.
When Manager Bob Mesch arrived five years ago, he saw right away that the in-plant needed to make some changes to stay viable. It had to increase both its revenue and product offerings, and that meant adding digital capabilities.
"Very quickly I had to introduce some technology," he says. The shop, he adds, had not invested in new equipment in 12 years.
It was time.
Now, after several equipment upgrades—including the recent addition of a Kodak Magnus 400 II Quantum computer-to-plate (CTP) system—the 16-employee in-plant is tackling some of the state's most color-critical work.
To promote its transformation, Printing & Graphic Services has just launched a branding campaign with the slogan "Make the Switch. Support New Mexico. Print in New Mexico."
"Now that we have more overall capabilities, we feel it's important to promote and gain a new identity," he explains.
The in-plant's Web site is being updated to reflect its new capabilities, and Mesch is making the rounds to different agencies armed with marketing materials. His message: the in-plant can offer lower prices and higher quality than outside printers. Not only that, he says, the in-plant's staff actually takes the time to consult with agencies and teach them how to provide PDFs with embedded fonts so their jobs can run smoothly. This is better service than any outside printer is providing, he contends.
The Impact of Color
With a $2.4 million budget, Printing & Graphic Services provides everything from design through bindery in its 28,000-square-foot facility. Its jobs include proposed legislative amendments, annual reports, strategic plans, manuals, brochures, letterhead, business cards, posters and even decals for state vehicles.
Over the past five years, the in-plant has gradually upgraded its digital color capabilities, moving from a Xerox DocuColor 40 to a 6060 and then to a 5000. It now runs two Xerox DocuColor 5000 digital presses, in addition to a Nuvera 120 and two Xerox 4100s.
The shop has five multi-color Heidelberg offset presses, but until recently it was using a stat camera and subcontracting its plates through an outside vendor. Needless to say, that setup had its limitations. When Mesch brought in the chemistry-free Kodak Magnus CTP system in the fall, everything changed.
"It opened up our color product line tremendously," he reports. The in-plant is now able to handle high-end color jobs, like annual reports.
"We're now running standard 200 line screen," he notes, adding that most area commercial shops provide just 175 line screen. This has increased the quality of the state's annual reports and strategic plans. And since the quality of these photo-filled documents has a great impact on the results they bring about, the in-plant now plays a direct role in helping state government function more effectively.
"The impact of color helps the state make better decisions," Mesch proclaims.
Internally, having CTP has given the shop more control over documents. The in-plant can now make changes more quickly and control scheduling better. Plus, CTP has allowed the shop to eliminate chemicals, which falls right in line with the state's green initiatives.
Humidifying a Dry Climate
Another change Mesch implemented to increase productivity was installing humidity and temperature controls in 2008. The dry New Mexico climate caused its share of paper-handling problems, most of which have now been eliminated.
"I've been able to reduce our actual head count and maintain the same overall volume," Mesch reports.
The in-plant has been getting a lot of business lately producing posters and banners on its 60˝ Kodak Encad wide-format printer. The need for outdoor signage is growing so much that the shop is about to add a 64˝ solvent-based Epson Stylus Pro GS6000.
Also on the way is a Standard Horizon BQ270 perfect binder, which will replace an older C.P. Bourg binder. Mesch liked the double-hinged scoring on the BQ270, as well as its improved gluing system. A Seal laminator has already been installed. Mesch feels that adding all this equipment was a critical step for the in-plant.
"It was desperately needed to be able to compete," he says. The technology upgrades have improved both quality and turnaround time for the in-plant, allowing the shop to increase its product offerings, which in turn is saving the state money. IPG
Bob has served as editor of In-plant Impressions since October of 1994. Prior to that he served for three years as managing editor of Printing Impressions, a commercial printing publication. Mr. Neubauer is very active in the U.S. in-plant industry. He attends all the major in-plant conferences and has visited more than 180 in-plant operations around the world. He has given presentations to numerous in-plant groups in the U.S., Canada and Australia, including the Association of College and University Printers and the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association. He also coordinates the annual In-Print contest, co-sponsored by IPMA and In-plant Impressions.
