Duplicators My How They've Changed

Forget what you knew about digital duplicators. The models of yesteryear have been replaced by fast, high-quality machines.

by John Reiling

There's no longer much debate about the value of digital technology in printing and imaging applications. That said, it's puzzling that so many in-plants have yet to adopt digital systems in a serious way.

In the case of digital duplicators, it seems, some in-plant managers are basing their resistance on experiences with digital duplicators of years ago: machines with relatively low dot per inch (dpi) ratings, and feeding mechanisms that jammed or provided inconsistent results. In addition, early digital duplicator models fell short in their ability to offer spot color.

But those perceptions are mostly outdated. Digital duplicators today offer printing at 600 dpi, a match for offset quality in virtually any line or text application, and even some half-tone reproduction requirements.

Equally important, some of today's digital duplicators have reliable dual-roller feeding systems that not only ensure a straight paper path and consistent registration, but also allow for jam-free feeding of many different sizes and weights of paper, including envelopes. And in terms of spot color, digital duplicators offer a range of options, including the availability of custom PMS ink colors. In fact, one type of digital duplicator has the ability to put down two different-colored inks in one pass through the unit.

A Fulfillment House Goes Digital

A recent convert to digital is Millennium Marketing, which found a digital duplicator to be ideally suited for its needs. The Miami-area credit card mailing and fulfillment house prints and mails huge volumes of credit card solicitations to consumers. Its production process, until recently, was a hybrid of familiar technologies: an in-house offset press, outside vendors for additional offset printing, and an array of high-end laser printers for the entry of variable data, like recipients' names and addresses.

It was a workable but costly process. The company was spending nearly $45,000 per month for the offset and variable data printing. Beyond that, the eight laser printers weren't giving Millennium the speed it wanted for its monthly output of three million impressions.

The solution turned out to be a combination of fast, efficient digital components. It began with two 600-dpi digital duplicators, each capable of up to 130 pages per minute. Those units were teamed with three digital production printers, which provide two colors in one pass, for a combined output of some 720 pages per minute, or 43,000 per hour. With that rate of output, the laser printers had no chance of keeping up with the duplicators' pace, so eight high-speed digital copiers were enlisted to maintain production speed. All the equipment was connected to the company's computer, allowing fast and easy copy edits to the mailers' fast-changing contents.

The time and cost savings have been dramatic. Jobs that used to take three to four days with offset are now taking as little as a day and a half. Part of that gain is a result of the faster equipment, but much of the time savings comes from eliminating all the delays inherent in the offset process. For Millennium, that time difference is critical. In a typical month, it runs as many as 60 jobs with as many as 50,000 pieces to a single job.

Cost savings have been equally impressive. Since the digital solution went into full operation, Millennium has been saving $24,000 per month.

Digital Provides Quick Response

Bush Industries, a major furniture manufacturer in Jamestown, N.Y., also has several large presses, but finds its 600-dpi digital duplicator to be a lifesaver in some situations.

In-plant Manager John Akin says, "We're often asked to do payroll inserts—advisories, letters from human resources—and we're usually told about them at the last minute. With the digital duplicator, I can start the job at three in the afternoon and have it ready to go into pay envelopes by the end of the day. The digital duplicator can also give stopgap emergency help.

"Occasionally there's an urgent need for assembly instruction booklets for a particular item," he adds. "Even though that job normally would be done on one of the larger presses, if they're needed 'yesterday,' I can run off a small quantity quickly and inexpensively on the digital duplicator. That means there'll be books available right away while the regular press run is being set up."

Concerns about the quality of digital duplicator output, once widespread, are rarely heard today. Add to that the combined benefits of high speed and low cost, and it's clear that digital printing is a force to be reckoned with. In our print-on-demand era, it's a technology you can't afford to ignore.

John Reiling is senior marketing manager for Ricoh Corp., a manufacturer of digital duplicators marketed under the Ricoh, Gestetner and Savin brand names. He can be reached at:

john.reiling@ricoh-usa.com