Business Booming in Houston With New Four-color DI Press

Charlie Holden knew that something had to be done about four-color work at the Houston Independent School District. Her in-plant’s two-color Komori press was 22 years old and produced an awful lot of spoilage each time the in-plant used it to print four-color jobs. And customers, in need of faster turnaround, were relying on color copiers, using them for volumes they were never meant to produce.

So in July, the 44-employee in-plant installed a four-color Presstek 52DI direct imaging offset press. Since then the press has produced over 1 million impressions, well above projections.

Because it images plates right on the press, the 52DI is easier to use, Holden notes.

“We have very happy press operators right now,” she says.

The waterless press also gets up to color much faster than the older Komori, generating less waste.

“It’s made a huge difference in our spoilage,” Holden says.

Color work is being moved off the copiers and onto the DI press, where it is being printed much more cost effectively. This, combined with the reduction in spoilage, has saved enough money to pay for half of the annual cost of the press, Holden points out.

Before deciding on the 52DI, Holden looked into digital presses like the Xerox iGen4 and Kodak NexPress.

“When we looked at just the...cost per copy, it was a lot less expensive for the DI than it was for either the iGen or the NexPress,” she reports. “It was just a clear decision to go with the DI.”

Based on the press’s better-than-expected performance so far, Holden expects the ROI period to be even shorter than anticipated.