Inkjet to the Rescue

It was a high-profile event for the World Bank Group. Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was participating on a panel discussing empowering women toward prosperity.

As part of the event ("Voice and Agency: Empowering Women and Girls for Shared Prosperity") a book of the same name was being launched. The World Bank Group's Printing & Multimedia Services operation had planned to print 500 copies of the 200-page book on its Kodak NexPress digital presses, but delays kept the Landover, Md.-based in-plant from receiving files until 9:00 a.m. the day before the event. With the job estimated to take 12 hours to print, there would not be enough time to print and bind the books.

The in-plant, however, had a trick up its sleeve: an HP Inkjet T-230 production inkjet press, installed a year and a half ago.

"We printed that in less than two hours," reports Jimmy Vainstein, senior project manager, with a touch of pride. Books were bound in record time, he says, and delivered the same afternoon.

"The client was incredibly happy," he says.

Vainstein had been concerned about the quality of the photos coming off the inkjet press, because of the heavy ink coverage required, but despite his worries, he says, "the photos looked amazing."

Having a production inkjet press enabled the in-plant to print this important book with a turnaround time no outside printer could match.

"There was no other way they could have done it without us," Vainstein says.

Providing value like this demonstrates how crucial the in-plant is to the World Bank Group.

"We felt that we were part of the World Bank Group's mission," Vainstein notes. "The staff felt very happy that we could be part of the event."

Inkjet Heroes

Since adding the inkjet press in 2013, Printing & Multimedia Services has saved the day many times. Last-minute orders of booklets for important meetings are accomplished without a hitch. The press has transformed the in-plant from a printer of black-and-white operational documents into a full-color publication printer with growing volumes.

"We work in an environment where reports and publications are constantly being modified and updated while the desire for fast turnaround remains," observes Ashley Childers, a customer service representative for Printing & Multimedia Services. "With the speed of the HP press, we are now able to deliver publications with really short turnaround times when needed.

"Projects that used to take a full day on a toner press are now completed within a matter of hours," she continues. "Clients now have an increased confidence in our services knowing we can deliver in a limited time-frame when needed."

An Abundance of New Work

This confidence has brought an abundance of new work to Printing & Multimedia Services. In the past, the in-plant printed less than 5 percent of the Publishing Office's books, but since getting the press "we are printing around 80 percent of these jobs," Vainstein says.

Between 2010 and 2011, before installing the inkjet press, the in-plant's volume dropped 35 percent. After getting the press in mid-2013, volumes that year rose 21 percent.

"Since we started with the press, we've been having access to larger jobs—more premium publications that the Bank had been doing outside," Vainstein says. "We get jobs that we couldn't do before."

This was the reason the in-plant acquired an inkjet press: to bring more work in-house and save money for the World Bank Group. So far, it has been going as planned. July, typically a slow month at the in-plant, was very busy this year due to the new types of jobs the in-plant is now getting.

Vainstein points to another job the in-plant brought in-house thanks to the inkjet press. The World Bank Group's calendar—a run of 13,000—had been printed on a commercial vendor's offset presses for 10 years. This year the in-plant did it on the inkjet press—for less money than it previously cost.

"It went really, really well," Vainstein says. "Nobody noticed that anything changed."

Challenges Encountered

Of course, as the in-plant quickly learned after installing the inkjet press, not every job can be printed with inkjet. High ink coverage on a page leads to numerous problems, and the in-plant has had to work with its designers to make changes to accommodate the inkjet process.

Paper has provided challenges as well. The in-plant tests substrates constantly. Its initial strategy was to lay down a bonding agent at the precise locations where ink was to be applied, a process that allowed the press to print on papers that weren't made for inkjet. Recently, though, the shop discovered a new inkjet grade from Rolland called Enviro Jet, made from 100 percent recycled content. It has worked great, Vainstein says, without the need for the bonding agent or for designers to alter their designs.

"If you actually use substrates that are made for inkjet, you're going to have much better results," he says.

Though the in-plant put a lot of thought into the bindery equipment it added with the press—a Standard Horizon AFC-744 folder and PSX-56 signature stacker, along with Hunkeler roll and sheetfed finishing equipment—high-volume periods have admittedly brought some bindery bottlenecks. As a result, the in-plant has had to adjust impositions on the front end based on what will be most efficient for the bindery, Vainstein says.

But despite all this, adding an inkjet press was the best thing the World Bank Group's Printing & Multimedia Services operation could have done, he says.

"The perception of our business has changed since we got the press," he notes. On-time delivery of even last-minute jobs has become the in-plant's specialty. "We're able to build trust with our clients."

That trust is carrying the in-plant into a new world of productivity and cost savings.