School District In-plants in the Limelight
John Schreck and Holger Kasper stand with the Santa Ana Unified School District’s Xerox iGen4.
In-plants are pretty popular with school districts, and in IPG's March issue, we turn the spotlight on them. The issue features five stories on in-plants in the K-12 sector, plus the results of our survey of school district in-plants. In the issue:
The Santa Ana Unified School District’s innovative in-plant supports the district’s adoption of California’s Public School Choice Program. Says John Schreck, manager of Logistics: "We needed to expand from a print production shop to be a provider of everything schools would need to tell their stories: banners, embroidery, laser engraving, t-shirt printing, promotional items and more."
In Nebraska, Omaha Public Schools Printing & Publications leverages technology like Web-to-print and variable data printing to support the educational mission of the district. “I am not an educator, but my job is to support and help the educators,” explains Steve Priesman, who oversees the shop's 18 full-time and two part-time employees. “Whether that educator is the classroom teacher or the principal at the school, it is our job to give them the materials they need in a cost-effective and timely manner.”
At Omaha Public Schools, Lead Artist Shelly Dutiel (foreground) runs a banner on the Mutoh VJ1638 printer, while Plant Specialist Janet Hula, Manager Steve Priesman and IT Technician Jeff Wild look on.
In central New York state, the in-plant at Delaware-Chenango-Madison-Otsego Board of Cooperative Educational Services (possibly the most complicated parent organization name in history) just added a four-color Presstek 34DI digital offset press and is using it to serve several districts. Says Frank Oliver, print shop supervisor: “Being a cooperative, the school districts pay into this service, and we’re able to provide equipment that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford on their own.”
The new Konica Minolta C1100 bizhub PRESS at Colorado Springs School District 11 is likewise saving time and money for departments in that district, and bringing in additional revenue as well. “We’ve actually insourced more work as a result of our ability to produce shorter, high-quality runs more quickly,” remarks Joe Morin, manager of the Division of Business Services.
And our manager profile of Erica Derrington of Olathe Unified School District in Kansas reveals a wonderful relationship with, and respect for, the in-plant's clients: “I truly love our customers," she says. "One thing about K through 12: it’s not corporate. So, any small thing you do for them — a design tweak, or you caught something on their order that wasn’t right — any attention to detail that was missed … they’re so appreciative.”
Read these stories and find out more about trends at school district in-plants in our March issue, coming to your mailbox soon.
