Villanova Moves Ahead
For nearly 60 years, Villanova University Graphic Services operated out of one of the most unique facilities in the industry: an old house.
Once a residence and later a dormitory, the building had 12 rooms, eight of which housed the in-plant's equipment and offices. A two-color Presstek/ABDick 9982 press filled one room; in another sat a Presstek Vector TX52 computer-to-plate system, a Xerox DocuColor 5000AP and a Canon imagePROGRAF iPF8300 wide-format printer; the bindery and shipping departments were in the garage.
Unique, yes. But practical?
"It was on two different floors. We were constantly up and down the steps," remarks Michael George, director of Central Services at the 170-year-old Catholic university, about a half hour from Philadelphia.
As a result, the workflow was a bit choppy, he says. Plus there was scant storage space, no loading dock and it was nearly impossible to stabilize the heating and air conditioning levels.
So in June, at long last, the in-plant relocated into a renovated 3,000-square-foot facility on the other side of campus, joined by the bulk mail operation, which was merged into Graphic Services. The new location boasts a lot more storage space and permits a more streamlined workflow (with no stairs). The in-plant held an open house in September to show off its new digs and demonstrate its equipment, which includes a new Xanté Ilumina digital envelope press. About 300 people showed up for the event.
Multiple Locations
With 18 full-time employees in the printing, copying and bulk mail operation, the in-plant serves both the main university and Villanova's School of Law. It includes two satellite operations, which mainly handle digital printing for students:
- The Bartley Print Center, located just inside the entrance of the Villanova School of Business, where most of the digital production equipment resides.
- A 1,100-square-foot copy center in the law school, equipped with a monochrome Canon imageRUNNER 7095 and a color imageRUNNER C5185.
The recent move came about after the decision was made to put bulk mail under Graphic Services.
"Our mail room was really cramped for space, with the increase in packages that we're getting," says George.
So he put together a business plan that stressed the advantages of moving into a new facility, the improved services the in-plant would be able to provide and the estimated return on investment time. The fact that the in-plant has such a great reputation on campus for excellent service made approval of the move that much easier to get.
"They've always been extremely supportive of anything that we propose that makes sense," says George.
The newly renovated space, in what was once the kitchen for an old dining hall, was completed in March, but George decided to wait until after commencement to move. Customers were notified that the shop would be down for four days, though the satellite print centers remained open. Movers transported most of the equipment, with Xerox and Canon taking care of their printers, and employees moving their own computers.
"In three days we were up and running," George says.
In the new facility, most of the equipment is in a large central area, but the offset press is in its own room. Work now flows through the plant in a more logical fashion, enhancing productivity and service.
The Envelope Business
George says the decision to add the Xanté Ilumina has proven to be a good one. Previously, the shop printed envelopes on its offset press and then addressed them with an inkjet printer.
"Now we're able to eliminate the offset costs—the makeready, the plate, the wash-up—and we're able to eliminate the inkjet costs," he says. "We're able to give our customers a less expensive option."
He notes that people have been very impressed with the quality of the addressing and the variety of fonts available. The in-plant recently printed the university president's Christmas card, which went to all faculty and staff. Since then, George has gotten phone calls from departments asking how they can get such high-quality addressing on their mailings.
"It's opening up some new doors for us," George says.
The in-plant recently earned its Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) chain-of-custody certification through the InGreen group certification program for in-plants.
"We're really just aligning with the sustainability initiatives and the climate initiatives that are put in place by the university," George comments. He notes that Creative Services, the shop's biggest customer, is a big supporter of the in-plant's FSC certification.
In the future, George sees variable data printing playing a larger part in the university's marketing efforts, as Villanova learns to better utilize the data it collects. To help in that effort, the in-plant just inked a deal to bring in a new Konica Minolta bizhub PRESS C8000 to replace its Xerox DocuColor 5000AP.
The in-plant has been using WebCRD, from Rochester Software Associates, for eight years now for online job submission. In August, the shop added a new portal to allow faculty to order personalized letterhead, envelopes and business cards.
"We're really trying to make it easier for people to order…on the Web," George says, "so that we can pull more printing into our shop."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.
