Inkjet’s Age Invisible Touch Barcoding also reduces touchpoints. Although we like to think we have a better opinion of our employees, the fact remains that the more automated a process can be, the less the likelihood for errors. And when you’re printing books of one or any of the other kinds of variable-data and personalized materials that digital printing enables, there is no room for error. Th ese automation capabilities are also why looking for cutrate used equipment or trying to utilize legacy off set fi nishing equipment may end up costing you in the long run. Older equipment, even older digital fi nishing equipment, may also not be as fl exible as you need it to be. To what extent can it keep up with changes and upgrades in printing equipment? Unlike off set equipment, digital equipment doesn’t stay around for decades, and changes in product demand likely will drive users to invest in new printing equipment. (Th e economics of digital equipment—leasing vs. buying—also contributes to the frequent turnover of print engines.) Is today’s fi nishing equipment future-proof? Legacy fi nishing equipment was less modular and less upgradeable. Today’s equipment is designed with scalability and fl exibility in mind. “Simply put, technology is king,” said Elliott. “Printers buying the latest technology increase their profi tability, productivity, automation, format possibilities, customization, and personalization when compared to used equipment. All of these points lead to developing your market value and overall profi tability in what is a very competitive market.” In or Off? Another change being wrought by digital is that where once inline fi nishing was the desired confi guration, offl ine or nearline is becoming the preference. Th e diff erence between nearline and offl ine may be open to interpretation, but “nearline” can refer to on-premises fi nishing while “offl ine” refers to fi nishing done in another facility. In some cases, “nearline” can refer to barcode-driven fi nishing. However you want to defi ne it, it’s driven by the need for fl exibility. Nearline does tend to be rule today— but there can be exceptions that prove the rule. “When the job requires things like instantaneous reorder, 100 percent accurate mail match, or security concerns where you get into pharmaceutical or HIPAA applications where you have to literally take out every touch, then I understand inline,” said Lance Martin, director of sales at MBO America. “But most of our lines tend to be rather complicated and have a lot of operations.” “We believe in most cases that an inline solution is best from a productivity perspective,” said Elliott. “As a general rule, you can expect about 25 percent greater productivity from an inline system compared to an offl ine solution. Th at being said, each printer is diff erent.” Th at is, it depends on what you’re producing. “For example, in the book market it probably makes MITSUBISHI IS PAPER PRODUCTION INKJET Our Production Inkjet papers print fast, dry fast and have an ink receiving layer that produces sharper clearer images with outstanding color reproduction. From gloss to matte in variety of weights, we have a coated paper for every application! „Direct Mail - SWORD iJET® in high gloss, gloss, satin and matte and JETSCRIPT in matte and satin „ Transaction / Transpromo - VALUE IJ lightly coated papers „ Book - PREMIER IJ Book lightly coated paper „ Commercial Print - PREMIER IJ Form, JETSCRIPT and SWORD iJET® coated papers Call 1.800.925.3200 EXT 13268 for more information or visit www.mitsubishiimaging.com. www.mitsubishiimaging.com ©2016 Mitsubishi Imaging (MPM), Inc. Code PIJ8.15 For more information, visit PrintingNews.com/10006725 PrintingNews®com September 2016 ® Printing News 29
Printing_News_September_2016
To see the actual publication please follow the link above