|
Database Leader Now Ready for Printing, Too
By Carro Ford Weston
When marketers need a great list, many turn to infoUSA and its database of 210 million U.S. consumers and 14 million U.S. businesses. Now businesses can turn to infoUSA for outstanding printing as well.
From high-volume Océ VarioStream® continuous feed production printers to a highly productive Océ VarioPrint® 6250 cutsheet duplex system to a full color Océ CS650 cutsheet color printer, infoUSA has assembled a state-of-the-art environment for documents of all kinds.
82 Million Printed Pages a Year
Even in the digital age, the mainstays of infoUSA data products are directories printed on lightweight offset stock. “We average 82 million pages or 75,000 books a year,” said Scott Scheffert, infoUSA vice president of operations. Books range from several hundred pages to three-volume, 6,000-page sets. The maximum book size is 2,300 pages.
Millions in Cost Savings
Through an ongoing focus on cost reduction, consolidation and environmental stewardship, infoUSA has saved over $4.3 million in their print operations. In one year alone, infoUSA saved about $800,000 by bringing color printing in house. Print shop managers, print buyers and others can expect the same approach to quality and savings.
Move to Digital Printing Drives Efficiency
“By moving to digital printing, we streamlined workflow and require fewer processes to publish our books,” said Scheffert. In some cases, production time was reduced by weeks by bringing work in house. Océ PRISMAproduction™ workflow software directs print jobs to all their printers. Everything uses the standard PDF format. Two duplexing Océ VarioStream® 7450 continuous feed systems handle book printing, and the workflow includes unwinders, inline buffer and cutter, and a finishing folder for an eight-page book signature. An Océ CS650 color system handles internal marketing printing. They use the color system to print brochures and flyers, postcards, mailings, coil-bound books and corporate reports. “The 650 is an integral part of the color printing we do. It’s an asset because it does a lot of heavy stock work and all our business cards.”
Getting Greener and Cutting Waste by 85 Percent
“With digital printing, we aren’t throwing away as many books,” Scheffert said. Books are printed as needed, and infoUSA has cut waste by about 85 percent. “We’re putting less waste into the environment, and by doing jobs digitally, we can still print just three or four copies when the original printing runs out,” Scheffert said. In addition, the recently purchased Océ VarioPrint 6250 system uses about 40 percent less electricity and requires no developer or oil.
Benefits of Consolidation: Cost Savings and Increased Capacity
infoUSA streamlined infrastructure and workflow and improved quality control by bringing sheet color and continuous form printing under one roof. “We wanted to be more efficient on the print floor, and with the Océ VarioPrint® 6250, we consolidated volume from other printers, plus increased capacity,” Scheffert said. “By increasing our duplex capacity from 45 to 256 pages per minute, we can take on more work and do it faster.” They currently print about 400,000 images a month with their Océ VarioPrint 6250 cut-sheet system. “Our goal is to offer services in a cost-efficient way by consolidating all we can and reducing costs,” he noted.
Positioned for Professional Printing
Greater efficiency, faster turnaround, ample capacity and smarter workflow have positioned infoUSA to take in work from companies wanting to outsource book printing and other jobs. The ample capacity of their Océ systems are available for other companies needing an efficient way to outsource various types of printing. As Scheffert puts it, “By working with Océ, we have achieved a good partnership, good service teams, and quality of product -- It’s the whole package.”
# # #
Carro Ford Weston has been writing about the digital document marketplace for years. Contact her at carrof@earthlink.net.
|
