Daddy, What Was it Like Before the Recession? <a href="http://printing-in-china.com/paper-gift-printing/">christmas wrapping</a> <a href="http://printing-in-china.com/label-printing/">custom vinyl stickers</a> E-learning happens to be a preferred mode to train. ,Jan Sevcik, inkchaser Len Christopher - Vice President of Workflow Solutions, Heidelberg Digital L.L.C After graduating from Cal Poly using a degree in Graphic Communications, Len Christopher started his career with TRW. There he first became included in XPLOR. After 3 years, he joined Eastman Kodak just as one Application Engineer and, for your next 14 years, held various positions from technical to sales to marketing. All his positions focused for the electronic publishing and printing industry. In 1999, he had become the Director of Worldwide Market Planning for your Black & White Business Unit of NexPress Solutions LLC, a jv of Heidelberg Digital L.L.C. and Eastman Kodak Company. In 2001, he was named Vice President of Workflow Solutions for Heidelberg Digital L.L.C. WTT: Len, within the announcement it turned out stated that this Digimaster 9150i was modular and customers could build their very own solution. Then, 4 particular configurations were highlighted. Can you briefly describe them and present their prices? Len Christopher: Sure. On the program side, there is certainly really merely one configuration. It is a very modular architecture which takes into mind printers who need to stay with existing workflows, people that aren't willing to replace their front and people who desire to coexist along with other digital printing equipment. Four instances of how a machines may be configured we call Basic, Broad Application, Data Center Configuration and Book Publishing. The Basic is for an individual who has a limited pair of applications and inline finishing requirements, such as stitching. The approximate prices are $350K-$450K. The Broad Applications configuration is for the typical shop having a variety of applications plus a variety of paper sizes, (e.g. needs a stacker for 14x18 sheets), uses an offline finishing process but still wants short turnaround applications. This would exclude special purpose accessories. A typical price can be $378K-$400K. The Data Center Configuration is geared towards customers who will be in convergence mode to create transactional documents and occasionally technical manuals. For very high volume applications had you been use one stock heavily, the rollfed options from Roll Systems and Hunkeler are available and offer unattended operation. Rollfed and cutsheet can even be mixed. The price is approximately $400K-$450K. In the Book Publishing model were creating 4 page signatures (as opposed to 64 book pages) then perfect binding. With the BPRF, four 8.5 x 11 pages of your book are perforated, folded, rotated. The Perfect Binder from Borg will wrap the heavier stock cover around. Imposition can be done with Bookletmaker on the RIP, or ImageSmart, or even an existing workflow. Book printing may also be achieved rollfed for unattended operation and lower cost, along with the user can switch between rollfed and cut sheet. The approximate cost is $500K with components. WTT: With a duty cycle of 3M-5M/mo (24x7 operation) and 36% more output with the same Total Cost of Ownership because the 9110, Heidelberg is clearly going in direct competition using the Xerox DocuTech family, specially the 6180. Is the Xerox DocuTech subscriber base a primary target? Len Christopher: Yes. DocuTech and DocuPrint customers. Xerox continues to be touting a common controller, but I don't determine it's available yet. Heidelberg offers a standard user interface for different datastreams. It is vital to allow better utilization from the asset. Some tools can even interpret Xerox data so Xerox products can coexist with Digimasters, and you are able to switch forwards and backwards about the fly. We also offer a common finishing architecture, like stitching, whether the output is transactional or PostScript. Competitive stapling is leveraged from the copier that expects the last page first. So, once you have the first page first with another device, you must collate the web pages to allow for the stapler. This is time wasted. The 9150i does not need an extra operation or operator intervention. WTT: Xerox includes a long history inside data center sufficient reason for data center service bureaus. How will Heidelberg establish credibility in this market? Let's say I'm a data center manager. How will Heidelberg establish credibility when camping? Len Christopher: Excellent question. Credibility will rest while using merchant and local analyst. They will have to show their ability to be consultants and project their findings with benefits and highlighting growth potential. Heidelberg is hiring people specializing in transactional printing and beefing up technical support. Another key element is our vacation relationships. Our strategic partners CSP in Germany, and RSA and Solimar, have a fantastic deal of expertise inside data center and with data stream conversions. They offer support. WTT: Almost 25% of current data center volume is statements and invoices with 20% in direct mail. How familiar is Heidelberg with one of these applications? Len Christopher: Heidelberg is hiring field personnel from all of major vendors who will be specialists in these applications and works with all the local sales reps and analysts. WTT: What is Heidelberg's proposal to long-term Xerox DocuTech customers? If I'm a good-term DocuTech customer, what exactly is Heidelberg offering that can make me wish to change my vendor? Len Christopher: It would be different depending who I am talking to. But suppose you would be the shop owner or department manager. Heidelberg offers a wider selection of services, tighter turnaround, open architecture that can adjust to whatever is in position and adaptability that may improve conditions may exist inside the current process. We have easy upgradability, excellent and productivity with integrated finishing plus an infrequency of jams and stoppages. WTT: I believe that Heidelberg will target its own market of traditional, and merely-moving-to-digital, printers. What are you offering these print shops that could possibly be a new comer to digital and unfamiliar with all the digital sales cycle, the best digital applications and markets? If I'm a just-moving-to-digital printer, how will I learn about selling digital? Len Christopher: First, Heidelberg offers a selection of capabilities that enables customers to make use of their strengths. Like the Internet portal. Plus there's education within our market centers, offering courses and seminars, as well as a pair of tools that the customer can utilize. HDIA is our users group containing specialized subgroups for learning. And additionally, you will find there's Business Development group in Kennesaw which is devoted to helping the customer succeed of their digital business. WTT: Personalized printing in b/w is growing at 36%. What type of support will Heidelberg be providing 9150i customers pertaining to building variable data applications? Len Christopher: Our strategy would be to offer a suite of merchandise around variable print from third party vendors, including Printshop Mail, Objectif Lune and Planet Press. We have drawn upon tools which make essentially the most sense and used the very best suppliers for components. For areas such as database management and mail houses, our sales reps will help customers increase the risk for connections with a local basis. The Business Development group can show you a little more about this. WTT: Regarding book publishing, is your audience existing book publishers or printers who might want to provide the application form, or both? Len Christopher: Both. Book publishing can begin out for the basic configuration which has a inexpensive perfect binding solution such as Bindexpert. The trend with a lot of printers has become to rent sales reps in several locations, such as remote metro areas. This increases their potential movement to book publishing. WTT: There are many vendors offering book publishing solutions. How will the newest-to-book-publishing customers have an edge if they go along with Heidelberg? Len Christopher: Heidelberg offers the capacity to put money into book publishing technology and also have other applications too. The 9150i doesn't must be dedicated. A shop can begin small, for example runs under 1,000. If they want to visit higher, Heidelberg usually takes exactly the same files and head to offset. The same RIP will be feeding multiple types of output including digital, CTP and offset. Image quality along with the selection of image quality is outstanding. WTT: Regarding your OEM partners -- Canon, IBM, Danka and IKON--should we expect to become hearing announcements from their website in the near future? Len Christopher: All our oems are available the 9150i product. Let's wait and discover what goes on. Len, thanks to your time. ,<a href="http://printing-in-china.com/office-supplies/">cheap office supplies</a> <a href="http://printing-in-china.com/office-supplies/">home office supplies</a> printing-in-china.com |