Standard FinishLine Spring 2018

Tech Talk

E Customer Snapshot

An in-line Hunkeler Roll-to-Stack system (R) provides the finishing for InfoSend’s Canon inkjet press. A second near-line Hunkeler Roll-to-Stack/Roll-to-Fold solution with a Horizon folder (L) supports their Ricoh inkjet press. Both the Canon and Ricoh finishing lines include the Hunkeler DP8 II Dynamic

Featuring technology from Hunkeler’s NEW Generation 8, this Roll-to-Cut/Stack line combines the CS8 cutting module and LS8 offset stacking module to convert a continuous web into one or multiple offset stacks. Web widths up to 22.5 inches are processed at speeds up to 590 feet per minute.

Perforator, which performs dynamic perforation and punching in-line.

Finishing for Inkjet! Advances in automation, greater versatility, and the unique requirements of inkjet create an important need for in-line verification, inspection, and integrity analysis, particularly in the transactional, financial, and healthcare sectors. Cameras are being used to verify data in-line, track jobs through all stages of production and create audit trails that may be needed for regulatory compliance. Any mistakes can be costly, so job tracking is critical to prevent expensive reprints and to trigger a reprint should the need arise. C ost Considerations Finding the right in-line and off-line finishing solutions for today’s applications. Whether your application is books, direct mail, transpromo, labels, newspapers, or personalized catalogs, today's in-line and off-line finishing solutions are an essential piece of the pro- duction inkjet workflow. Advances in automation and greater versatility have led to feature-laden machines that meet the unique requirements of the inkjet generation, but there are more options than ever before, and navigating all that is available can be challenging. E

Best-in-Class Finishing Key to Inkjet Success at InfoSend. Data processing and bill print provider achieves new heights in flexibility and productivity

Specializing in transaction statements, electronic billing, and web hosting services for electronic documents.

Founded in 1997 and celebrating its 20th anniversary last year, InfoSend is a data processing and bill print provider operat- ing from three locations – Chicago, Dallas and Anaheim – with about 130 em- ployees. The Anaheim facility produces about eight million mail pieces per month.

acquisition of new clients, we have seen our paper volumes continue to grow.”

Schmidt says that when InfoSend installed the Ricoh system, the company did not seriously entertain other finishing options. “Our experience with the first Hunkeler system, compared to what we were using before, was so positive that when we were looking at the Ricoh, the Hunkeler solution was a clear choice. We knew it would work for all of the applications we were producing, as well as those likely to be produced in the future. And we were extremely pleased with the support and responsiveness of the teams from Standard, its local dealer Print & Finishing Solutions, and the folks from Hunkeler and Horizon. They worked closely with us to identify the broad scope of what we were planning to do, and the solution we implemented was tailored to fit those requirements. Their detailed project and implementation plan was flawless. We definitely made the right decision.” This configuration gives InfoSend the ultimate in flexibility and productivity. Output from the Canon printer is delivered in stacks, ready to be checked and sent to inserters. The Ricoh configuration produces a wide variety of applications, from postcards on heavy stock with a gloss finish, to standard 24- pound transactional documents, bill inserts, and more. “Depending on the application,” Schimdt explains, “sheets are delivered off the Hunkeler for inserting, or they go to our Horizon folder for final finishing. The combination of the two systems gives us the best possible flexibility. And its productivity and throughput ensures we have room to grow into the future.”

At the initial Canon install, a competitive finishing solution was installed. “Some necessary functions never worked properly,” Schmidt reports. “It would struggle at times to keep up with the speed of the Canon press without jamming. The chip-out between pages to evacuate the paper that the refresh bars were printed on did not work properly. The manufacturer brought on a second system we diverted to, and that didn’t resolve the issue. It added up to a 2016 I don’t ever want to repeat again!” InfoSend evaluated its options and based on conversations with people in the know who strongly recommended partnering with Standard Finishing and Hunkeler, it worked with Canon to implement an in-line Hunkeler Roll-to- Stack finishing solution. This addition fully resolved the finishing issue. “Shortly afterward,” Schmidt adds, “our volumes justified adding a second production inkjet press, and we installed a Ricoh VC60000 with a near-line Hunkeler Roll- to-Stack/Roll-to-Fold solution with a Horizon folder. Both the Canon and Ricoh finishing lines include the Hunkeler DP8 II Dynamic Perforator, which performs dynamic perforation and punching. “Adding the Ricoh press gave us room to grow,” Schmidt comments. “It also enabled us to bring virtually all of our outsourced work, such as offset printed inserts, back in-house, giving us more control over costs and cycle times. Its higher quality allowed us to internally produce bill stuffers and inserts and opened new customer opportunities too.”

In addition, there are many important considerations when it comes to inkjet finishing, including in-line vs off-line setup, costs and floor space requirements, and the capabilities and reliability of the finishing equipment, particularly as they relate to the special requirements of roll-fed inkjet printing systems. Making an informed decision based on these factors will allow you to streamline workflows and maximize efficiency. C onfiguring the Finish: In-line vs Off-line When deciding between in-line and off-line (near-line) finishing, it’s important to consider run-length and job mix, which drive the number of finishing changeovers required per shift. In-line finishing can make sense if you have a dominant application that you run the majority of the time, so the job can run from white paper roll to finished product in one continuous path with fewer manual touchpoints and potentially lower labor costs. separately – provide increased flexibility, and one productive off- line system can sometimes finish product from multiple presses. When you tie all processes together into one line, one element going down will bring the whole system to a stop, impacting overall productivity. Capital investment, downtime estimates, job mix, substrate variety, labor costs and skill-set are all important factors in this decision. K eeping up with Inkjet It’s critical to ensure that the finishing options you are consider- ing are capable of handling the requirements of inkjet presses, including web width, speed, paper, percent coverage, wet sheets/smudging, and waste sheets. As more inkjet presses have come to market, advancements have been made to meet these requirements. Near-line finishing configurations – running roll-to-roll or roll-to- cut on the press, then performing downstream finishing

Total cost of ownership is critically important when considering an inkjet investment, and the complementary finishing equipment is an important part of that equation. Understand true labor costs with any solution, including setup and changeover time, and whether the promise of in-line can be efficiently realized, keeping in mind the potential for overall system downtime, or performing some steps manually. Understand your work mix very well, because that will ultimately help shape optimal system configuration. F inding a Fit When reviewing finishing options, it can be helpful to do a complete inventory of current applications, as well as anticipated work, to fully comprehend which tools are needed. Can the finishing solution keep up with the higher speeds of the chosen inkjet printer? Can white paper, produced in the print process, be automatically purged so that these powerful print engines run continuously, without costly stops and re-starts? Can they handle the range of substrates that will be processed by the inkjet printer? Are there special features to assure that image quality is not compromised? With so many considerations and available options, finding the right partner is key. If your finishing supplier offers a variety of solutions – from paper handling pre- and post-press to binding, folding, and saddlestitching – they can be more impartial in guid- ing you through the selection process to find the right fit for your

“We operate both roll fed and sheet fed devices,” explains Matt Schmidt, the company’s COO, who has been with

InfoSend for a decade. “Our volumes in Anaheim justified migrating both our transactional and high image quality work to production inkjet, a project we started with the installation of a Canon Océ JetStream Dual 1500/2200 inkjet printer at the end of 2015.” InfoSend specializes in transaction state- ments for medical, utility and financial services companies, as well as electronic billing and web hosting services for electronic documents. “When I walked in the door ten years ago,” Schmidt says, “everyone was telling me we faced a huge threat with everything going paperless. That proved not to be true. If any single client gets to 50% paperless, that would be remarkable; the norm is closer to 25%. And typically, when clients limit people’s options by forcing paper- less, adoption rates tend to be lower. As a result of this and our aggressive Matt Schmidt, COO, InfoSend

workflows and your business.

Higher web speeds and jobs with variable information also

Finish Line 05.2018

Finish Line 05.2018

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