The Need for Speed—Inkjet Conversions

Good news: Inkjet printers are fast, which is great for productivity! But it’s challenging to generate enough work to keep these digital devices running at optimal speeds—especially when outputting a lot of smaller jobs. With a software assist, however, enterprises can create higher volume jobs by exploiting the benefits of universal global templates. Roll-fed inkjet printers aren’t designed to run efficiently in environments where operators frequently stop and start the machines between jobs. Making one large print job out of several small ones is a smart way to take advantage of the efficiency that full-color inkjet printing offers. Combining multiple print jobs in this way may present a foray into a production inkjet conversion of your workflow, but the right software is required to pull it off.

Universal Global Templates

Universal global templates in Eclipse Corp.’s DocOrigin®, with Business Communications Center (BCC) software, allow companies to design forms and documents so data variables control many of the elements. Once-static billing statements, for example, now can incorporate varying elements. These days, such print jobs are driven by data. Variable-data elements can range from alternating company logos to branded color schemes. Consider the case of a print service provider (PSP) that creates statements for dozens of credit unions. The format of the statements is all the same, but color schemes, column headings, logos and other information vary. Using Eclipse’s universal global document templates, organizations can take formerly separate jobs and combine them: Print everything on white paper, then let the printer and document composition software create form overlays as needed. Another example is documents presented in multiple languages. Instead of creating one job for documents in English and another in Spanish, the sophisticated software and universal templates facilitate running both languages in a single print job. The software can vary the form elements and other text according to a variable in the data that signifies customer language preferences. The statements can be mingled and sorted for optimal postage savings, regardless of the language that appears on the pages. Content variations also may include such information as:

• personal signatures
• contact details
• targeted messages
• unique barcodes
• policy numbers

Many businesses collect information from customers, employees, vendors or partners through the use of forms, then they deliver the data using an appropriate document or portal. DocOrigin is an enterprise-class software solution that combines a professional, graphical form designer with a powerful production engine capable of serving up dynamic documents and fillable forms.

Affordable Color Enhancements

Besides reducing machine downtime, combining print jobs increases productivity, too. Inkjet technology offers low-priced messaging—in color! In the cut-sheet space where printer manufacturers Epson America, Konica Minolta and RISO, Inc. are prominent, inkjet has become a hot market for production printing. “‘Tire-kickers’ are turning into buyers as more people continue the transition away from offset presses,” explains Andre D’Urbano, sales and marketing executive director for RISO. “When [equipment] dealer reps walk into production shops and in-plants saying, ‘We’re here for inkjet,’ people’s ears perk up. It [the print] won’t look the same [as offset], but it’s half the price.” D’Urbano cited approximate industry pricing at 12 cents per page for color toner and 5 cents for inkjet (compared to 3 cents per page for black-and-white toner). The clicks add up to savings — some $7,000 on a run of 100,000 pages — for color good enough for most applications. Equipment dealer Pacific Office Automation (27 offices and annual sales of nearly $400 million) is big on busting the myth that color printing “costs too much.” POA president/CEO Doug Pitassi instills his salespeople with a simple message: If someone says that color printing is too expensive, they are a prospect for inkjet. See this video for more info about universal global documents in DocOrigin and BCC: https://youtu.be/MPJldcnNEV4