May 19, 2003 -- SAN LUIS OBISPO – Cal Poly’s Graphic Communication Department recently enhanced the quality of its digital printing and imaging education to students, thanks to contributions from the Xerox Corp. and Electronics For Imaging. Xerox, a major provider of variable data-digital color-printing systems, donated a DocuColor 2060, a popular commercial-grade digital printing system. The digital press comes with feeder, finishing and document-capture capabilities. It can also monitor quality while left unattended. The DocuColor 2060 produces 3,600 impressions per hour (60 impressions per minute). It uses dry ink and digital-blanket technology that extends the range of substrates that can be printed. A “beltnip” fuser is used to bond the printed image to the substrate. In addition, the machine does automatic duplexing and has trays that handle three different substrates. The press incudes a high-capacity stacker-stapler for complete finishing. Electronics For Imaging (EFI) donated the raster image processor (RIP) for the press. The RIP is a Fiery EX 2000 that includes EFI's graphic arts package. “This RIP is a high-performance product capable of extremely fast throughput and can handle variable data printing with ease,” said Harvey Levenson, department head of Cal Poly’s Graphic Communication department. The RIP includes color-calibration hardware and software to maintain color consistency. It has the ability to preview jobs on the RIP and can fully impose files as needed. The EX 2000 has the ability to be remotely managed using a Web interface and can be run either with or without a color monitor. “These gifts from Xerox and EFI provide significant advances in our capabilities to teach digital color printing.” Levenson said. “As short-run color and variable data imaging grow in popularity, it is imperative that our regular students and professionals from industry who attend our seminars and workshops be exposed to the mainstream technologies being adopted by industry. The gifts from Xerox and EFI certainly represent such technologies.” Graphic Communication Professor Michael Blum directs the digital laboratory, which houses the DocuColor 2060 and EFI RIP. “The addition of a Xerox DocuColor 2060 with the EFI EX 2000 RIP is a major advance in our ability to provide state-of-the-art training and education in short-run color and variable data printing.” Blum said. “This printing system from Xerox and EFI is easy to use and provides fast production of high-quality printed documents." Xerox, EFI and Cal Poly have been partners in education for many years, according to Levenson. The Graphic Communication Department also has a DocuTech 6135 and a DocuColor 40 equipped with EFI's Splash RIP, rounding out Xerox and EFI's participation in several department laboratories. Cal Poly is also part of a Xerox consortium that has provided training for Xerox technical sales and marketing personnel on commercial printing applications and solutions. The combined value of the DocuColor 2060 and EFI RIP is $200,000. Cal Poly’s Graphic Communication Department maintains an enrollment of 300 students and offers concentrations in electronic publishing and imaging, printing and imaging management, design reproduction technology, and individualized study in graphic communication. The department has modern laboratories housed in more than 33,000 square feet of space, and more than 2,500 alumni employed in most phases of the printing and imaging industries. The department offers research, testing and product evaluation services as well as seminars and workshops through the Graphic Communication Institute at Cal Poly.