St. Louis, Missouri — Less than a year after installing a six-color coater-equipped ROLAND 500 press, Reproxdigital has increased the profitability and versatility of its digital workflow, while dominating the annual quality awards program sponsored by the region's top art directors. Established over 18 years ago as a traditional commercial printer, Reproxdigital has evolved into a model of what the successful graphic arts facility should be to succeed in the 21st Century. Its integrated list of offerings is led by an array of digital and high-end print production, variable data printing, web-to-print solutions, versioning, email and web services, and direct mail and fulfillment. Steve Stone, Reproxdigital's founder and president, says his new ROLAND 500 — a 29-inch, six-up press — has become an integral part of the company's digital workflow: “The ability of the printnet PressManager system to remotely makeready the press is very important to us. And the press' scanning densitometer lets us manage color more precisely. So with the ROLAND 500 we have the flexibility and responsiveness of a digital front-end with a press that delivers high-quality offset.” The caliber of the print quality the ROLAND 500 produces was documented in March, when Reproxdigital captured 40% of the first place prizes in the St. Louis Chapter of the AIGA 11 Show Awards. “Of the 50 first place winners, 20 came off our ROLAND 500,” Stone says. Digital Directions The new press also plays nice with others, particularly in the area of variable data printing (VDP). Reproxdigital's DocuColor iGen3 from Xerox is its VDP mainstay, capable of producing a unique graphic/text combination on each individual piece. While the impact of such intensive personalization is a boon marketwise, the cost of toner production can be prohibitive. Enter the ROLAND 500. “We often print the color graphics with the MAN Roland press, then use the iGen3 to print the variable data text,” Stone says. “Or we print variable data text and images on one side of the piece with the iGen3 and use the ROLAND 500 to complete the piece. Thanks to the ROLAND 500's color management capabilities, all of the elements work well together.” Versioning Victories The ROLAND 500 is also proving its worth on versioning projects. The strategy involves printing small batches of different versions of a piece, with each lot targeting the interests of a specific audience segment. The ROLAND 500's rapid-fire makereadies make a profitable difference when going from batch-to-batch. An ongoing project incorporates the ROLAND 500's versioning capabilities with Reproxdigital's web-to-print services. The assignment involves printing all marketing materials for a national restaurant chain that boasts over 350 franchises. Reproxdigital created a web-to-print Internet portal that each franchisee can use to develop and order menus, brochures, and even in-store signage. “It's all fully versioned by each location, from the pricing to the actual food items offered,” Stone says. “You can be sure the prices in Arkansas are going to be different from those in New York City.” The system ensures that the restaurant chain controls the look and feel of all the printed pieces, so it can better manage the brand. At the same time, each franchise can create a custom menu, the better to connect with its marketplace. “Each project goes from the Internet portal, through our workflow, directly to a set of plates,” Stone reports. “They go right on the ROLAND 500, where printnet PressManager takes care of the settings. So we just have to plate and print. And when you're producing upwards of 350 versions, the resulting savings in time and costs can be considerable.” Marketing Attractions The ROLAND 500 has also become one of the star attractions on Reproxdigital's facility tours, which are conducted to turn prospects into customers. “That said, offset printing is not what we're selling,” Stone explains. “Our marketing pitch is more how we can aid our customers through digitally driven tactics. Our challenge now is reengineering their understanding of the different technologies available to them and how they can make a big difference in how they do business.” That requires providing a variety of flexible solutions. “We're finding that one size doesn't fit all, that you can't build it and they'll come,” Stone declares. “You need to have the flexibility to wrap around the unique challenges of every job, not just offer an off the shelf solution.' The ROLAND 500 provides that versatility in the pressroom. “The technology that MAN Roland builds into its presses and the rapid makeready and running speed that the equipment delivers helps Reproxdigital be more responsive to our customers,” Stone adds. “It prints our high-end work, it versions well and it's an integral part of our digital workflow. MAN Roland has fully lived up to its reputation with this press.”