For the past three years, Hi-Liter/Inland Graphics, located in Burlington and Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, has been expanding its sales at a 20-to-30 percent rate. The problem: the rapid growth is pushing the companies’ press production capacity. The solution: Hi-Liter/Inland have turned to the leader in commercial web systems, purchasing a 4 X 4 32-page web press from MAN Roland to be located in their Burlington facility. The companies left nothing to chance in their search for a new press. Peter Doyle, Vice President of Manufacturing, focused on web press performance, talking to and visiting with printers who are running the best machines from a variety of press manufacturers. “It seemed that the more we got into the new technology discussions, MAN Roland stood out as offering more, resulting in productivity and throughput advantages,” he says. “Increased uptime, higher rated speed, quicker make-readies, and the best web-up technology were all part of the package.” The four-wide four-around platform of the MAN Roland model was another major attraction. “MAN Roland has a solid reputation for developing and building extra large presses like the LITHOMAN,” says Craig Faust, CEO and President. “This 4 x 4 platform will be an excellent complement to our current capabilities.” In the six-year-old state-of-the-art Burlington facility, Hi-Liter runs a variety of heatset web, coldset web and sheetfed presses. Its new 32-page MAN Roland will be its largest press complementing the current 2 x 4 formats. Running a company known for more than half a century of success, Faust also considered the longevity of his next printing system. “Excellent engineering, materials and technology go into all of MAN Rolands’ equipment,” he says. “Our cost of ownership will be less over time, and that makes MAN Roland the best value for our investment.” Doyle agrees: “We may never have to rebuild this MAN Roland press. That means more consistent and predictable up-time percentages with less maintenance.” But it was more than technology and durability that sold Hi-Liter/Inland on MAN Roland. Faust and Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tom Sikora, spent many months brainstorming with their clients to better understand their future needs. “Our client base sets the expectation for current and future investments,” Sikora says. “They demand high quality, excellent service and good value. In addition, we have strategically positioned ourselves to be a one-stop-source for many different product types and sizes. This requires our company to be very flexible in all departments; the MAN Roland press will continue to allow us to provide our current and future clients an unmatched level of flexibility and product offerings.” The PECOM/printnet operating and automation system that controls the new press will be an asset in that regard. “I visited a print site that utilizes this technology and have seen an entirely different way of doing things,” Doyle comments. “The press ramps up by itself; the press crews were primarily interacting with the control panel, very simple and user friendly.” Faust believes the advanced automation on the new MAN Roland will accelerate the learning curve for his crews. “It gives us a much faster up-time to sell existing clients and develop new business,” he says. “This MAN Roland press will add to our client’s confidence in our meeting their future demands.” Proactive Project Management All three executives express confidence in MAN Roland’s project management capabilities. The press manufacturer coordinates and directs all the vendors and logistics that go into the installation of its equipment ‘”That’s huge,” Faust says. “Project management is another factor that attracted us to MAN Roland. Right from the start, their engineers worked with us to figure a configuration that would be a perfect fit for our facility.” The press features a four-unit, single web design with a two ribbon compact superstructure. Its 2:3:3 folder will be equipped to deliver the companies need for tabloid, quarter fold, double parallel, and delta folds. Hi-Liter/Inland will use the MAN Roland machine to produce more of the products that have made it one of the nation’s fastest growing commercial printers. “We will continue to print short-to-medium-run length magazines, catalogs, books and marketing collateral,” Sikora says. “It will increase our capacity and build on our competitive advantages.” The formula for success at Hi-Liter/Inland reads: talent plus capabilities equals success, according to Faust: “capabilities are the smaller part of the formula. It’s the team that makes it happen; our people and their exceptional efforts have made our company strong. With this new press we’re providing our employees the best printing technology available, a combination that will keep Hi-Liter/Inland growing for years to come.”