March 4 2008 - To enable print providers to more efficiently and cost-effectively produce books on-demand and in very short runs – from one to 25 copies – Xerox Corporation today announced the availability of its Cover-Driven Workflow, an end-to-end book production solution for the Xerox Nuvera 288 Digital Perfecting System. Xerox's FreeFlow Process Manager manages the pre-press workflow, automating the process from identification of content by order to preparation and submission of the cover and book block files for printing.

Digital printing with Cover-Driven Workflow opens up a variety of opportunities for the book printing industry, such as the ability to produce short runs of mixed reprints, out-of-print books, personalized and customized textbooks, manuals or trade books.

Cover-Driven Workflow is a "turnkey" solution that increases overall system throughput and cuts cost per unit while enabling automatic tracking of each book in every job order.  In addition to the benefits of more automation and less operator overhead, Cover-Driven Workflow can enable orders to be processed in the sequence they are received, which provides faster order fulfillment. It also creates less waste because book contents are not printed unless the cover is ready for binding.  Covers do not need to be printed in advance, eliminating all the cost and space typically associated with pre-print storage and inventories.

Book covers are commonly produced at a separate time and on a separate device than the corresponding book blocks. That usually means a cover must be matched to the book block at the binder, creating the potential for human error.  With Cover-Driven Workflow, Process Manager receives an order manifest, and for each book ordered, adds a barcode to the correct cover containing the order number and the item number. The cover files are automatically directed to a Xerox color printer and book block files are sent to the Xerox Nuvera system. The book covers are printed first, in advance of book blocks, and stacked in the Cover Pre-feed Module at the Bourg BBF2005 perfect binder inline with the Xerox Nuvera 288. The barcode on the book cover is read by the Cover Pre-feed Module, which initiates printing of the corresponding book block.  Before binding, the cover barcode is read again to verify a correct match between the cover and book block.  Since the book blocks are pre-processed and the cover feeding is automated, the printer can run continuously, maximizing the efficiency of the entire workflow.

This unique solution serves a marketplace whose customers want to order a book and expect it to be shipped the same day.  Major book printers serving top trade publishers along with small to medium print providers and in-plants producing bound documents all stand to benefit from this new solution.

Xerox Cover-Driven Workflow will be available in North America at a U.S. list price of $50,000 beginning in April. To learn more about the Xerox Nuvera 288 system, visit http://tours.xeroxria.com/nuvera/288/.