PRISMAdirect and PRISMAprepare Solutions Unlocked Opportunities Through Workflow Efficiency 

MELVILLE, N.Y. – Canon U.S.A., Inc., a leader in digital imaging solutions, is pleased to announce that Schneider Electric, a global specialist in energy management and automation with operations in more than 100 countries, has selected Canon’s PRISMAdirect and PRISMAprepare solutions to help streamline the company’s order submission and file preparation process to their in-house print center. PRISMAdirect and PRISMAprepare are integral parts of the PRISMA Suite, Canon’s integrated suite of workflow essentials for production print environments. Designed to help drive outstanding efficiency from job submission to completion, the PRISMA Suite encompasses a complete production printing workflow portfolio including web-to-print, order management, document make-ready, production print servers, production management and automation.

When the department first started offering print-on-demand services, it was typically serving the internal clients within its Nashville, Tennessee facility. As word of mouth spread and other business units wanted to take advantage of the pricing and the services provided, the business grew rapidly. By 2016, the in-house print operation had nearly tripled from an average of 24 million pages annually in 2010 to over 60 million pages annually. 

The growth is being driven by new services and capabilities including digital color printing, large format printing and fulfillment services to support an expanding range of internal customers across the U.S.A. The department provides print and digital media solutions with its arsenal of Canon imagePRESS digital color presses and varioPRINT 135 Series monochrome presses as well as electronic delivery of information and archival media, wide format and promotional items.  The growth did not come without challenges.

“As our fulfillment orders grew, we started to see some slowdowns in our workflow, mainly from processing and preparing the orders coming to us,” said Kris Tanner, Manager – Solutions Support Group / Print On Demand for Schneider Electric. “We knew we needed to engage our internal customers faster and with more accurate data, and really put the ordering and the decision-making of the customer on the front-end submission.” 

Responding to Schneider Electric’s request for information, Canon conducted a business and workflow assessment to help validate their concerns on the current processes and research various solution options. Following a review of multiple vendor proposals, the company decided to implement Canon’s platform.

“Canon came back with the best solution,” said Tanner. “PRISMAdirect has brought a level of engagement and self-help for our customers that we were lacking, allowing them to make smarter decisions, better leverage our services and ultimately increase their satisfaction.” 

Tanner also noted that implementing the PRISMAdirect and PRISMAprepare solutions has allowed the department to gain operational efficiencies, including cutting prep time in half and freeing up staff to handle other needs. The solution has also opened up new business possibilities, such as building a Schneider Print On Demand e-commerce site using the PRISMAdirect solution to highlight relevant products that customers may not even be aware exist.  

“With the addition of Canon’s solutions, our staff of six has the ability and capacity to handle almost double the business that we were handling with the same equipment just a few years ago,” said Tanner. “I now have a great workflow platform on both sides of our workflow from submission through production, and I get great support.” 

“In today’s ever-changing environment, it is not an easy task for in-house printing operations to meet their customers’ expanding needs,” said Toyotsugu Kuwamura, executive vice president and general manager, Business Imaging Solutions Group, Canon U.S.A., Inc. “Solutions like PRISMAdirect and PRISMAprepare are helping in-house and commercial print organizations expand their capabilities and streamline their processes.”