Page 27 - PWM2025_JUNE EBOOK

TECHNOLOGY REPORT

that staff “are the best asset of any com- the type of work, and which “offers an economic, flexible and Staffing issues
pany and will provide great and experi- adaptive platform”. On the matter of staff and whether the
enced based service in the future”. By extension, there will be questions about consumables – inks,
He adds: “A digital-only business will papers, ancillaries. As might be expected, “Xerox,” says process is more labour efficient, Carter
still have a requirement for skilled print O’Donnell, “can provide a full service and maintenance package sees little in the way of obstacles to sur-
operators plus finishing and fulfilment.” that includes consumables, but not paper”. For that, he recom- mount. His reasoning is based on the
For him, digital is, as he describes it, mends that printers speak to their existing merchant to advise on fact, as he explains, that “digital solu-
“an opportunity to embrace new skills suitable stocks and substrates. tions are more simplified in operation
that support the broader digital transi-
tion which will include higher levels of What to look for with new levels of automation and AI
workflow automation, data and web As to what to look for in a new digital press, O’Donnell moves requiring much less intervention.
integration”. beyond quality and price to emphasise features. If he were a Therefore, skill levels and experience are
But new equipment will require train- printer he would first look for a system that offers automated less of a problem”.
ing of users. Speaking from the Xerox operation. On this he comments that “Xerox presses have high Rather than employees seeing threats,
perspective, O’Donnell says that the levels of automation in their DNA, reducing manual intervention, he’s of the view that “‘adopting digital’
company can “advise and provide that self-monitor and adjust colour and image consistency on-the-
designer, operator and business train- fly and drive benchmark productivity”. Part of this means greater presents an opportunity for operators
ing. It’s the same but different so the use of AI, machine learning and analytics. and staff to be part of future innovation
ramp up time in most instances is in days Next O’Donnell would seek out a platform that can grow. As he of the business and the sector at large”.
or weeks rather than months”. advises, “look for a digital press that goes beyond CMYK – not just However, staff will need training on
additional colours like gold, silver, white and fluorescents, but
Costs considered also a range of capabilities such as wider paper and substrate sup- new equipment and techniques. But as
Moving on to cost and the expense of port, smaller and larger formats and finishing options”. He says to how it should be done, Carter reckons
digital equipment compared to offset that these may not be features require straightaway, but an that the needs will determine the actual-
The digital divide doesn’t dwell too much on this. about whether the latest technology offers suitable production basis”. That said, he thinks that “training
upgrade path should protect an investment. He says to also think
ity which “will vary on a case-by-case
and how it should be funded, O’Donnell
gains and tangible benefits that are time and money saving.
However, he does say that “Xerox offers
to be proficient requires much less time
“Speak to existing customers about new capabilities and plan
a scalable portfolio; most devices are
financed, and we offer a number of plans how you promote these to new markets,” says O’Donnell. For than traditional processes; anything
to suit the buyer.” He adds that “the example, using QR codes to speed a buying decision – “add value between two days and two weeks
important task is to identify the right to a customer’s output so that it works harder for them and gets depending upon the type of equipment”.
solution that integrates, provides a plat- their product or service noticed”. It’s about cost
form for today’s work but can adapt to O’Donnell finishes by saying that “no press is an island. At Any move from one process to
new work in the future”. Xerox we believe the right press choice is important, but buyers
O’Donnell recognises that both offset should also look to the wider ecosystem”. Doing this, he reckons, another will likely come with an
and digital carry running costs over and will support a business and the service and support that it can give. attached cost and as Carter has experi-
above the cost of acquisition, but says enced, fixed and variable costs for digital
that one solution, the click model – Ricoh do differ from offset. He says that while
which he asserts was pioneered by Xerox Tim Carter, commercial print director for Ricoh Graphic both include a fixed monthly charge for
– “provides predictable all-in cost”. Communication, sees digital as a process that offers printers many equipment, digital’s variable costs relate
He does, at this point, note that gen- benefits over offset. In particular, he says that they include the
eral running costs must be part of the ability to service shorter runs more efficiently and being able to only to toner, or ink for inkjet systems,
equation. He notes that “Xerox digital provide exact quantities when required and where required. and in some cases, a fixed maintenance
devices will use significantly less power He also sees printers involved with digital as being in a position charge. However, as he points out: “The
than offset devices, single-phase versus to “deliver further value by making print more impactful via ver- combination of all these fixed and varia-
three-phase, and with energy costs and sioning or variable data while supporting an online presence for ble charges associated with digital have
sustainability high on the agenda for B2B and B2C where lead times are more critical”.
businesses, this can offer a significant That said, he thinks that printers should not leap into the dark reduced significantly over the years,
cost saving”. without proper planning. As he points out, when considering the meaning the break-even point between
That may well be the case, but as to move from offset to digital printers need to “analyse current vol- digital and offset continues to be more
the form of digital equipment that umes to investigate run lengths and decide which can be effec- attractive to printers.”
should be opted for – toner, inkjet, HP tively moved to a digital platform, and find a suitable partner to Allied to this are issues over the lon-
Latex, or others – O’Donnell simply says outsource the longer runs”. So while printers may decide to focus
that printers should opt for something production on digital, they still need to plan for the more tradi- gevity of equipment and how long it will
that meets the demands of the client and tional requirement. be supported for.

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