Inkjet & Digital Printing
Xerox iGen4 Makes its North American Debut at Graph Expo
Tuesday 28. October 2008 - Ohio Commercial Printer Places One of First Orders
Xerox Corporation unveiled the new Xerox iGen4 Press in North America for the first time publicly at Graph Expo, the nation’s largest annual printing tradeshow. Ohio commercial printer Metzgers Printing & Mailing is among the first print providers to get an iGen4 press.
The iGen4 press – the most productive and highest-quality cut-sheet digital color press in the printing industry – is now available for delivery to print providers worldwide.
Metzgers plans to increase their efficiency by running more short run jobs on digital. “With the new automation features on the iGen4 press we will be able to reduce the ‘number of hands’ needed per job from 10 on offset to four with digital,” said Joe Metzger, president, Metzgers Printing & Mailing. “This will get projects printed and out the door within eight hours and free up resources for our company to handle more jobs and increase revenue.”
According to Metzger, the Xerox iGen4 will enhance business for the two key industries his company serves – education and healthcare. Both require sophisticated variable options for client projects. In the education field, for example, the demand for personalized college recruiting and retention materials is expected to quadruple. Metzgers also expects the iGen4 will allow his company to expand into new markets – including travel and photo books – given the enhanced productivity of the iGen4 and the ability to produce photo-quality images. “The image quality is awesome,” said Metzger.
The option to add in-line saddle-stitch finishing was another key factor in Metzgers’ purchasing decision. Previously, producing booklets and brochures was a labor-intensive process that will be significantly streamlined by printing digitally and finishing the job in-line. Metzgers – the first customer to purchase an iGen4 with saddle-stitch capabilities – can now produce a variety of personalized materials with offset and photo quality, faster and more cost-effectively for its customers.
Metzgers expects to print 500,000 pages per month on the iGen4 within three to six months. The company also chose the “super” size paper option for the Xerox iGen4, 14.33″ x 22.5,” the largest for a digital press.
Metzgers has seen a 10 percent annual growth in sales each of the past six years. The company provides offset and digital printing products and services, including variable-data printing and Web-to-print solutions, as well as full-service mailing and fulfilment. Metzgers was founded in 1976 as a photo typesetting company before making the transition to commercial printing in 1994. In addition, Metzgers is a member of the Xerox Premier Partner Global Network, a group of leading digital print services providers with nearly 800 members in 48 countries.
Installation of the iGen4 at Metzgers is scheduled for next month. The company also has a Xerox Nuvera 144 EA Production System.