Becky Koon, print shop manager for Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co., in her office.
Becky Koon faced a problem familiar to in-plants everywhere.
“Our equipment was pretty dated,” says Koon, print shop manager for Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. (VFBMIC), in Richmond, Virginia. “Every day was a struggle: which one’s going down today?”
The three-employee in-plant had six Ricoh and Xerox digital printers, and worked them hard to print statements, forms, brochures, flyers, programs, certificates, personalized marketing pieces, and other educational materials. But the age of the equipment meant frequent breakdowns – and obtaining parts was often a challenge.
“We actually waited about 12 working days for a part,” Koon laments. “We managed, but it was a little tougher.”
Driven by this frustration, VFBMIC brought in Ricoh Business Consulting Services to analyze the in-plant, suggest improvements, and help the company better understand the in-plant’s value. As a result of this study, the in-plant received a complete fleet upgrade, which brought in two Ricoh Pro C7210 color printers and three Ricoh Pro 8320 black-and-white printers. The 8320s hold more paper than the previous machines, Koon says, and their efficiency allows the in-plant to finish printing statement billing jobs – which number about 150 per day – about an hour sooner than previously. By modernizing its equipment, the in-plant has nearly eliminated downtime, reduced waste, and increased quality and productivity.
“They definitely stay up more, and they’re just more efficient,” praises Koon, who has been with Virginia Farm Bureau for 45 years.
Dean Smith stands near the Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. in-plant’s EFI Pro 16h hybrid UV LED flatbed printer and Colex automated cutter.
Wide-Format Additions
The shop also added an EFI Pro 16h hybrid UV LED flatbed printer, along with a Colex automated cutter. Since then, the in-plant has seen a major uptick in wide-format business, such as yard signs, banners, and coroplast signage, along with contour-cut items like vinyl stickers and car magnets. Customers have greatly appreciated the lower cost of these products.
“It’s quite a savings when you don’t have to spend $100 for a banner,” Koon says. “You can get it printed in-house and it costs half as much, or maybe even just a fourth of what you would spend out. We only charge them cost.”
Agents had been paying $25 to print yard signs with outside print providers, she says.
“We’re doing them now for $4 or $5, two-sided, and it includes the rack they can stand it on,” she says. “We can print tons of those.”
To fit this large equipment in its small space, the in-plant welcomed the help of Ricoh Principal Consultant Brian Patterson, who took measurements and drew up several layout options. He incorporated some additional space from the adjoining mail services operation.
“He did a really good job,” Koon praises. Ricoh helped reposition the shop’s equipment so that everything fit.
Another big change that resulted from the Ricoh study was the addition of ePS MarketDirect StoreFront, which replaced the in-plant’s previous job-intake method.
“We did [get] a lot through email,” Koon reveals. “The storefront is just so much more efficient for us. I didn’t realize how bad we needed it until we got it.”
Kim Randolph runs one of the in-plant’s three Ricoh Pro 8320 black-and-white printers.
By implementing Ricoh Streamline NX device management software, the in-plant has cut the time it takes for tasks like charging back departments for copier use. Koon used to have to take readings from each machine, key the data into a spreadsheet, and send it to accounting. Now she just pulls a report from the system.
“I’ve gone from an hour and a half a month … now it takes me five minutes,” she says.
Expanding to New Customers
One opportunity the Ricoh consultants pointed out was expanding the in-plant’s services to new clients, including county offices, agents, and claims adjusters. Koon marketed the in-plant internally by holding an open house, with Ricoh’s help. She also set up a booth at a VFBMIC conference, displaying pull-up banners and samples.
“Last year when I went, I created some work for me with a[n affiliated] co-op group,” she says.
Koon estimates job volumes have increased 15-20% since implementing all these changes. The new wide-format printer alone is producing twice as much volume as she thought it would.
Koon was very happy with the work Ricoh Business Consulting Services did to help strengthen her in-plant. After interviewing key personnel to understand processes, workflows, and capabilities, the consultants, led by Debbie Pavletich, director of Ricoh’s Business Consulting Practice, analyzed the shop’s internal cost structure and the cost of external print purchases. Its findings report identified potential areas of improvement and ways to increase the utilization of the in-plant.
“The findings report … sparked significant interest from management on how we could continue to serve our customers and ways to grow our business,” remarks Koon. “It became the perfect roadmap for moving forward with state-of-the-art equipment, more efficient processes, and a much more satisfied workforce.”
The report showed VFBMIC that continuing to run the in-plant on site would cost nearly 51% less than outsourcing printing. The executive team took notice.
“They’re happy that we’re able to give our customers these items at a substantial savings,” Koon says. “Even our board of directors recognizes us now.”
In-plant Upgrade Boosts Efficiency, Cuts Costs, Brings Recognition
Becky Koon, print shop manager for Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co., in her office.
Becky Koon faced a problem familiar to in-plants everywhere.
“Our equipment was pretty dated,” says Koon, print shop manager for Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. (VFBMIC), in Richmond, Virginia. “Every day was a struggle: which one’s going down today?”
The three-employee in-plant had six Ricoh and Xerox digital printers, and worked them hard to print statements, forms, brochures, flyers, programs, certificates, personalized marketing pieces, and other educational materials. But the age of the equipment meant frequent breakdowns – and obtaining parts was often a challenge.
“We actually waited about 12 working days for a part,” Koon laments. “We managed, but it was a little tougher.”
Driven by this frustration, VFBMIC brought in Ricoh Business Consulting Services to analyze the in-plant, suggest improvements, and help the company better understand the in-plant’s value. As a result of this study, the in-plant received a complete fleet upgrade, which brought in two Ricoh Pro C7210 color printers and three Ricoh Pro 8320 black-and-white printers. The 8320s hold more paper than the previous machines, Koon says, and their efficiency allows the in-plant to finish printing statement billing jobs – which number about 150 per day – about an hour sooner than previously. By modernizing its equipment, the in-plant has nearly eliminated downtime, reduced waste, and increased quality and productivity.
“They definitely stay up more, and they’re just more efficient,” praises Koon, who has been with Virginia Farm Bureau for 45 years.
Dean Smith stands near the Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. in-plant’s EFI Pro 16h hybrid UV LED flatbed printer and Colex automated cutter.
Wide-Format Additions
The shop also added an EFI Pro 16h hybrid UV LED flatbed printer, along with a Colex automated cutter. Since then, the in-plant has seen a major uptick in wide-format business, such as yard signs, banners, and coroplast signage, along with contour-cut items like vinyl stickers and car magnets. Customers have greatly appreciated the lower cost of these products.
“It’s quite a savings when you don’t have to spend $100 for a banner,” Koon says. “You can get it printed in-house and it costs half as much, or maybe even just a fourth of what you would spend out. We only charge them cost.”
Agents had been paying $25 to print yard signs with outside print providers, she says.
“We’re doing them now for $4 or $5, two-sided, and it includes the rack they can stand it on,” she says. “We can print tons of those.”
To fit this large equipment in its small space, the in-plant welcomed the help of Ricoh Principal Consultant Brian Patterson, who took measurements and drew up several layout options. He incorporated some additional space from the adjoining mail services operation.
“He did a really good job,” Koon praises. Ricoh helped reposition the shop’s equipment so that everything fit.
Another big change that resulted from the Ricoh study was the addition of ePS MarketDirect StoreFront, which replaced the in-plant’s previous job-intake method.
“We did [get] a lot through email,” Koon reveals. “The storefront is just so much more efficient for us. I didn’t realize how bad we needed it until we got it.”
Kim Randolph runs one of the in-plant’s three Ricoh Pro 8320 black-and-white printers.
By implementing Ricoh Streamline NX device management software, the in-plant has cut the time it takes for tasks like charging back departments for copier use. Koon used to have to take readings from each machine, key the data into a spreadsheet, and send it to accounting. Now she just pulls a report from the system.
“I’ve gone from an hour and a half a month … now it takes me five minutes,” she says.
Expanding to New Customers
One opportunity the Ricoh consultants pointed out was expanding the in-plant’s services to new clients, including county offices, agents, and claims adjusters. Koon marketed the in-plant internally by holding an open house, with Ricoh’s help. She also set up a booth at a VFBMIC conference, displaying pull-up banners and samples.
“Last year when I went, I created some work for me with a[n affiliated] co-op group,” she says.
Koon estimates job volumes have increased 15-20% since implementing all these changes. The new wide-format printer alone is producing twice as much volume as she thought it would.
Koon was very happy with the work Ricoh Business Consulting Services did to help strengthen her in-plant. After interviewing key personnel to understand processes, workflows, and capabilities, the consultants, led by Debbie Pavletich, director of Ricoh’s Business Consulting Practice, analyzed the shop’s internal cost structure and the cost of external print purchases. Its findings report identified potential areas of improvement and ways to increase the utilization of the in-plant.
“The findings report … sparked significant interest from management on how we could continue to serve our customers and ways to grow our business,” remarks Koon. “It became the perfect roadmap for moving forward with state-of-the-art equipment, more efficient processes, and a much more satisfied workforce.”
The report showed VFBMIC that continuing to run the in-plant on site would cost nearly 51% less than outsourcing printing. The executive team took notice.
“They’re happy that we’re able to give our customers these items at a substantial savings,” Koon says. “Even our board of directors recognizes us now.”
Bob has served as editor of In-plant Impressions since October of 1994. Prior to that he served for three years as managing editor of Printing Impressions, a commercial printing publication. Mr. Neubauer is very active in the U.S. in-plant industry. He attends all the major in-plant conferences and has visited more than 180 in-plant operations around the world. He has given presentations to numerous in-plant groups in the U.S., Canada and Australia, including the Association of College and University Printers and the In-plant Printing and Mailing Association. He also coordinates the annual In-Print contest, co-sponsored by IPMA and In-plant Impressions.