April 2006 Issue
‘Free’ Printing? Not at These Schools
Four managers detail how they ended “free” student printing, cutting waste and saving money for their schools. Sandy Griffin Copy Center/Communication Services Administrator St. Louis College of Pharmacy Robert Mascarenhas Manager, IT Support and Printing Services University of Technology Sydney, Australia Don Harty Manager, Printing Services University of North Carolina Wilmington Newell Fogelberg Director of Imaging Services University of Colorado Boulder AT MANY universities, students in the computer labs are still allowed to print as many pages as they want—at no charge. This has led to tremendous waste. But in-plants who seek to change the situation are met with resistance from groups who
Copyright Permission: Get It...Or Get Yours
WHEN ACCEPTING documents for printing over the network, how responsible are you for your customers’ copyright infringements? As the “button pusher” you are responsible for what you duplicate. In view of the prevalence of network printing, it would benefit in-plants to know their liability. Since 2004, no less that six U.S. copy shops have been accused of unauthorized reproduction and distribution of copyrighted materials. The Price of Noncompliance • Two years ago in Austin, Texas, Abel’s Copies, Speedway Copying and NetPaks (one of the first cases to involve digital transmission of course materials) settled out of court with six major academic publishers. The
Hybrid Color Copiers: The Next Copier Generation?
ALL COPIER manufacturers are now offering hybrid color copier/printers that any company can afford. These products, suitable for business-quality color applications, generally produce less than 40 pages per minute (ppm), with even faster units promised by the manufacturers for 2006 and 2007. Canon, Xerox, Konica Minolta and Ricoh (also offered under the Savin, Lanier and Gestetner labels) have been the hybrid copier/printer manufacturing leaders to-date, but Kyocera Mita, Toshiba and Sharp have also offered hybrid products of merit. This article will explain the reasons for the hybrid copier/printer revolution and what the advantages and challenges are to consumers going forward. Color Hybrids Defined
In-plant vs. In-plant
WHENEVER WE at IPG hear about a new in-plant opening its doors, we try to publicize this fact. It shows that yet another company, school or organization has realized the benefits of in-house printing. But what if that organization already has an in-plant? Is opening another one really such a bright idea? After all, the new shop will be competing with the existing one for the organization’s work. This is a tricky issue. IPG does not want to play favorites, supporting only one of an organization’s in-plants. We want to help all in-plants succeed. Yet in some cases, when a new copy shop is formed simply
IPG PREPRESS GUIDE: Computer-to-plate Systems
Agfa The Acento II four-up CtP system brings thermal plate imaging in two versions: the Acento II E model and the high-productivity :Acento II S. Acento II images all thermal digital plates sensitized for 830 nm lasers, including Agfa’s :Thermostar Plus, the new :Energy range of plates, as well as chemistry-free :Azura and developer-free :Amigo. The Avalon family of thermal platesetters offers increased convenience, reliability and functionality and features Agfa’s new Avalon HD Imaging Head. The Avalon comes in five basic configurations with throughputs ranging from 10 plates per hour (pph) for the LE model to 40 pph for the XXT model. The
IPG PREPRESS GUIDE: Proofing Systems
Agfa Corp. The Sherpa family of piezo ink-jet proofing systems combines a range of print engines with AgfaJet proofing base, dye- and pigment-based inks and a color management system. Grand Sherpa 50 and 64 (50˝/64˝) are 8-color machines with a 1,440x1,440 dpi maximum resolution. The 7-color Sherpa 24m and 44m offer 720-dpi resolution. Sherpa 43i and 62i offer fast contract proofing at 720 dpi. SherpaMatic 43 and Grand SherpaMatic offer dual-sided proofing. Grand Sherpa M is a new 7-color proofer that uses dye-based inks. The Grand SherpaMatic imposition ink-jet proofer has adjustable paper width up to 50˝, modes for single or double-sided printing, variable resolutions and controllable
Muskegon Alum Eyes Retirement
IN A WAY, Pete Hoekema’s career has been book-ended by In-Plant Graphics magazine. In a 1975 article, we caught him at the beginning of his career, when he was a printing manager at the Foremost Insurance in-plant, overseeing 14 employees and dreaming of expanding into color printing. Today, after 30+ years as graphics manager at Muskegon Community College, Hoekema is looking forward to his retirement in December. “It’s been great,” he says of his career, almost all of which has been spent in the former logging community of Muskegon, Mich., along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. Hoekema was born not far
Penn State’s New Direction
ABBAS BADANI is not afraid to be blunt when talking about his in-plant’s past performance. “There’s no question that the way it was, wasn’t really working,” says Badani, director of Pennsylvania State University’s Multimedia & Print Center (MPC), in University Park, Pa. In short, up until a few years ago, the in-plant was still staffed and equipped for 1970s-level production. It was losing business, expenses were rising, and most of the campus viewed it as merely another vendor, not as a core part of the university. “We were very stagnant, I think, for a while,” notes Mike Poorman, assistant director, who has been
Prepress Resource Guide: Workflow Software
Agfa ApogeeX 3.0 workflow software is based on PDF, JDF (Job Definition Format) and Digital Film. Featuring a single, easy-to-use user interface, it offers a range of capabilities. Provides extensive process automation and connectivity features. Apogee PrintDrive enables integration with non-Agfa workflow solutions and output systems. New step-and-repeat function requires a page to be RIPed and trapped only once. Apogee Raster Blaster helps integrate most non-Agfa output devices into workflow. Apogee Power Converter converts legacy formats to PDF. :Delano 2.6 project management system offers extended JDF connectivity. It offers better support for spot colors, an improved user interface and faster system responsiveness.
