Lions Clubs International Finds Print Production Efficiency with Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition

Lions Clubs International wanted to increase productivity and lower its printing costs. The organization prints a number of different types of applications each year, including booklets, brochures, flyers, letters and other correspondence that goes out to its 1.35 million members in 206 geographic areas and countries. Sending flyers, brochures, letterhead, and envelopes to an outside printer can be costly and requires a lot of administrative paperwork—taking valuable time and leaving more room for error.

Jim Sinclair, Print Production Manager at Lions Clubs International, realized that an investment in the organization’s in-house printing facility would have a direct impact on workflow efficiency and could help improve the organization’s ability to serve the community. He decided to attend GRAPH EXPO in 2010 to evaluate the full spectrum of printing-related technologies available and consult with a range of manufacturers and suppliers regarding solutions.

As a result of his research and discussions, Sinclair selected two Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition digital printers. With Lions Clubs’ need for faster turnaround, he was impressed with the Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition because it is equipped with new technologies that enable high-quality imaging on a wide range of media at maximum output speed. With the ability to print 90 pages per minute regardless of media type, weight or when duplexing, the Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition offered Lions Clubs near-offset quality results at an affordable price.

“Affordability was a big factor in our decision. It was mind boggling to see the Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition in action, knowing the price and witnessing the quality level it could produce. I saw this machine running, and that was it,” says Sinclair.

The Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition also offered Lions Clubs a variety of finishing options to design a complete end-to-end document production solution, including ring binding, booklet finishing, GBC binding, and perfect binding. While maximizing production speed, these features reduced the need for as much hands-on work, thus freeing Sinclair and his team to focus on other pressing demands.

Sinclair was also looking for a way to automate the internal ordering process to expedite the fulfillment process and streamline quarterly budget projection exercises. In conversations with Ricoh, he learned that the company had teamed with Printable Technologies to offer solution bundles with the C901/C901s Graphic Arts Edition that consisted of hosted software and professional services fully supported by Ricoh’s Print Production Group. With Printables’ software suite, Lions Clubs’ internal professionals at headquarters would have access to a centralized store of marketing collateral and promotional items. Therefore, they could order materials directly from their desktop without having to go to the print shop to fill out forms manually.

“With Printable software that is bundled with the Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition, we are able to immediately estimate the print costs in real-time, determine where the work is coming from and have the ability to do an accurate charge-back. This completely eliminates the manual activities typically associated with these types of budgetary exercises,” says Sinclair.

By providing production class and graphic arts quality output, the Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Edition has allowed Lions Clubs to speed up production times and keep the printing of many of its marketing materials in-house without sacrificing quality.

“As a small staffed shop, I am particularly grateful for the automation these machines have brought to our facility,” says Sinclair. “I have several conflicting demands to attend to from my internal clients on a daily basis, and I need the ability to hit a button and walk away, knowing my print job is running smoothly. Our Ricoh Pro C901 Graphic Arts Editions allow me that flexibility.”