Digital printer capabilities

[nehme]

Hi,

I'm studying the possibility of printing a magazine digitally and in-house instead of off-set printing, so I will need to put in place a complete solution from printing to finishing (cutting and saddle-stitching).

Can an HP Indigo or other digital printer handle this job?

98 page magazine - printed monthly
Quantity: 3000 to 7000 copies max
Paper: Cover 130gsm woodfree silk paper, Pages 70gsm LWC

The main reason is that I will be able to personalise each copy and print on-demand. Any info or live case studies will be great.

Thanks.

[LoneGoose]

Have you worked out the cost of printing the entire magazine digitally? Most of time it will only be feasible to personalize the covers. An Indigo can certainly handle the job but digital printing is costly for the sort of runs you're talking about...

I suppose, though, that if you really target each copy at an individual you can mark up your advertising considerably.

Let us know how you get on; am interested to hear.

[V3Synergy]

This analysis is for an iGen3 and does not include the cost of paper. This assumes a purchase price of roughly $500,000 and supplies being included in the clicks.

Most color printers will be in this range (the specifics of purchase cost, monthly maintenance, click charge and supplies will differ for each manufacturer model). If this looks doable, I suggest contacting Xerox and HP for official quotes. I can help you develop a cost model for each if you wish.

Igen3 Lease $10,000 per mo
IGen3 MMC 18,000 per mo

Ann. Volume 120,000 units
Pages per 98
Ann. Volume 11,760,000 pages

Click Charge per 2pp $0.0435
Annual Clicks $255,780

Print Time 1,782 hrs
# FTE 0.89
Printers Needed 0.2

Annual Lease $ 120,000
Annual Maint. $ 216,000
Annual Clicks $ 255,780
Labor @ $30/hr $ 53,455
Total Annual Cost $ 645,235

Cost per Unit $ 5.38

Cheers,

Craig

[nehme]

Thanks Nicolas,

Yes I did work out the costs, my aim is not only to benefit by printing the magazine, but also for meeting my other printing requirements, which are small runs for business cards (ever-changing staff and needs), flyers, posters, folders, small booklets and insertions.

So in total it will be worthwhile all around, only if I can print the magazine.

I will keep you posted with progress.

[nehme]

Hi Craig,

Wow, this is fantastic. I have already contacted HP and will also contact Xerox for their information.

Currently my monthly printing bill is around $10,000 to $15,000 - and I have to be very careful managing this budget.

In addition, having the digital capability in-house, I can sell this service on to close partners and existing clients - with the aim to break-even (meet the purchase and maintenance costs) and maybe make a profit.

Regarding the costs, it is on the high side per copy, but if the main purchase is lower (or I buy a used/older model) then it will be more advantageous.

Any help will be much appreciated, so I will take you up on that. My email is nehme at njaassociates.com so please let's get in touch.

N.

[V3Synergy]

N,

I would be happy to assist you with more of these scenarios. I figured the cost on an iGen3, but a DC 8000AP may make more sense for your volume. Total cost per unit probably in the range of $4.25. Let me know what capital, monthly maintenance, clicks and supplies cost Xerox says and I will be glad to model it for you.

Be ware of the supplies charge - it of course depends greatly on coverage. If you send me some sample PDF's, I can determine the coverage for you.

Craig
cpaxson@<nospam>v3synergy.com

[Craig]

Just to ad to Craig's suggestion on the DC8000AP, you may be able to get 2 of them for close the the single iGen (depending on finishers/feeders) then you would have redundancy and be able to run multiple jobs at the same time and output faster than a single iGen. iGen's and DC8000AP's are not apples to apples by no means but I think the DC8000AP can hold it's own to the iGen (up to a point based on volume) in quality and speed.

Just a thought.

[BertThePrinter]

I had a few follow up questions to your (Craig's) post.
#1. Are there any Clicks included in the $18,000 MMC, or does an IGEN3 cost $28,000 per month to sit there?
#2. Your estimate of 1782 hours is assuming 100% uptime production. I was wondering what a true production uptime would be for an IGEN3? Isn't 75% a more realistic figure, and can that figure be met month in and month out on a full time basis?
#3. Have you figured in the cost of the stock?
#4. Should there be a general overhead figure put in?

It looks like if he is only paying 10-15K per month for a printers service, he is getting a heck of a deal.
With respect
Bert

[V3Synergy]

I am not a Xerox rep, so I hesitate to give concrete answers. My analysis is based on a "typical" US customer, which includes supplies. Vendors change pricing all the time, so it would be appropriate to get current quotes.

I calculate the number of hours 75% uptime at 110 ppm. I do not add paper costs as those numbers are obviously variable depending on stock chosen, volume, etc.

My analyses do not include overhead as again, that is variable and specific to the accounting methods the client wishes to use.

Craig

[nehme]

Hi,
Thanks all for your input it is really great.

In order to be fair in the comparison, I need to put in place a table with only direct printer costs, assuming 75% uptime as suggested:
- Initial purchase/lease cost
- Cost per click
- Ink and other consumables (excluding paper)
- Maintenance requirements

Next we add other qualities for each printer including supplier reputation and other parameters.

Note: I have contacted OCE to get information about their new COE ColorStream 10000, billed as a 'graphics' digital printer,

N.