Dave Phillips, site director at Paragon Customer Communications, with the Ricoh Pro VC70000
Paragon Customer Communications, producer of direct marketing print collateral, has expanded its direct mail capabilities on coated media following investment in a Ricoh Pro VC70000 high speed colour inkjet press.
The new press joins two existing Pro VC60000 systems at the east London site and expands Paragon’s capacity to produce offset quality Direct Mail, financial reports such as pension plans as well as letters and shelf labels. Paragon has also implemented RICOH Process Directorsoftware to support smoother production workflow management across multiple sites.
The investment continues Paragon’s commitment to innovative technology and follows installation of Europe’s first Ricoh Pro V20100 mono continuous feed inkjet solution 18 months ago chosen to expand book on demand services. The Pro VC70000 delivers an array of printing options, including personalized content for perfect bound books and folded sections. Covers are produced on a recently added Ricoh Pro C9210 colour sheetfed press.
Clive Stringer, director of Continuous Feed Print and High-End Software, Commercial and Industrial Printing Group, Ricoh Europe, comments, “We are proud to be working with Paragon on the next step of its growth strategy. We have a longstanding relationship, with Paragon being an early adopter of Ricoh inkjet technology, starting over a decade ago. The Pro VC70000 will accelerate the transfer of offset print to digital and allow it to stand out from the crowd, while potentially saving up to 40% in paper costs.”
Dave Phillips, site director at Paragon Customer Communications, comments, “Our latest Ricoh investment will allow us to diversify our product offering. We value the input of Ricoh to our business both in terms of technology and as a partner in developing new business.”
2023 promises an interesting ride for print in India
Indian Printer and Publisher founded in 1979 is the oldest B2B trade publication in the multi-platform and
multi-channel IPPGroup. While the print and packaging industries have been resilient in the past 33 months since the pandemic lockdown of 25 March 2020, the commercial printing and newspaper industries have yet to recover their pre-Covid trajectory.
The fragmented commercial printing industry faces substantial challenges as does the newspaper industry.
While digital short-run printing and the signage industry seem to be recovering a bit faster, ultimately
their growth will also be moderated by the progress of the overall economy. On the other hand book
printing exports are doing well but they too face several supply-chain and logistics challenges.
The price of publication papers including newsprint has been high in the past year while availability is diminished by several mills shutting down their publication paper and newsprint machines in the past four years. Indian paper mills are also exporting many types of paper and have raised prices for Indian printers. To some extent, this has helped in the recovery of the digital printing industry with its on-demand short-run and low-wastage paradigm.
Ultimately digital print and other digital channels will help print grow in a country where we are still far behind in our paper and print consumption and where digital is a leapfrog technology that will only increase the demand for print in the foreseeable future. For instance, there is no alternative to a rise in textbook consumption but this segment will only reach normality in the next financial year beginning on 1 April 2023.
Thus while the new normal is a moving target and many commercial printers look to diversification, we believe that our target audiences may shift and change. Like them, we will also have to adapt with agility to keep up with their business and technical information needs.
Our 2023 media kit is ready, and it is the right time to take stock and reconnect with your potential markets and customers. Print is the glue for the growth of liberal education, new industry, and an emerging economy. We seek your participation in what promises to be an interesting ride.
