Pushkinskaya Ploschad Diversifies and Expands with New KODAK VERSAMARK Printing System
Tags: Kodak / Kodak Versamark
Pushkinskaya Ploschad (Pushkin Square), one of the largest printing enterprises in Russia, has installed the KODAK VERSAMARK DS9050 Printing System to personalize publications, bolster its catalog production and penetrate new markets. The new system includes two printheads and is controlled by the KODAK VERSAMARK CS410 System Controller.
Pushkinskaya Ploschad is one of Russia’s most technologically advanced print houses. The company originally focused on printing periodicals but has grown rapidly and now prints medium-to-large runs of catalogs and other promotional products, such as brochures and pamphlets.
Automating mass mail-order catalog runs
A large part of Pushkinskaya Ploschad’s business is printing catalogs for mail-order companies. However, these customers have high expectations and demand far more than just an attractive catalog. They seek ever-more inventive ways to help set themselves apart from their competitors.
Printing personalized data is one effective solution to this problem. Many of Pushkinskaya Ploschad’s catalog publishers produce coupons that contain personalized information for each of their customers, which are then inserted in the catalog. Producing these coupons is no easy task – the coupons are tailored for individual customers, meaning each one requires the printing of variable personalized data. This represented a significant challenge for Pushkinskaya Ploschad, particularly given their catalog clients’ enormous customer bases: “The technology we required had to be able to produce enormous volumes, while at the same time deal with a huge amount of variable data,” says Andrey Suleykov, Pushkinskaya Ploschad First Deputy Chief Executive.
Andrey Suleykov, Pushkinskaya Ploschad First Deputy Chief Executive
“Kodak provided us with exactly what we needed. We installed the KODAK VERSAMARK DS9050 Printing System with two printheads, and controlled it with the powerful KODAK VERSAMARK CS410 System Controller. The equipment was installed on the high-production folding machine.”
The installation immediately created a far more efficient infrastructure. Instead of printing separate coupons, the cover was used for personalization variable data printing, drastically reducing production times. Pushkinskaya Ploschad’s decision to buy two KODAK VERSAMARK DS9050 Printing Systems has proved a shrewd one. The company can print variable data on two covers simultaneously in a single pass, with the data being transmitted by the KODAK VERSAMARK CS410 System Controller.
The KODAK VERSAMARK DH90 Printheads operate at an impressive top speed of 150m per minute, allowing Pushkinskaya Ploschad to produce 100,000 A1-sized sheets per 12-hour shift. Each sheet of paper equates to two catalog covers, allowing the company to produce a total run of 200,000 personalized covers.
A large part of Pushkinskaya Ploschad’s business is printing catalogs for mail-order companies
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Developing marketing opportunities
The new installation resulted in more than just faster production and significant cost savings. By giving catalog publishers tight control over the variable data, they can engage more effectively with their customers and create marketing opportunities. For example, the system lets them assign personal identification numbers to each customer and run competitions, as well as collate and sort invaluable feedback from customers. And because each customer’s address can be printed on the cover of the catalog, the publication can simply be wrapped in polyethylene film, ready to be mailed giving the publisher huge packaging and postage savings.
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Increased capacity, new markets
Always keen to explore growth opportunities, Pushkinskaya Ploschad is using its new system to diversify and expand beyond catalogs. For example, the company has printed and personalized lottery tickets for a large Moscow-based retail chain, and it plans to produce personalized covers for magazine publishers.
The new production set-up has also allowed Pushkinskaya Ploschad to target another new market – direct mail. Despite many print houses already operating in this sector, the company believes it can offer these customers something different – top-quality, offset printing combined with fast, cost-effective brochure personalization. “Our investment in the KODAK System has proved an astute commercial decision,” says Suleykov. “It has bolstered the quality and level of service we can extend to our existing customers, and has allowed us to generate additional revenue by expanding our offering and entering new markets.”
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