The New Year means an upgrade in high-tech equipment for UniPrint. The unit added a new digital printing press the first week of January. It is a Xerox iGen 5 120 digital printing press.
“We brought it in, set it up, tested it and were operational within a week,” said Jeff Dible, director of UniPrint.
This printer will accompany the current Xerox iGen 5 150 digital press, located in the digital printing area and is almost identical to a press they currently use. The new press prints 120 pages per minute compared to 150 pages produced on the current printer.
“The beauty of this new press is that it’s going to give us redundancy, so we will always have a backup to one or the other press,” Dible said. “They produce the same quality, image, look and feel.”
In a typical month, UniPrint produces 1.9 million 8 ½ by 11-inch sheets. With the addition of the Xerox iGen 5 120, Dible says they now have the capability to run 3 million sheets per month.
Dible says they will be able to service the university community with better quality and faster turnaround times. This digital printer will print a wide variety of products like business cards, marketing flyers, post cards, multipage proposals, gameday programs, student information letters, and more.
UniPrint, which is a self-sustaining earnings unit, is leasing the machine. The unit renegotiated a new agreement, which included the digital press in order to increase printing capacity at a lower cost.
According to the Xerox website, the company that makes the iGen, the machine offers advanced automation, an optional 5th print station, and extra-long sheet capabilities.
“They’re designed for very high quality, shorter runs and variable data,” Dible said.
UniPrint has always had two digital printers. This new press replaces an older model.
“One of our goals is always to keep consistent pace with the technology that’s being used in the market and that’s what this press will do for us,” Dible said.
Two operators work in the digital printing area every day. Three employees are trained to work the machine.
Lucas Caswell, digital press operator, runs the Xerox iGen 5 120 every day. He says the software used on the digital printer is the same as what he’s been using for years.
“It’s been really nice so far having the extra machine to help with big jobs,” Caswell said.
UniPrint also added a Komori Lithrone G37 printing press in July of 2020. That machine prints larger, high quantity publications and is designed for large quantity projects.
Dible says he is currently thinking about adding more equipment for the signage shop to assist with making and increasing the output of ADA compliant materials.
“Let’s say we are doing 250 signs, which would take us a week, compared to having an additional piece of equipment that would help us get the job done in two days,”
Dible says they will use the Xerox iGgen 5 120 digital press for several years to produce high quality material to continue to meet customers’ needs.