Time Machine
Port City Press competes in the 7" x 10" and 8.5" x 11" markets. Antonopulos says that going to Timsons's ZMR technology has increased Port City Press's production by 50%.
"What happens with this zero make-ready feature is, I can put on a job, and set the speed to match the run length," Antonopulos says. "There's enough time for the [press operator] to change the plate on the other unit, never stopping the press."
Port City installed a T48A last year. In addition to eliminating make-ready, the T48A virtually eliminated web breaks, Antonopulos says. Printing trade directories primarily, Port City uses lightweight stock on short runs. Web breaks typically occur on start-up and shut down.
Using ZMR technology to eliminate web breaks saves 15 to 20 minutes per job, Antonopulos says. But the biggest benefit is the T48A's ability to run continuously, a critical advantage for short-run printers.
"So much of our work is going short run, which [requires a lot of] make ready," says Chris Kurtzman, president of Bang Printing, in Brainerd, Minn.
Bang recently entered the 8.5" x 11" short-run market, and found ZMR technology a key competitive advantage.
"The T48A essentially eliminates make-ready, and reduces paper waste, which is a high percentage of our sales," Kurtzman says. Bang will have its T48A running by June.
The book printer previously ran four to five forms per job, with a make-ready time of six to eight minutes per form. On the T48A, make-ready is only 30 to 60 seconds per form.
"A normal job would take about two hours," says Jim Lorentz, Bang's VP of operations. "With zero-make-ready, you're reducing that to about one and a quarter hours."
