When is it Time to Upgrade Your Printer? One Print Shop’s Experience

Canon iPF8400S Inkjet Printer at Bill Reed Distributing
The new Canon iPF8400S from LexJet is up and running at Bill Reed Distributing and the output on LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner looks fantastic.

 

It’s the age-old dilemma: should I repair my old printer or just buy a new one? For Michael Thornton, administrative marketing manager at Bill Reed Distributing, Abilene, Texas, this particular dilemma presented itself when his old printer went down.

“As I was getting ready for the technician I picked up the phone and called Chris Piersoll, my LexJet rep. He said to hold up on the repair and first compare the cost difference between repair and replace, and the long-term productivity benefits of a new printer. We discovered that when you factor in the amount of down time we were experiencing, and the wear and tear it was a no-brainer to upgrade and pay the few hundred dollars difference for a new machine,” says Thornton. “The thing that concerned me most about repairing the one I have is the simple fact that it has a lot of miles on it. What’s the guarantee that something’s not going to happen a month from now? You know how this goes: you’re always in the middle of a big print project when it goes down. It was a much wiser investment to purchase a new machine because it is such a vital part of what we do; we can’t function without it. Marketing and sales pieces are critically important to supplement our sales. We love the reliability of the Canon printers, and at the price point LexJet is offering, why wouldn’t we buy a new one?”

Thornton upgraded to the Canon iPF8400S, which will provide the print shop with more speed and new color management and cost-tracking features. Moreover, with Piersoll’s help, Thornton was able to exchange the old ink cartridges he had in inventory.

“Chris was able to help us out with the ink we had for our old machine. I had a backup for every color sitting there, and that’s $1,700 that potentially I’d have to add to the cost of a new printer. That was one of the determining factors, and a lot of companies won’t work with you on swapping out ink cartridges,” explains Thornton. “So again, why wouldn’t you buy a new printer and guarantee yourself that you’ll have a great product and a new warranty. And with the Canon printer, minus changing out the printheads about once a year, there’s not much to do to keep them running.”

Ultimately, says Thornton, it’s all about consistency, productivity and efficiency. Thornton ran the old printer for 1,392 days after installation, printing about 180,000 square feet and more than 30,000 linear feet.

“While the old printer allowed me to go through sub-menus and look at how much ink was used per print, it’s very easy to factor your square footage cost with your media, but ink cost is not always the same because of color and saturation. What I’m really looking forward to with the new printer is the ability to be more detailed about tracking ink usage and actual costs; that’s invaluable, especially when you’re not having to dig for the information. It’s all about making things easier and working smarter,” says Thornton. “When you’re working with a number of convenience stores, and they all want their point of sale at the same time, you need to make sure the printer is running and it’s efficient. If it’s down, you’ve got a big problem. That’s what the big factor was for me. Look at how much we’re paying to fix the three-year-old machine, versus the cost for a new one. For all of us here, from the owner to the GM, the logical thing was to replace it; it’s been a great machine and let’s move on. Productivity is key.”

Though Bill Reed Distributing uses a wide variety of materials, from vinyl and Photo Tex to banner materials, Thornton adds that their standard print material is LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner. “The Canon prints such a beautiful graphic and when you put it on the glossy media it gives it a very classy look,” says Thornton.

Setting the Scene with Special Event Point of Sale Signage

Point of Sale Inkjet Printed Display for Corona

The Nackard Companies and its P.O.P. sign crew are well known for creating enticing displays for all kinds of special events, whether it’s the astronomical anomaly called a blue moon (tied into Blue Moon beer, of course), the annual Dew Downtown in Flagstaff, Ariz., or anything in between.

The Nackard Companies team always seems to come up with something different to help drive beer sales around these events. The most recent example was a collaborative project between shop manager Steve Lalio and account representative Anthony Copetillo for Cinco de Mayo.

The pair came up with a basic concept that would be translated for various Mexican beer brands and placed in a number of different locations. The two projects pictured here were created for Corona and Dos Equis.

Inkjet Printed Point of Sale Display for Dos EquisEach display included a number of elements, highlighted by a faux water tower and an airplane toting a banner with buckets of beer.

Copetillo built the water tower structure with a combination of plywood circles for the top and bottom, held in place with plywood slats, Coroplast and furring strips. The “roof” of the water tower was cut-out cardboard painted black and brown. Copetillo created a palm tree using cut-out and painted cardboard as well.

Lalio printed a banner on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene that was about 42 inches tall by 115 inches long, which Copetillo wrapped around the structure. For the Corona display, Lalio designed the piece with a wood-grain background and added the Corona logo. It looks strikingly real, which is a testament to what great design and printing can do for a display.

The airplane, which is about six feet long and has a 38-inch wingspan, was printed on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Self Adhesive Polypropylene, applied to Coroplast and cut out in the airplane shape. The banner the plane flies behind it, as well as the other hanging banners, were printed on LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner and laminated with LexJet 3 Mil Gloss UV Premium Low Melt. Lalio laminated these banners because the customer wanted to re-use them.

Printing for Dew Downtown Flagstaff: Year Two for Nackard Companies

Graphics and signs for special events
Dew Downtown Flagstaff was a huge success and Nackard Companies, a regional beverage distributor, pitched in with most of the signs and graphics for the event. Photo by Rick Eselgroth.

When you organize a big special event for the first time it’s a nail-biting white-knuckle ride from concept to completion. While the inaugural year may appear to be the most difficult, an event’s sophomore year may actually be the most difficult, particularly if that first event was successful.

In the case of Dew Downtown Flagstaff, success from its first year would breed a more ambitious approach to the second annual event, which took place earlier this month. One of the key players in both the inaugural and sophomore events was Nackard Companies, a regional beverage distributor, and its always-busy print shop.

Signs and graphics for a special event
Nackard Companies' print shop, led by Steve Lalio, also produced signs, table tents, flyers and banners for surrounding bars and businesses.

Nackard Companies P.O.P. shop manager Steve Lalio was knee deep in signage in the months leading up to Dew Downtown Flagstaff since his shop was in charge of most of the event graphics. As the event grew from last year, so too did Lalio’s responsibilities.

Dew Downtown Flagstaff brings terrain park skiing and snowboarding down from the mountains and into the city of Flagstaff, Ariz. The main event takes place on San Francisco Street in Flagstaff with a series of rails and jumps all the way down, including the centerpiece of the competitive ride, two super-sized Mountain Dew can course obstacles created by the Nackard Companies print shop.

While both “cans” were printed on and wrapped with LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Self Adhesive Polypropylene, one was laminated and the other given a polyurethane coating. It was a test of sorts for future events: which would take the abuse as competitors hucked, slashed and crashed into and onto the cans?

In the end, the polyurethane-coated graphics fared best, but were still sufficiently marred that the can can’t be used again at next year’s event. Ultimately, there is no way to make the graphics ski/snowboard-proof as competitors slice and dice their way through the obstacles. However, if you know of a better way to protect the graphics from the ravages of snowbound competitors, let us know about it.

Printing specialty graphics for an event
The Mountain Dew can that was part of the ski and snowboard course on San Francisco Street in Flagstaff printed on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Self Adhesive Polypropylene by Nackard Companies' print shop.

Nackard Companies produced a variety of banners, window signs and other event signage for the main venue as well as the various special event and promotion tents, such as the areas promoting Mountain Dew Kickstart and New Belgium beers, and surrounding bars.

For the bulk of the graphics surrounding the event, Lalio printed LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner, LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Polypropylene and LexJet TOUGHcoat Self Adhesive Water-Resistant Polypropylene, laminated with either LexJet 3 Mil Gloss UV Premium Low Melt or LexJet 3 Mil Luster Standard Low Melt, depending on the application.

A Once in a Blue Moon Point of Sale Display

Point of sale display printed for Blue Moon beers

It happens once in a blue moon… That is, a blue moon. No, the moon doesn’t literally turn blue. Technically, it means there’s an extra full moon once every two and a half years, on average. This month, Aug. 31 to be exact, is the next blue moon, which won’t show up again until 2015.

This relatively rare event was the perfect opportunity to promote – what else? – Blue Moon beers. It also happens to coincide with a MillerCoors display design contest, so account representatives Anthony Copetillo and Vinnie Montemurro and P.O.P. shop manager Steve Lalio of The Nackard Companies in Flagstaff, Ariz., collaborated on a display concept for a Wal-Mart in Show Low, Ariz.

Printing a point of sale beer display“MillerCoors put out a creative display incentive for August and September, which included Blue Moon. They showed us some examples of a full theme, and I thought this concept would be perfect for the season. It also gave us an opportunity to educate customers about all the characteristics of Blue Moon beers,” says Copetillo. “I give Steve some ideas and the points I want to see on the display, then he comes up with the design theme. Steve always has great ideas that are exactly what I’m looking for, so there are rarely any changes to his design.”

Lalio’s design is divided into three parts to comprise the full backdrop behind the beer display – in-depth information about the different Blue Moon beers (year-round, seasonal and specialty), a centerpiece to draw attention and illuminating copy about what a blue moon is – plus the phases of the blue moon that “float” in front of the backdrop.

“We submitted it to MillerCoors and it caused some ripples. They were happy to see that we’re educating the customers about Blue Moon,” says Copetillo. “I’ve been doing this for 18 years and now more than ever people want to know what food to pair it with, the flavors and the characteristics of each beer.”

Printing point of sale display for beer companies
Here's a similar display conceived and executed by the Three Musketeers of The Nackard Companies: account reps Anthony Copetillo and Vinnie Montemurro and P.O.P. shop manager Steve Lalio.

The backdrop was printed on a Canon iPF8000S on LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner in seven 36″ panels, which were then stapled to the wall. Lalio says he designed it in Photoshop and used the ONYX RIP to properly tile it so that it could be spliced into one seamless backdrop. The total size is 21 feet wide by six feet high.

The moon phases, which dangle from fishing line a few feet in front of the backdrop, were printed on LexJet TOUGHcoat Water-Resistant Self Adhesive Polypropylene, laminated with LexJet 3 Mil Luster UV Standard Low Melt and applied to a heavy card stock.

“I used the PolyGloss Banner for the backdrop because I knew the Blue Moon and fall colors would really pop out with that material. We designed it so that it was informative about not only the beer, but the blue moon,” adds Lalio.

Posters for Troops Project: Coloring the Troops’ Surroundings with Inkjet Printing

Support the troops with inkjet printed postersEvery little bit helps, and you would be surprised how much a colorful, artistic poster of home helps our troops overseas. As R.J. LaBarba of LaBarba Fine Art puts it, “Day in and day out of staring at the same monotonous surroundings begins to grate on them.”

The surroundings of our military personnel, particularly in forward operating positions in Afghanistan and Iraq, are rather spartan, to say the least. LaBarba and his brother Mike, owners of LaBarba Fine Art in Huntersville, N.C., just north of Charlotte, set out to do something about it.

What started as printing a few posters from their original artwork gallery for anyone in the military they can find who could use a poster pick-me-up soon morphed into the Posters for Troops Project. At this point, LaBarba estimates that they’ve printed at least 150 posters for overseas personnel, mostly in Afghanistan.

Canvas wrap for the USO of North Carolina
LaBarba Fine Art also donated a custom gallery wrap printed on Sunset Select Matte Canvas, coated with Sunset Gloss Coating and stretched on one-inch bars. The gallery wrap is displayed in the main hallway of the USO of North Carolina's Charlotte Center.

“The Posters for Troops Project came about from a conversation I had with some colleagues mine, one of whom was a West Point grad who fought in the first Gulf War. We talked about the conditions in which they live and then I did some research into their current conditions at forward operating bases in Afghanistan and Iraq,” explains LaBarba. “What you see are these shanty-type structures built out of plywood and converted cargo containers. Everything is plywood walls, army green and sand. They’re getting great support from home through care packages with drink mixes, food, laundry items and whatnot. And not that they don’t need more of that, but we wanted to contribute something they don’t expect at all, and more importantly, something to improve their surroundings and boost their morale with a taste of home.”

A Marine corporal stationed in Afghanistan recently wrote: “Thank you so much for the posters! The Marines here at HMH-463 have received care packages in the past, but I must say that this was the first time we have been sent posters, and it was a wonderful and refreshing surprise… Many of us have grown homesick for the beautiful scenery of the Islands [HMH-463 is based in Hawaii] and the posters have definitely brought a little bit of home here to us. The one of the beach scene is taped up next to my workspace and it brightens my day. Your thoughts, prayers and support mean the world to all of the Marines here, and we thank you again for all you do to keep our heads up and spirits high.”

Creating banners for the troops with inkjet printing
Thank-you banner for a Special Forces unit stationed in Afghanistan.

And that’s the point of the Posters for Troops Project. The troops are fortunate that R.J. and Mike LaBarba are master photographers and meticulous fine art and photo print producers, running two Epson large format inkjet printers. The troops not only get a touch of home, but a touch of home with a true-color artistic flair.

LaBarba struck up a special relationship with a Special Forces group in Afghanistan that also helped those troops with their “hearts and minds” mission. In addition to sending the group posters, LaBarba donated colorful 4×6 prints for the troops to pass out to Afghani children under the care of the forward surgical unit the Special Forces group supports.

That led LaBarba to donate two 28 in. x 50 in. custom thank-you banners printed on LexJet Sunset Select Matte Canvas, one to hang proudly outside and the other for the commanding officer’s office. The banners were given three coats of LexJet Sunset Gloss Coating to weather the harsh conditions and LaBarba says they both came through the tour of duty with flying colors.

Now back at their base in Florida, the company requested a similar banner they could sign and present to the commanding officer, who’s retiring in June. LaBarba was happy to oblige and printed the presentation piece on LexJet 8 Mil PolyGloss Banner.

Inkjet printed decor art for home and office
A sample of LaBarba Fine Art's fine art photography and inkjet reproduction for wall decor.

“We’re continuing this program and getting more interest from people who want to participate. We operate it as a non-profit, but we’re getting to the point where we need to set it up as an official non-profit. It’s an expensive and time-consuming process but it is absolutely worth it for those who put their lives on the line every day,” says LaBarba.

For more information, to get involved and to donate, go to www.labarbafineart.com/p631253190