Paw Prints, the University’s print and copy shop, recently received a new machine with the capabilities to help the Academy of Counter-Terrorist Education in its research and training efforts.
The new machine is a digital color press called the Heidelberg NexPress, said Assistant Director of Copy Services Bennie Tilbury. It processes jobs submitted on disks and digital color files.
The NexPress Web site describes the machine as having the combined power of a press with the flexibility of a printer.
“We are the first University in the country to have one,” Tilbury said.
Tilbury said the new machine is important to the University in several different ways. Graphic Services financed the purchase because it recognized a need for the machine.
The machine, which became operable in January, specifically can aid the new counter-terrorist education program.
The University implemented the program last year. Tilbury said the program requires several thousand color copies of Power Point slides and diagrams for training.
Administrative specialist for the Academy of Counter-Terrorist Education Sharon Hutchinson said the machine is very useful for course book and training manual production.
Hutchinson said the academy will teach about 75 classes this year, with class sizes ranging from 15 to 45 participants. Each participant will need a course book.
The machine also will be able to help members of the University community by providing quicker and better quality mass-produced copies for anyone who needs them, Tilbury said.
“We expect to do probably 200,000 to 300,000 color copies a month on this machine, but it could vary,” Tilbury said.
The price of the copies also will go down.
“Because of this new machine, we will be able to offer a low flat rate of 35 cents for color copies,” Tilbury said. “That’s a little more than half the volume rate was before.”
Tilbury hopes the lower prices will bring more service to Paw Prints.
Although Paw Prints has not yet been able to pursue the machine’s full abilities, Tilbury said it features incredible capabilities to process variable data. This is another way the machine can help serve a variety of customers.
Variable data is a method of printing copies of the same general item, such as letters or envelopes, but include personalized data on each. Tilbury used the example of the University using the capabilities to send letters to prospective students with graphics personalized to the interest of each person.
Paw Prints plans to advertise aggressively the variable data capability outside of the counter-terrorist program and around the campus community.