It’s one of the biggest print tenders to come out of a UK University in over 20 years, with the University of Leeds selecting Konica Minolta UK as its partner to provide a fully managed print solution as well as a complete refresh of its Print and Mail facility. The University invested in 4 new Konica Minolta presses, pre and post production workflow solutions and a full suite of Duplo finishing equipment.
“The level of investment that the management has allowed, shows the confidence they have in the new direction and strategy that the University is going through,” says Ollie Renshaw, Business and Systems Manager at Print and Mail Service, University of Leeds. “Underneath every decision that they make, the University has always put the experience of the students at the very top. With the new digital strategy taking hold, we are bringing our print production facilities in-line with all the Multi-Functional devices (MFDs) in each department. We at Print & Mail want to be the best at what we can do, the University has a three-year plan for us, and the Director of Campus Innovation is excited to see all our new developments.”
“From Konica Minolta, we purchased the AccurioPress C12000 which is the first in our sector in the UK, the AccurioPress C7100 and two AccurioPress 6120’s are all powered by Konica Minolta’s print controllers with AccurioPRO Flux Ultimate workflow. The setup gives us flexibility as well as the capacity to keep up with extremely heavy periods of work. The students and professors all order a steady stream of print, however, we get a lot of “Oddball requests” as well as a lot of events. My aim is that whatever we can do for the kids is worth it and we will find solutions to every single problem.”
Jon Hiscock, Head of Production & Industrial Print at Konica Minolta UK said ‘The package provided to the Print & Mail Centre at the University of Leeds represents the latest in Konica Minolta production print technology, automation tools and workflow integration. We are pleased to work in partnership with Duplo UK to deliver the University a future proof solution that once optimised will enable it to meet its strategic goals and deliver a best in class student experience.’
For Duplo, this includes the UK’s first installation of the DC-648 multi-finisher, the flagship iSaddle 5.0, the PFi Blade B2 and the DuBINDER DPB-500 Binder.
“The Duplo machines are just fabulous. My operators think the automation and ease of use on the DC-648 is second to none. Normal jobs are all set up and the print is just fed through, taking the stress and hours upon hours of manual work away. We have so many different jobs coming through that this machine is a lifesaver. The iSaddle 5.0 was a much more in-depth learning experience, it gives us so much more options to give to the students and staff, and it’s easy to set up and run. Students can buy a coffee and the job is usually ready before they’re finished!”
“I’m really excited about the PFi Blade though. That is definitely something we want to expand upon. It allows us to make print sexy again when COVID decimated our volumes. Duplo has sent us their sample jobs and we’ve been playing around with the machine. It allows our event products to be much more exciting”.
“Overall, it's really difficult for students to buy print. They simply don’t know what can be achieved, whether it’s the material choice, shape, product type, booklet format etc. Everyone knows binding, which is where the Dubinder 500 came in. Although students are no longer required to case bind their thesis, they still do. That one printed volume is the culmination of years of toil as well as a massive investment.”
“The variety of jobs that come through here is staggering. It’s why we tendered with Konica Minolta – to allow us to put appropriate jobs through the right channel, with them, they brought the Duplo finishing and automation. We’ve now started pushing print through the professors and staff straight into the print room. Now we produce the very first bit of print that a student sees, their offer letter, to the last, which is their graduation certificate, and everything in between!”
Wendy Hogg, Regional Sales Manager for Duplo UK said, “The combination of Konica Minolta’s high-speed presses along with Duplo’s offline finishing means that Print & Mail can produce more jobs, much faster, more sustainably with minimal waste, and much cheaper than ever before. The University has a very strong corporate strategy and it’s amazing to see that the student experience is still 100% at the core of everything they do. It allows Print & Mail to make coming to the University of Leeds as special as it can be. When you look at the production facility, it’s clean, it’s hi-tech and there are screens everywhere. It really impresses students when they see it, and it challenges their expectations of what print can be.”
Ollie concludes, “The print room proved its value during the pandemic, not just monetarily, but through the support we offered. Online ordering was key, and COVID distilled a lot of good behaviour regarding online purchasing. With the University moving to a digital and online footing, they found that the combination of print and digital channels was paramount to the success of the campus. The two channels complimented each other and didn’t compete. Our central comms team numbers over 100 and we’ve seen a positive swing our way. It was about educating them and showing them how easy it was to get high-quality print out of us. We can also spin up online portals for visiting lecturers for all their print requirements and offer excellent event printing services in-house. Our students and teaching staff are a captive audience, and we promote everything we can do. Here at Print & Mail, we have challenged their perceptions and shown that we can use print to make special memories”.
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Photo credits
1 Group - (Left to right) Paul Dexter, Central Communications Specialist, Production Print & Mail at Konica Minolta (UK), Wendy Hogg, Regional Sales Manager at Duplo UK, Scott Fleming Production Manager at University of Leeds, Lee Mchugh, Finishing Operator at University of Leeds, Mark Philips, Finishing Operator at University of Leeds, Oliver Renshaw, Business and Systems Manager at University of Leeds.
2 Lee Mchugh, Finishing Operator at University of Leeds
3 Main - (Left to Right) Mark Philips, Finishing Operator at University of Leeds and Lee Mchugh, Finishing Operator at University of Leeds
