Customer Story: State of Michigan
Driving efficiency at scale — 83% time savings, 50% more uptime and a 2.4% increase in jobs delivered with fewer staff
About our customer
Michigan became the 26th state of the Union in 1837 and is now the tenth most populous, with more than 10 million residents. With millions of correspondences, print projects and mail processed each year, the State of Michigan’s in-plant has supported government operations for more than 60 years. After decades of service, it was time to reinvent its print operations.
“If I could offer one piece of advice to an in-plant manager, it’s to build a culture of kindness with people you trust. I found that with Ricoh — they provided the right equipment, guidance and support to help us succeed. From there, new opportunities emerge and your operations become more efficient, innovative and adaptive.”
— Kristen Hampton
Director of Print & Mail Management
State of Michigan
Challenge
Legacy equipment and slow, manual processes
25% of the workforce was retiring
High outsourcing costs to other printers
With aging equipment and a team nearing retirement, Kristen Hampton, Director of Print & Mail Management at the State of Michigan, knew the in-plant needed a major overhaul. She began by evaluating their operational processes and quickly realized the existing equipment could no longer support the workload. From there, she built a business case to secure approval for new presses and workflow automation — positioning the operation for long-term success.
Solution
“The new equipment created new opportunities, which has been a huge benefit. It allows us to punch various formats in a 2-up configuration, further amplifying efficiency and reducing production time.”
— Kristen Hampton, Director of Print & Mail Management, State of Michigan
Assessment and replacement of older printers and tools
Fleet additions: RICOH Pro VC40000, two RICOH Pro C9500s, RICOH Pro Z75, IBIS Smart Binder Plus, Avanti Slingshot™ Print MIS, RICOH Auto Color Adjuster, and others
Automation and efficiency minimized overtime expenses and costly outsourcing
The State of Michigan implemented Avanti Slingshot, which acts as an information hub to improve workflows and business processes. The software sends and receives data from the different applications and equipment throughout the print shop, helping increase efficiency and tracking.
The in-plant replaced some of its aging toner machines with inkjet ― tapping into the power, speed and quality of the Pro VC40000 and the Pro Z75. With the increased production speed, they could do more transactional print jobs with less employees. The two new Pro C9500 toner presses enabled inline punching and spiral bound books: “The new equipment created new opportunities, which has been a huge benefit,” stated Hampton. “It allows us to punch various formats in a 2-up configuration, further amplifying efficiency and reducing production time.”
Similarly, the Auto Color Adjuster also saves time and ensures consistent, precise colors in minutes. The IBIS Smart Binder Plus off-line saddle stitching gives customers more options and great service and allows the in-plant to keep even more jobs in-house. They also moved to an online ordering and proofing system as well as revamped their business card printing with barcodes on larger sheets.
Results
15% leaner operations with improved automated workflows and upgraded equipment
Average of 83% time savings for tasks that are now automated
~10% savings passed onto customers with cost efficiencies from the Pro Z75
50% time savings from inline capabilities vs. manual tabletop method
50%+ increase in punching speed enables faster delivery of books and keeps more orders in-house
50%+ increase in press uptime
2.4% increase in jobs delivered over the past fiscal year with fewer staff
50% less overtime for static printing operation and 92% less for transactional printing (due to the Pro VC40000)
The State of Michigan’s modernization efforts transformed their in-plant with significant time savings, efficiencies and cost savings while adding 2.4% more print jobs, keeping work in-house and reducing overtime costs. Updated presses operated better with a 50% increase in uptime, allowing the in-plant to get back on track and complete jobs on time.
Tasks such as checking bleeds, verifying image and logo resolution, embedding fonts, and performing imposition work are now fully automated — completed in just two to three minutes compared to the previous manual process that took between 10 to 20 minutes (~83% time-savings).
At the same time, the State was able to deliver jobs over 50% faster with new capabilities, minimizing overtime work and costs. The efficiency gains and touchless automated processes more than offset the loss of retiring employees. The in-plant attributes the Pro Z75’s significant cost-savings with the ability to lower prices for customers by about 10% from running more units on B2-size sheets. The staff continues to be engaged, upper management is supportive, and customers are happy with faster turnaround times and great quality.
Learn more about how our government print solutions can drive efficiency, cut costs and expand offerings.