Set up in 2008 by the Kuhse family and their business partner, Jens Beckmann, as a printer of transactional documents, MAIN Druckservice is now a commercial printing company owned and run by the same family, with facilities in Hamburg and Darmstadt in Germany.
MAIN Druckservice transitions from offset to digital commercial printing with Canon
Learn how MAIN Druckservice’s investment in Canon production inkjet technology has allowed the company to transition from a traditional offset printer to a highly competitive digitally led commercial printer handling many diversified applications.
Objective #1: Grow its customer base
MAIN Druckservice had quietly built up a solid customer base and, in 2021, Armin and Nicolas Kuhse took over the management of the company. After a couple of years as organisation leaders, they saw an opportunity to grow the business both in terms of customers and print applications by working with online printers such as dieUmweltDruckerei.
However, to do that, they would have to upgrade their Canon ColorStream 3500. The ColorStream 8133 proved to be pivotal in achieving that expansion.
Objective #2: Increase productivity
While the Canon ColorStream 3500 had previously enabled MAIN Druckservice to achieve near-zero inventory, the company needed a faster, more productive press to convince online printers that MAIN Druckservice would be a dependable partner they could rely on to deliver the volumes required at the speed of job turnaround required.
Running at 133 metres per minute – nearly twice the speed of the ColorStream 3500 and with a remarkable uptime of over 90%, the ColorStream 8133 was the ideal replacement.
Objective #3: Diversifying applications
The company had been very pleased with the Canon ColorStream 3500, which had been installed some years previously. However, while it was ideal for printing the distance-learning materials for SGD, a press that was able to produce higher quality output would be needed to print promotional communications material being offered by the online printers.
Moving from the 600dpi ColorStream 3500 to the 1200dpi ColorStream 8133 provided that level of quality.
Why Canon
The company’s relationship with Canon began in 2008. In that year, MAIN Druckservice moved from its cutsheet toner printer supplier as Canon could provide continuous feed toner printers, which were much faster and more efficient for printing transactional documents, such as invoices, with variable data.
Having installed a Canon ColorStream 10000, a continuous feed mono toner press with a colour capability, MAIN Druckservice won a large contract to print student materials for SGD, a major distance learning organisation in Germany and part of the Klett Group, one of the leading educational companies in Europe.
In 2013, MAIN Druckservice invested in a Canon ColorStream 3500 inkjet press for the increased performance from its higher speed, its full-colour capability and even greater reliability, which also gave the company more capacity to scale up its business. Together with Canon’s support, the full-colour press also allowed MAIN Druckservice to complete its move from offset production to a fully digital, print-on-demand specialist.
The company’s partnership with Canon continued successfully and in 2023, MAIN Druckservice upgraded its inkjet press technology by signing for a ColorStream 8133 for its higher quality, productivity and application diversity.
“If people ask – because they know that we are an experienced digital printer – who they should speak to about production inkjet printers, I tell them to go to Canon.
“They offer the best quality and, unlike other suppliers who can be patronising and offer you what best suits them, Canon treat you as a partner and offer advice about solutions and projects, and that’s really important.”
MAIN Druckservice transforms its business with the ColorStream 8133
At the Hunkeler Innovationdays event in 2023, MAIN Druckservice took the next step in its evolution to becoming a fully digital commercial printer by investing in a web-fed Canon ColorStream 8133. The company has never looked back.
A Canon customer since 2008, MAIN Druckservice has continued to adopt new Canon technology – from continuous feed toner to continuous feed inkjet – to enable the growth of its business and to transition from a transactional printing business based on offset technology to a print on-demand specialist based entirely on digital printing technology.
Of course, before investing in the ColorStream 8133, MAIN Druckservice conducted its due diligence – Canon was not an automatic choice just because of the existing relationship. Nevertheless, while other presses offered competitive speeds, for the Kuhses none could compete with the print quality of the ColorStream. MAIN Druckservice has production facilities at both its premises in Hamburg and Darmstadt in Germany. The ColorStream 8133 is located at Darmstadt and is connected to a Hunkeler finishing system, creating a highly efficient roll-to-cutsheet line.
The entire production process is managed by Canon’s PRISMAproduction workflow software. The company additionally has three Canon imagePRESS colour toner printers and two varioPRINT 6000 TITAN mono toner printers. These toner printers are used for printing personalised book covers and personalised envelopes. The company’s other finishing technology includes CP Bourg perfect binders, Horizon cutters and a Horizon stacker.
“We’re very happy with the ColorStream 8133. The installation went perfectly without any hiccups, which was partly because of the great support from the Canon engineers and partly because Canon has a really good network of third-party technology partners such as Hunkeler, CP Bourg and Horizon.
“That meant that Canon supplied not only the ColorStream, but also the new Hunkeler system we installed, so we only had to deal with one supplier, which made the management of the project much easier for us.”
Benefits of partnering with Canon
MAIN Druckservice and Canon’s partnership has led to several benefits for MAIN Druckservice’s business.
Business growth
Thanks to the print quality and speed of the ColorStream 8133, MAIN Druckservice has won new business from both its existing customers, including SGD, as well as from new customers, such as online printer dieUmweltDruckerei.
In doing so, it has increased the page volumes printed on the ColorStream 8133 from 72 million to 84.7 million A4 pages per year.
Application flexibility
The ColorStream 8133 has a 1200dpi print resolution and can print on a wide variety of uncoated, recycled and inkjet treated papers from 40gsm to 220gsm.
This has enabled MAIN Druckservice to expand its application offerings from transactional documents and books to high-quality promotional and marketing materials.
Sustainability
MAIN Druckservice is actively working towards greater sustainability, and is currently in the process of achieving the Blue Angel (Blauer Engel) UZ195 certification for printed materials.
Supporting this, the ColorStream press uses water-based pigment ink, can print on uncoated and recycled papers, consumes less power than previous models, and has a high level of automation.
Easy to operate
As so many aspects of the ColorStream 8133 have been automated, the press is very easy to use, even for operators of limited experience.
The operators at MAIN Druckservice were confident to run the press after only a three-day training course from Canon.
Futureproofing
By investing in the ColorStream 8133, MAIN Druckservice has invested in a modular printing technology platform that offers a clear upgrade path.
That means the company could switch to speeds as fast as 200 metres per minute without having to swap out the printer chassis.
Service and support from Canon
Armin and Nicolas Kuhse have been very impressed both with the quality of the support they’ve received from Canon.
Canon brings them a true ‘customer-centric’ approach, continuously offering not only innovative solutions but also practical business advice that is specific to their business.
MAIN Druckservice continues to expand its horizons
With the Canon ColorStream 8133 in place, MAIN Druckservice continues from strength to strength and is looking to win further business from online printers.
Key to doing that is not only to be able to print at the quality they require but also for MAIN Druckservice to be able to price its services appropriately.
The colour management and control is where PRISMAprofiler comes into play. A single ICC output profile tool designed specifically for Canon inkjet presses and exceeding the performance and gamut of a generic profiler, PRISMAprofiler allows MAIN Druckservice to achieve the widest colour gamut possible for a given combination of paper and ink on the ColorStream.
The company is therefore able to calculate how it can produce the best quality on a specific paper with efficient ink usage and price the job accordingly, reducing costs and waste while improving efficiency and productivity.
“What’s really important for us is that we have such a close relationship with Canon. It’s more like a partnership and that’s what we’re really happy about because it’s not like a customer and the service provider in a usual business relationship. And that partnership with Canon is what we really value.”
Related solutions
Learn more about Canon’s technology.
ColorStream 8133
Delivers high production efficiencies and low operational costs across a diverse set of applications. Transform your business with exceptional print quality and outstanding productivity you can count on.
varioPRINT 6000 series TITAN
Ultra-reliable, energy efficient and super productive, the varioPRINT 6000 series TITAN helps high-volume print operations deliver quality applications, reduced production time and increased uptime.
PRISMA Tools
Providing the data you need to maximise the performance of your print devices, including monitoring, analysis and cost allocation.
PRISMAproduction
Streamline workflows and accelerate production efficiency with the high-performance workflow and output management platform PRISMAproduction.
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