Centreprint

An Adelaide print company has found that Ricoh digital production printers deliver quality and performance

Centreprint offers an expanded product range, from business cards to bound books, giving them a competitive edge. With Ricoh, Vern can depend on consistent reliability and low downtime while delivering superior quality output.

Adelaide’s Centreprint partnered with Ricoh for their production printer solution. Vern Richter, director at Centreprint, says the company purchased its Ricoh Pro C751 after seeing one in action at PacPrint three years ago. The company bought a Ricoh Pro C651 after PrintEx last year. He says, “We have never looked back since getting the Ricoh machines. They fit well into our workflow. The Pro C651 replaced two black and white machines. We do a decent amount of black and white catalogues on a six week cycle, so we need the machine running flat out.”

Centreprint backs Ricoh 

Richter and his team researched the available technology before investing in the Ricoh printers. He says, “Prior to looking at the Ricoh, we had a rebadged machine from another supplier, which we had a few problems with. I sat down and thought, ‘What are the faults with that machine?’ We did an evaluation and we chose three machines as possibilities. I had a look around and even looked at bigger machines but we couldn’t go past the Ricoh.” Having run the Ricoh Pro C751 for three years, Richter says the quality of its output continues to impress. 

He says, “I believe the quality is better than some of the big brand machines. It has surprised people with considerable industry experience. Another advantage is the Ricoh’s serviceability. For example, we can change the drums and the fuser so we don’t suffer extended periods of downtime. All of our operators are trained on the Ricoh machines and they love them. One of our operators is old school, having begun in the days of typesetting. He thinks the Ricoh is fantastic. It is a robust machine.”

Rising to the challenge

Adelaide offers a challenging environment for print companies. Richter says, “The local print scene is competitive. We see people cutting each other’s throats on pricing, which is disappointing. So to survive, you have got to do everything you can to try and reduce your costs and so on. Our Ricoh printers help us offer a wide range of print products to our customers.”

He adds that, “Centreprint fights a bit above its weight. We go right across the range of printing from business cards to perfect bound books. We do short run annual reports and we have just started doing perfect bound books for a publisher. We also have a national contract with a company doing discount and loyalty cards. You have to make goods deals. No one else is going to help you out.

“If we had the work we would get a bigger Ricoh machine but, at the moment, the two machines keep up with the running quite well.” Vern and Margaret Richter bought Centreprint in 2004. He says, “We have five staff, including our daughter Jade. Having good staff members helps us meet the challenges we face. We moved to new premises four years ago, reducing overheads and positioning ourselves closer to Adelaide’s business centre.”

A great partnership

Vern Richter and Centreprint will stick with Ricoh. He says, “It’s the best relationship we’ve had with a digital supplier. When we have a problem, Ricoh is here straight away. They are regularly here within 20 minutes of putting a call in. It has been fantastic dealing with Ricoh.”