D&D Digital Printing

Melbourne’s D&D Digital Printing has recently undergone a new kit-out by Ricoh to stay at the top of its game

With two new digital printers - the Ricoh Pro C9110 and Pro C7100X - and a Pro L4160 laminator, D&D Printing is diversifying its services to stay ahead of the competition. New capabilities, faster turn-around times, higher quality and low running costs are giving D&D Printing the edge.

Established in 2005, D&D Digital Printing in Melbourne is still considered a young business in the print game. However its entrance to the industry after the millennium has allowed it to skip the offset era to focus purely on digital printing. D&D Digital was founded by general manager Chris Dedman with Brenden Ilsley, John Patton and Sue Carter, with the foresight that digital would soon become the norm in the industry.

“In 2005 colour digital printing equipment improved immensely, the quality improved dramatically, the versatility and speed improved and the click costs reduced also,” he says. “This all seemed to happen overnight so high quality, short run, fast turnaround printing has evolved, and that is exactly what we do.”

D&D Digital grows markets with Ricoh

In April this year, D&D Digital underwent a new kit-out, with Ricoh’s Pro C9110 and Pro C7100X digital printers and also a Ricoh wide format Pro L4160 with a laminator / cutter. Despite the company owning its previous digital machines, Dedman says the outlay for the new Ricoh printers was well worth it.

According to Ricoh, the Pro C9110 is considered to be the affordable digital solution that has the ability to break down the cost barriers of entry for printers in the high-speed digital market. Ricoh says it is also capable of sitting alongside existing offset technology to provide variable data and greater media handling capacity, making high volume jobs cost effective and highly efficient.

Dedman also praises the Pro C7100X which has worked well for the company due to its ability to print white and clear. But Ricoh says when it comes to production printing, you cannot have too many colour capabilities.

On top of allowing print businesses to compete for jobs that involve clear or white ink, Ricoh says the Pro C7100X also allows printers to expand a print on-demand service, personalise or customise materials, impress customers with 1200 by 4800 image quality, and print oversize pieces for signage, window clings and more.

The wide format print capabilities of the Ricoh Pro L4160 was another reason D&D Digital decided to make the switch to Ricoh, according to Dedman. Before going with Ricoh, the company specialised in general printing of brochures, marketing materials, invitations, flyers, postcards and the like. However, since the installation in April, D&D Digital has diversified into the wide format market.

New capabilities, lower costs, higher quality

Since its inception, D&D Digital has continued to go from strength to strength and is constantly receiving positive feedback from customers regarding its fast-turnaround times and quality print jobs. Being a small business with a staff of seven people, Dedman says there is always a risk with changing equipment, however Ricoh has given him no cause for concern.

He says, “Ricoh has been reliable and the technical service has been backed up really well. It has been a good, positive decision for us. We have had no issues at all with the equipment installed quickly and efficiently. The last thing we needed as a business was to be down for a long period of time during installation, but they handled that very well. I know that if any technical issues come up in the future those will be addressed by Ricoh quickly.”