Commercial Print Provider Increases Color Digital Output by 50% with FlexTG
Customer Overview: A Legacy Print Provider Embracing Modern Technology
This commercial print provider is a family-owned business with more than 50 years of history in Northern California. Originally founded as a typesetting company in Southern California, the company relocated north in the 1970s and has since grown into the largest commercial printer north of Sacramento.
Operating out of a 30,000-square-foot, fully solar-powered facility, the company offers a comprehensive suite of services, including digital and offset printing, wide format, mailing, fulfillment, finishing, shipping, and receiving. More than 90% of all jobs are produced in-house, allowing the company to maintain tight control over quality, turnaround times, and customer experience.
The Challenge: Modernizing Production While Maintaining Reliability
As customer demand increased and print applications became more complex, the company recognized the need to further modernize its production environment. While it had begun shifting toward digital print, existing equipment created challenges with downtime and reliability, especially during peak production periods.
Additional hurdles included inconsistent operator experiences across multiple devices, limited redundancy that increased risk during machine downtime, training inefficiencies due to varied platforms and workflows, and workflow limitations—particularly for booklet production. To continue scaling while protecting uptime and profitability, the company needed a unified, resilient, and operator-friendly digital production platform.
The FlexTG Solution: A Comprehensive Digital Transformation Strategy
Building on a relationship spanning more than a decade, FlexTG partnered with the print provider to implement a complete digital production strategy. The collaboration began in 2022 with the installation of a Canon color press designed to handle complex booklet workflows. By 2024, the partnership had expanded with the installation of four Ricoh production systems, representing the most substantial digital investment in their relationship to date.
FlexTG also built a consistent production platform with standardized equipment and shared core technology, simplifying training and daily operations. Matching accessories across machines ensured jobs could continue if a device went offline, increasing overall capacity. Workflows were optimized using Fiery controllers and updated FusionPro licenses for variable data and mailing tasks, while integrated training allowed operators to start using the new systems immediately.
Results: Measurable Growth and Operational Excellence
The improvements from FlexTG’s solution have translated into measurable operational gains and increased production capacity for the print provider:
50% increase in monthly color digital volume – from approximately 200,000 to 300,000 impressions
Enhanced customer acquisition capabilities, enabling the company to attract and serve larger clients
Reduced downtime, allowing operators to run more color work with confidence
Improved training efficiency due to consistent operator experience across devices
Greater production resilience with built-in redundancy across the digital fleet
Looking Ahead: Continued Partnership and Strategic Growth
The print provider and FlexTG continue to expand their partnership, exploring significant investments in mailing equipment to further strengthen in-house capabilities and extend the company’s footprint within the production environment.
With a shared focus on efficiency, reliability, and long-term growth, FlexTG remains a trusted partner as the company evolves its operation to meet the changing needs of the commercial print market.