Second SCREEN Truepress Jet520ZZ Affords Polaris Direct Dramatic Reduction in Labor Costs and Expanded Job Interchangeability Between its Two Presses

December 8, 2021

The Polaris Direct team with the Truepress Jet520ZZ from SCREEN.

SCREEN Americas announces the second installation of the Truepress Jet520ZZ series to Polaris Direct of Hooksett, New Hampshire. The company’s owners, Joe and Judith Maloy, whose first Truepress Jet520ZZ led to a 60 percent increase in revenue, decided to invest in a second identical press five years later to support the growing demand from its direct mail marketer client base to use roll-fed digital inkjet technology.

With the company’s initial Truepress Jet520ZZ running two shifts at least six days a week for approximately the past 24 months, it had proven to be a workhorse in the Polaris Direct print arsenal. By installing a second press, the printer was able to meet additional capacity needs and distribute the workload between the two presses. Aligned in close proximity, the two presses require only one operator per shift to handle large volumes of output. Despite the fact that one Truepress Jet520ZZ is older, the images from each press are exactly the same. “The two machines produce identical output in terms of color quality to the point where you can’t even tell the difference,” said Joe Maloy, president and COO of Polaris Direct.

The value of speed-to-market production has been a real game changer for marketers looking to bring their printed messages to customers in a timely manner. Those who depend on direct mail to market their myriad products and services have realized the benefit of not having to prepare pre-printed shells for personalized mail. Roll-fed digital inkjet technology has also allowed them the flexibility to make last minute changes to their copy and design even just prior to going to press. And, since today’s supply chain presents challenges with obtaining paper, print buyers have had to factor in additional time between a job order and its execution. “What was once a six-week waiting period for paper is now a 12-week period,” said Maloy. “The new timeframe has forced marketers to reconsider the suitability of traditional offset production because such technology could potentially lead to even longer lead times that result in consumer data becoming stale by the time the mail reaches its destination. With the Truepress Jet520ZZ, direct mail marketers can respond faster to demands from customers for information and marketing materials.”

To accompany the speed of SCREEN’s technology and gain an edge on its competition, Polaris Direct needed a finishing solution that could insert 22,000 envelopes in an hour. The couple decided to invest in two roll-fed Fusion Cross inserters from Bowe Systec. The solution not only resulted in exceptional productivity, but led to a considerable savings in labor costs since the Fusion Cross required fewer operators than a traditional bindery operation. “Instead of having four machines that needed a total of eight operators and two mechanics, the Fusion system only needs two or three operators to execute the same volume,” said Maloy.

Since 2003, Polaris Direct has been providing direct marketing solutions for high-volume print and mail for its Fortune 500 clients in the financial services, health care, insurance, retail, pharmaceuticals, non-profit and telecommunications industries. A full-service supplier with a capacity to mail over 1.5 million pieces per day, Polaris provides end-to-end, multi-channel marketing solutions focused on increasing its customers’ return on investment for their campaigns. In 2021, Polaris Direct was recognized by industry experts for its productivity and efficiency and received the 2021 Innovator of the Year award. Polaris Direct is a certified member of the WBENC, holds Hi-Trust, ISO 27001 and SOC 2 Type II certifications for data security and is a G7 Certified Master Printer.