Drummond experience reimagined

Challenge:
Drummond Press handles an incredibly complex work mix, producing jobs for the education, retail, consumer packaged goods, utilities, insurance, health care and government markets, among others. Over the years, the company has added advanced graphic communications capabilities in high-quality color work, personalized marketing, direct mail and fulfillment, point-of-sale products, signs and packaging, as well as integrated communication solutions such as PURLs, data processing, email and mobile marketing.
As a result of its expansion efforts, Drummond now processes up to 90 million pieces of mail annually; creates digital storefronts for businesses in the hospitality, restaurant verticals and other industries; and executes highly successful hybrid print/digital marketing campaigns for its clients. Drummond’s equipment lineup consists of everything from 29” and 40” sheetfed presses, to an M110 heatset web with advanced inline finishing capabilities, to digital presses and wide-format inkjet printers.
Drummond Press has acquired and integrated several Southeastern printing companies, including Florida firms Hilcraft Engraving, Trade Engraving and Douglas Printing, and Graphic Communications, a business based in Atlanta. Today, these have all been consolidated into two plants: one in Jacksonville and the other in Atlanta. Given the multiple print platforms and services offered across its two locations, Drummond Press needs a robust, efficient way to manage its operations.
Solution:
John Falconetti, Drummond’s president, uses lean manufacturing as his guiding principle for running the business.
“We use a four-step process to help us achieve the leanest manufacturing possible: analysis, strategy, implementation and measurement.” In keeping with that philosophy, Drummond Press chose EFI™ Pace as its ERP system in 2005 because it addressed the company’s needs without limiting the flexibility required for growth.
“It was clear that Pace could enhance our methodology and our process and help us meet our goals,” says Falconetti. “It has continuously improved in the nine years we’ve been using it. We are especially fond of the browser interface, which makes it incredibly handy to use anywhere.”
In 2009, Drummond Press upgraded its Pace™ system to add even more functionality.
“We realized that there was a lot more we could be doing with our Pace system,” Falconetti says. Drummond Press opened the throttle on integrating Pace technology with the company’s manufacturing processes. The company also decided to add several modules that would improve efficiency, including EFI PrintFlow® and EFI Auto-Count®.
“We thought PrintFlow and Auto-Count would be beneficial and boost efficiency. They did that and more — they were invaluable additions to the system,” Falconetti says.
Now, Drummond Press uses EFI Pace for estimating, job planning, job order entry, scheduling, shop floor data collection, accounting, invoicing and more. “Pace also breaks out our financials per location, which has been very helpful for us,” says Falconetti.
Results:
Pace is deeply integrated into the business, providing Falconetti and other Drummond Press executives with the data they need to reduce turnaround time, eliminate errors and improve profitability.
Falconetti is enthusiastic about the rewards. “We invested quite a bit of time and energy fine-tuning the system for our environment and entering our data points. But we are so much more efficient that the investment is dwarfed by the payback,” he says.
For Falconetti, the numbers speak loud and clear. “Every year, the PIA publishes revenue-per-employee metrics, and we are always at the top of the heap,” he notes, adding that this success is due in no small part to the company’s Pace system.
“Pace optimizes and organizes all the processes it touches,” Falconetti says.
Pace also enhances one of Drummond’s most important assets, namely the company’s ability to be responsive to clients. “Our sales team can access Pace from a client’s office and run through various pricing options, do various what-if scenarios, retrieve old data and win the order,” Falconetti explains. “Sales team members can even help the customer submit the files right there on the spot.”
This kind of responsiveness means more jobs, new clients and higher profit potential.
But running a successful print firm is not just about winning today; it is about establishing a plan for the future. Determining which equipment to invest in, and when, has become extremely important, and that is where Pace’s data collection and analysis capabilities come into play. For example, when Falconetti was considering whether to replace a piece of equipment, he used Pace to pull up a profile on that equipment for the previous 12 months.
Says Falconetti, “Having that kind of data at my fingertips took all the guesswork out and helped me make a very wise and very large purchasing decision with great comfort.”
With Pace, Falconetti gains the knowledge to make the best decisions possible. Adding that tactical advantage to his business planning and execution efforts means Drummond Press can offer the best answers to its customers’ needs.
“When our clients are faced with a complicated business challenge, we like to prove ourselves as having the ability to provide solutions for them,” Falconetti says. “EFI has proven itself to us in that same way. It gives us real solutions for some of our most complex production and business challenges.”
Beat the competition and profit with EFI’s integrated Fiery®, VUTEk®, EFI Wide-Format, Jetrion®, Print MIS and Web-to-Print solutions.
Visit www.efi.com to learn more.
Why EFI?
EFI™ (www.efi.com) helps businesses worldwide bring their visions and goals to life with a scalable, digital product portfolio. Our powerful servers; controllers; RIPs; inkjet printers, and precise colour and imaging solutions help companies increase their brand recognition and market reach on signs, buildings, bus wraps, graphic displays and more. Our business automation software helps companies work faster and more cost-effectively. Our office, enterprise and mobile cloud solutions help companies create, access, and communicate impactful information that can win them more business.