Up to Speed

Quick printers race to exceptional service with fast turnarounds

The competition has nothing on Boston-headquartered 48hourprint.com.

Well, that's the way the company's president and CEO Ray Pinard explained it. His company can compete with most quick print firms because almost all of its products are offered in low quantities, digitally. And, orders are filled almost as quick as customers can place them.

"Short-run 'print and cut' products have a 24-hour print turnaround time," Pinard continued. "All other products with the exception of custom quotes have a 48-hour print turnaround time. Turnaround time is defined as 24 or 48 hours after we receive your approved proof."

For example, if a job is received by 5 p.m. Monday, it will be shipped by close of business Tuesday or Wednesday. He elaborated, saying since all of its business is conducted online, customers can upload their files from their home or office.

"Our volumes allow us to be very competitive in pricing," Pinard stated. "Our quality is top notch [with a] less than 1 percent redo rate. The industry is about 5 percent. Our customer service and technical teams are experienced handling customer inquiries, from handling new customers through very sophisticated projects. Since our facilities are owned by us, [which are] located in Cleveland and Phoenix, we control the entire experience with our customers. With the strategically located facilities, finished product normally reaches our customers in three shipping days."

But if he had to get to the nitty, gritty of it, Pinard declared beating out the competition boils down to three things.

"The top three differentiators that keep people coming back to us, and help us acquire new customers are: price, quality and turnaround time. Our production capabilities are state of the art, 2005 and 2007 LS630 presses, one in our Cleveland facility and the other in our Phoenix facility. MGI digital presses are also located one in each facility."

Dean Lerch, vice president of sales and marketing of Riverside, California-based PartnerPrinting.com, explained his company, which sells only to print resellers, is a cut above the rest.

"No other trade and non-trade printers have the sophisticated web-to-print technology that we brand for our trade customers providing them a turnkey, yet technologically advanced point of purchase retail website program, unlike any other in the print industry today," he summed up.

It also comes down to the latest and greatest products PartnerPrinting.com is offering.

Lerch noted the company has a state-of-the-art wholesale to retail online quote generator, calling it the "fastest and best quote system in the print industry." He added, the company offers more than 27 paper stocks and four coating 
options, nine recycled paper stocks (including those printed with eco-friendly vegetable-based inks, 10 premium #1 rated paper stocks, free custom cutting option, custom drilling and perforating options, shrink wrapping option, print, bindery and full mailing services department under one roof.