Oxford University Press (OUP) has appointed CTPS Group to provide an end-to-end solution covering printing with HP inkjet web press and HP Indigo technology, mailing solutions, stock management, and the distribution of products to subscribers in 27 countries throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
This follows an intensive tender process by the world’s largest university press that considered both offset and digital printing options as part of a centralised printing and distribution strategy for Asia-Pacific.
“HP inkjet meets our rigorous quality requirements for journals that we print in Asia,” said Claire Humphreys, production and estimating manager at OUP. “We have seen excellent results from our digital print providers in the UK and USA and we are pleased to be able to benefit from the significant efficiencies that HP digital printing affords.”
Headquartered in Hong Kong, CTPS will handle all production, warehousing, and distribution of about 60 OUP journals from its Dongguan, China plant. It is using its HP Indigo 7500 digital press to print the covers of the journals, and its HP T300 colour inkjet web press to produce the mono and four-colour text pages. The HP T300 press is integrated with an inline binding line from HP SmartStream finishing partner Muller Martini, providing a one-stop solution for the complete production of perfect-bound journals. The HP T300 press enables a four-day production turn round.
OUP’s selection of digital printing for its journals in Asia reflects a growing trend among publishers to move journal and book production to digital.
“Many academic and STM publishers are looking closely into their supply chain to enhance their efficiency, and are discovering that digital printing can both meet their quality standards and open opportunities for meaningful efficiencies,” noted John Currie, global business director at CTPS. “The HP technology is a good fit to provide OUP with a cost-effective print solution. The print quality requirements and average number of copies are right at the sweet spot for HP inkjet and HP Indigo.”
Under the two-year agreement with OUP, CTPS will handle production and distribution of the selected journals, primarily humanities, social science and sci-med titles, published at varying frequencies, from two to 26 times a year, in quantities of 70 – 5,000.
OUP’s Claire Humphreys notes that publishers need to partner up- and down-stream to further drive the migration of journals to digital printing. “As print runs drop and inkjet printing quality gets better, we will see more use of digital. As an industry, we can’t just expect the technology to get better; we have to partner with the print service providers to make sure the choice of substrates meets our needs, and also work with professional societies to find the best solution for their needs. That’s what we are doing with CTPS. It’s the only way.”