MAN Roland Canada and Ryobi

From a small two-page duplicator to the largest web presses in the world, the MAN Roland product line in Canada now provides a range of profitable pressroom solutions for small, medium, and large printers alike.

The good news happened on April 4, 2005, when printing giant MAN Roland became the exclusive Canadian distributor of Ryobi presses. The better news is occurring right now!

“Since being appointed exclusive distributors in Canada for Ryobi presses, we’ve been extremely pleased with the results,” says Paul Tasker, General Manager of MAN Roland Canada. “Previously, there were actually no Ryobi presses installed in Canada in a format larger than a duplicator. Now, 4-up and 6-up models are going in, complementing the MAN Roland product line.”

But it gets better still. “Based on the performance and quality of installs that we’ve now completed, we strongly believe that the future prospects for the Canadian market are outstanding,” Tasker notes. “Our Ryobi users are telling us that they can now provide an excellent print quality to their customers, based on an investment that falls well within their overall capital budgets.”

The service factor
As planned, MAN Roland’s extensive, integrated service organization now includes technicians fully trained in every detail of Japan-based Ryobi products.

“We’ve completed extensive training of our sales and service teams both in Japan and in Canada,” Tasker adds.
Sheetfed facilities can choose reliable solutions from a complete menu of products. “MAN Roland Canada can now provide printing press solutions from the two-page duplicator size, which we’ve been extremely successful with, up to our largest MAN XXL 73” press—with full service capabilities to support these solutions,” says Tasker.

As far as the future is concerned, Tasker says MAN Roland Canada is planning exciting new marketing initiatives for Ryobi within the Canadian market. “I just returned from Japan and was part of the opening of Ryobi’s new press manufacturing facility. I can tell you that we’re absolutely thrilled at what they’re producing for our valued customers in Canada.”

The Ryobi story
Ryobi is on the rise as a pressmaker. What began as a die-cast products company in 1943 has evolved into one of the world’s leading manufacturers of precision offset and digital offset presses. The company is continually developing total printing solutions to support the demands of a sophisticated information society; their systems can flexibly respond to a modern digital workflow process, from receipt of data to printing and binding.

Currently, Ryobi ships presses to over 160 countries and is particularly forward-thinking in the prepress stage. It has even developed high-performance, multi-functional page layout software using computerized processing of characters and graphic information. In addition, original Ryobi fonts such as the “Now Series” are used by graphic designers worldwide.

But product quality is not the only Ryobi benchmark. The company also develops products that are better for the environment, such as presses that require less ink and organic solvents and use fewer start-up sheets. Automation and energy-saving features are also priorities.

Choice of options
About 800 different kinds of Ryobi products are available to Canadian printers through MAN Roland Canada, as Ryobi is committed to providing its customers with many choices. For example, Ryobi offers various model types in its 750 Series and 520 Series, including a combination of multi-color presses, UV coating/UV curing capabilities, and perfecting options.

Here’s an overview of some of the more popular models that MAN Roland Canada now supplies:
The Ryobi 750 series is a six-up press, available in one-to-ten unit configurations. Fast turnaround, consistent print quality, compatibility with digital technologies and smooth integration with computer-to-plate systems are just a few of the 750 series’ outstanding characteristics. Any of the multi-unit models in the series can be equipped with perfecting and coating.

The Ryobi 520GX series provides two-up presses that range from one-unit to six-unit models with anilox coating units. They’ve been developed based on the performance of over 10 000 printing units working worldwide.

The Ryobi 524HE is a two-page press that can be configured as either a two-unit or four-unit model. A semi-automatic plate changer is standard equipment, as is Ryobi’s PCS printing control system and Program Inking, which speed color adjustments and reduce makeready times. This press can be fitted with a wide range of options, including a high-precision register punch and automatic cleaning devices, enabling users to customize the 524HE to the requirements of their market.

For portrait formats, the Ryobi 3304 is a two-page, four-color duplicator. It includes the Ryobi SuperDampener Continuous Dampening System to ensure a stable ink/water balance. A spring-tension plate clamp system accommodates both metal and polyester-based plates.

The 3304 is also equipped with the Ryobi semiautomatic plate changer, which makes changing plates significantly faster.
For fast, high-res Direct Imaging, the Ryobi 3404X-DI accommodates two Presstek ProFire Direct Imaging systems to eliminate the need for off-press platemaking. The system images its plates in approximately 4 minutes and 30 seconds at 2,540 dpi in AM screening or 16 microns in FM screening. Ryobi Program Inking sets ink zones from each job’s digital profile to further speed makeready and minimize waste. An integrated IR dryer is also available to accelerate the workflow.

High performance partnership
“Our partnership with Ryobi gives Canadian printers access to a variety of two-up, four-up and six-up options, including duplicator and press designs,” says Tasker. “Combine that with our existing array of sheetfed and web presses and the result is a virtually seamless range of printing solutions to meet the specific needs of any Canadian printer, from the small commercial shop to the largest high-volume producer.”
In addition to being a source for Ryobi technology, MAN Roland Canada’s repertoire includes the world’s most advanced high-volume presses (sheetfed and web press lines), MBO Folders, and Moll Folder/Gluers.

MAN Roland Druckmaschinen AG is the world’s second largest printing systems manufacturer and the world market leader in web offset. The company operates out of Offenbach, Augsburg, and Plauen in Germany, employs 9 000 staff, and generates annual sales of $2.14 billion. Web and sheetfed offset are its major product lines for publishing, general commercial, and packaging printing. MAN Roland is the only printing press manufacturer to be a partner of the WAN (World Association of Newspapers). In fact, one of every three newspapers published in the world today is printed on a MAN Roland press.

In North America, MAN Roland Inc. operates a network of five regional sales and service facilities, staffed by over 250 employees. In Canada, it offers the broadest range of pressroom solutions of any press provider, thanks in part to its partnership with Ryobi. For more information, please visit www.manroland.ca or call 1-800-MROLAND.   

Tony Curcio is a senior writer for Graphic Arts Magazine. He can be reached
at tony@graphicartsmag.com