THE ECHO - Ferrostaal

After three decades, this Colombian printing
house – currently owned by Bertelsmann
and El Tiempo, the country’s largest
newspaper – has updated its technology and
processes. With exports to other countries
in the region accounting for almost
70 percent of production, the plan is to become
market leader.
AN ENDURING ALLIANCE
Through IPP Colombia, a subsidiary of
MAN Ferrostaal, MAN Roland has collaborated
with Printer Colombiana since the
company’s beginnings, providing technological
consulting and support as well
as financing support to allow for the
modernisation of the company’s production
operations. In 1981, the company
acquired a MAN Roland Rekord 4-color
press to produce books and “later, in the
90s, we made the leap to LITHOMAN and
ROTOMAN rotary presses for our magazine
production. Now we are daring to move on
to large-format, sheet-fed machines with
our purchase of a new Roland 904-7B XXL
press, the first of its kind in Latin America
and also the first within the Arvato Group,
Bertelsmann’s printing division,” says
Printer Colombiana’s CEO, summing up his
company’s technological evolution.
Printer Colombiana will use the new press
primarily to produce high-quality books.
However, with its colour and large-format
capacity, it will also support printing of a
variety of commercial products. “This
machine is state-of-the-art. It will allow us
to work with large formats, handle large
volumes and ensure excellent performance
and quality levels,” insists Juan Guillermo
Giraldo.
TECHNOLOGY FOR GROWTH
Colombia and other countries in the
region, such as Peru, Ecuador and almost
all Central American nations, are currently
experiencing a restructuring of their
economies and the implementation of free
trade agreements with the United States.
Leading businesses in the region, like
Printer Colombiana, are aware of the need
to take advantage of these agreements to
break into the North American market and
increase business opportunities. One such
strategy is to undergo modernisation
processes allowing for “renovation of
equipment and machinery in order to keep
up with the technologies best suited to
international markets,” in the words of
Juan Guillermo Giraldo.
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THE ECHO 1/2006 45
The purchase of the large-format press
marks Printer Colombiana’s entry into the
world of MAN Roland technology for sheetfed
large-format printing (120 x 162 cm)
and will allow the company to strengthen
their position as one of Latin America’s
leading printers of books.
Investment in this technology reflects an
obvious awareness of market tendencies
and the service options and quality offered
by MAN Roland and MAN Ferrostaal. “Our
decision was based on our enduring
relationship of trust with the manufacturer
and with IPP Colombia. We train our
personnel in Germany and depend on
direct, permanent and real-time support
from the factory to solve any problems
that arise with our press,” says Giraldo.
Today, after 30 years with Printer
Colombiana, the empty space he once contemplated
with Mr. Schropp has become
for Giraldo the place where his career
began and from which he was able to move
the company on to the position it enjoys in
the market today: a position of leadership
achieved together with their clients,
employees and suppliers.
Germán Gonzáles
01. Roland 904 XXL at Printer
Colombiana
02. Juan Guillermo Giraldo, CEO
of Printer Colombiana, relies
on the Roland 904-7B XXL for
the production of high-quality,
full-colour books.