COMPANY PROFILE
2014
Creda Communications
+27 21 505 6100 | www.creda.co.za
company profile
New age in print Editorial: Helen Lake Production: Hal Hutchison
Creda Communications is a one stop shop in graphic communications with the technology and expertise to create the finest communication materials from anywhere in the world. IndustrySA speaks to Managing Director, Eugene Brandt, about the services they offer in the age of electronics and their vision of the future.
From its inception in 1953, Creda Communications has been a well-known company and brand in South Africa and is now one of the largest privately owned commercial printers in Southern Africa. The company has gone from being just a printer to now having a reputation for taking their clients’ concepts from mere ideas and turning them into tangible products. Creda Communications prides itself on being able to provide clients with maximum flexibility while offering cost saving measures that won’t affect the quality, especially when it comes to print. “We pride ourselves on our quality – our quality is there. We do have systems in place and we run it according to international standards by running our densitometers to a certain density, but if it doesn’t look right, we’ll use our initiative to say that it can’t run to that density and we’ll suggest ways to make it acceptable,” says Managing Director, Eugene Brandt.
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MAXIMUM FLEXIBILITY The company has a seven stage process that fulfils the communication objectives, taking the idea to the end-user. Not only do they take care of the design, reproduction and print, but they take care of all the finer details in between. “We are a one stop shop for a client that calls for it,” says Brandt. The company is able to get involved at almost any stage of the process. Whether the client has their concept fully designed and ready to print or if they need help with the design aspects, Creda are able to provide that service. Importantly, Creda has a system in place that allows the client to make changes to the project up until the print is run - and the print is only run with the client’s go ahead. “Creda has always seen itself, not just as a printer, but as a solutions provider. Creda gets involved with the typesetting, the design and we also hold the information on our server and came up with the software whereby the client could
Creda Communications
enter the server and do all the changes by using a password. For example, if an author decided to make changes to their book, before we go to press there is a production person that will see the flag on that specific file. Only when the production director or manager removes the flag, can we go to press because he/she will be aware that there have been changes made to that specific book,” Brandt explains.
SEVEN STAGE PROCESS Creda’s seven stage process starts with the creative aspects of graphic design, illustration and digital photography while the design team might suggest input on format, sizing, finishes and paper. “We come up with ideas. We got involved with the World Cup 2010. The invite for the draw was done by Creda and we were part of that for the design. We try to get involved with the design upfront, not to let them ask for something ridiculous and then it’s
very expensive. We can make recommendations that will save them thousands like cutting down the size of a design by only five millimetres can still achieve what you want to achieve, but save a lot on the costs,” Brandt says. The process then moves on to origination where Creda is fully skilled and equipped to handle all the front end reproduction processes and finished art for the lithographic print operation, from relief flatbed scanning, typesetting, page layout and high end proofreading through to the latest computer plate output equipment and imaging technologies. The project also goes through a content conversion process whereby the Docutech scanner converts printed material with its text and picture into a fully editable digital file, allowing for out-of-print materials to be revitalised if needs be. Within this step, the document can be translated into other languages, proofread and even typeset using software that formats large amounts of text which ultimately saves
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company profile on turnaround time and costs. The project is then saved to Creda’s digital library that has one of the most advanced digital asset archiving systems in South Africa. The system allows clients to store and access documents either through the server directly or through a web portal. On top of that, clients can integrate their own databases with Creda’s print systems, allowing them to customise the content. After this, the project moves on to Creda’s core function – print. Creda has committed and skilled operators working with the most advanced print technology that wins numerous awards. This technology includes computer to plate services, colour management, variable data printing and multiple outputs. At this stage, the project can be sent to press for hard copy print or transformed into HTML for a webpage or even a PDF. If the project is printed then Creda will do the finishing and binding. “The bindery division is massive – it does all the bindery that comes from the litho department. It has two saddle stitch machines. We have three binding lines including two semi-automatic sewing machines and folding equipment. We have an area where there is a lot of hand work involved, putting CD’s in books etc. We have a huge warehouse,” Brandt tells us, “We have
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sewing machines as there are still people who request books to be sewn, especially novels and educational prints. Outside the South African border people still want sewn school books.”
“We have to work together to see how we do things to make sure the end user, especially in education, gets what they need and to get the information in a way that they can benefit from it” Finally, the materials can be sorted and packaged for mailing or stored for clients in the warehouse awaiting future delivery. One of the key services offered by Creda is its “Just-In-Time” delivery of reprints that can be requested in order to replenish dwindling stocks. With everything electronically driven, the ability for companies to save on shipping and print on demand is invaluable. “It all works
Creda Communications
from computer to plate – everything is driven from the Cape Town servers, even if the button is pressed in Cape Town it can be printed in Jo’burg. It’s all electronically driven. In digital, where we have an Oce, we can produce a novel in no time. We have a contract with a big publishing house in America and if they have an order for 200 in South Africa, we run it,” says Brandt.
We are looking at innovative ways to work with electronics. That’s what we’re trying to achieve with our publishers and maybe look at holding all their stuff on our server. As much as printing will decrease in percentages, that doesn’t mean volume won’t be the same because population growth is another story. Our biggest challenge is structure – what structure is in place to recover. If there is an issue at a school for example, how quick do they go and fix or recover stolen tablets or lost information so that the student’s studies are not affected?” Brandt says, “We have to work together to see how we do things to make sure the end user, especially in education, gets what they need and to get the information in a way that they can benefit from it. We are living in a period that is quite exciting and quite challenging.” Creda is serious about working together. This means not only working closely with its own clients to produce maximum quality at a minimum price, but it also means working closely with competitors - something they are happy to do. When asked what the future holds for Creda, Brandt tells us: “To form a memorandum of understanding with some of our clients and other people within our industry so that we can buy smarter as a group in raw materials. We keep looking for ways to work smarter. To get a product at a better price… You can’t stop thinking, you can’t stagnate.”
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THE FAST TRACK TO THE FUTURE – THE NEW GENERATION OF PRINTING PRESSES
HAPPY WORKFORCE Creda recently rewarded some of their staff for their long service with at least one employee approaching 40 years with the company. Creda sees its workforce as being a vital part of its success and understands how important it is to have committed and skilled people at the heart of the organisation. “The more advanced the equipment, the greater the cost of failure. With a machine that used to run 2000 prints an hour, now runs 50,000 prints an hour, if the operator doesn’t discover a mistake in the first minute, there is huge waste, huge spoilage. Therefore training is more critical than it was in the past. We need people to be detail orientated, you can’t miss a beat - it’s too expensive,” says Brandt.
THE CREDA FUTURE With the electronic age upon us, Creda recognises the need to think about the future of the print industry. “One of the things affecting the printing industry is electronic media.
Heidelberg Graphic Systems Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, the parent of the Heidelberg group located in Heidelberg, Germany. Heidelberg produces precision printing presses, platesetters, postpress equipment, and software for integrating all printshop processes. The portfolio also provides general services ranging from spare parts and consumables to the sale of remarketed equipment. Heidelberg has been represented in Southern Africa since 1923. Heidelberg Southern Africa is also directly responsible for service and sales in the following SADC countries, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique, Botswana, Malawi, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Heidelberg Graphic Systems Southern Africa (Pty) Ltd Johannesburg Tel 011 574 4000 • Cape Town Tel 021 534 0460 • Durban Tel 031 705 3366 www.za.heidelberg.com
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