PERFORMANCE ENHANCER

摘要

Can a strategy of postponing capital investment work effectively? The over-achieving story of Avante, Llc. is not so unusual, as U.S. printers go. It's about a company owner cultivating solid customer relationships and pushing, straining existing technology to the far limits of quality and production. It's about getting knocked down repeatedly on price and getting back up to quote another job. There's more than a bit of good luck involved, too. Mostly, it's about sheetfed offset survival in a saturated, margin-thin, major metro market. Situated about 25 miles west of downtown Chicago, Avante is a small (annual sales under $5 million), custom shop with three Heidelberg presses, including a 40″ 5-color double-perfector and a 19×25.5″ 2-color model, both dating from the 1980s. Another straight 2-color has been on the floor almost as long as production VP Phil Toelcke, a 30-year company veteran. Like a reliable old car that's paid off, the tried-and-true maintenance philosophy seems to be: Change the oil and these babies will run a long, long time. "This guy," praises president/owner Jim Quig-ley, tapping lead 5-color pressman Rick Klein on the shoulder, "without his astute knowledge and dedication on this press, we couldn't accomplish the constant level of quality our clients have come to expect." Klein always carries the keys to the shop-just in case of an on-press customer emergency. He and Toelcke are two of 25 full-time employees working in 12-hour shifts.