Mercury Walsh picks up Uniprint work

The University of Tasmania (UTAS) has closed its inplant printing operation Uniprint, with all university print work now outsourced to Mercury Walsh, the largest printer in the island state.

Jenny Smith, acting division secretary, Tasmania, National Tertiary Education Union says the decision to close UniPrint at the Sandy Bay and Launceston campuses was made following a KMPG review commissioned by UTAS.

UTAS has now closed UniPrint at both the Sandy Bay and Launceston campuses. There are some 33,000 students at the university, the biggest in the state.

Smith says, “The outsourcing of UniPrint almost certainly means the loss of more highly skilled and hardworking employees. UniPrint has been cost-neutral for the university, and that doesn’t take into account the time staff save by having the printer on-site.

“Staff have raised major concerns about the security of exam papers, as well as the fact that the new provider will not be able to identify potential issues with examination questions and answer booklets, and rectify quickly enough to ensure the timeliness of delivery of exam materials to students.”

Students doing basic copying and printing will still be able to use some facilities on campus.

Mercury Walsh offers offset, digital, packaging, prepress, alongside finishing and embellishments.

The closure of Uniprint is the latest Iong line of university inplants to go, with the institutions keen to reduce headcount wherever they can. The inplant association Nippa is seeing a steady reduction in members as host bodies outsource, and seek to digitise as much as possible.

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