How Quantum Color Graphics Transformed High-Volume Production with DALIM

A High-Volume Printer Transforms Speed, Accuracy & SLA Reliability with DALIM

Quantum Color Graphics, a leading digital and conventional offset printer based in Morton Grove, Illinois, produces millions of pages per month across statements, booklets, postcards, and more. With 203 employees and 55% of the workload running on HP Indigo and HP T240 presses, the company operates under demanding SLAs of just 48–72 hours.

For years, Quantum’s customer-first philosophy created hidden operational costs.

“We never ask customers to adapt to our processes. We adapt to theirs.”
Cheryl Kahanec, CEO

This promise meant Quantum accepted files in virtually any format, often created second or third-hand by clients’ clients. Many PDFs were poorly built, improperly flattened, or contained watermarked or low-resolution elements. These issues frequently caused RIP failures, slowdowns, and SLA threats.

“Just because a PDF opens in Acrobat doesn’t mean it will RIP correctly.”
Alan Darling, VP of Information Systems

Bottlenecks & Limits of Traditional Preflight Tools

Quantum tested multiple preflight solutions but none could deliver:

• the speed needed to process millions of pages,

• the accuracy required for dirty or inconsistent PDFs, or

• the reliability needed to prevent crashed RIP batches affecting thousands of records.

“We were catching issues post-print, and that was unacceptable.” - Alan Darling

Quantum needed a solution capable of real-time preflight and massive throughput - without redesigning their entire production environment.

The Turning Point: DALIM SOFTWARE

Introduced by DALIM SOFTWARE’s Carol Werlé, DALIM immediately stood out for its parallel micro services architecture, making it uniquely suited for Quantum’s volume and speed requirements.

Quantum deployed DALIM - creating an environment optimized for high-throughput processing.

Immediate Impact

• 10+ PDF files per second processed

• Millions of monthly pages handled with fewer than 10 rejections

• Real-time and near-real-time preflight

• Client-specific normalization and output processing

• Quarantine workflows for problematic files

• Fewer RIP crashes and failed batches

• Significant SLA protection and press uptime gains

“Before DALIM, we had tens of thousands of problematic files a month. Now it’s just a handful. It made us four times faster and significantly more flexible.” - Alan Darling

The improvements were so noticeable that major clients began asking Quantum to help improve file quality across their entire vendor networks.

“This isn’t just about software; it’s about leadership.” - Cheryl Kahanec

Building for the Future

As Quantum expands with the first perfecting Landa press in the Midwest supported by a 256-core server, file processing speed and stability have become even more mission-critical.

DALIM continues to stand out because it:

• breaks complex PDF tasks into parallel micro-processes

• adapts normalization per customer profile

• ensures maximum file integrity before RIP

• integrates seamlessly into high-performance environments

“No other solution offered this speed and adaptability. DALIM DRIVE is uniquely positioned for today’s complex, high-volume print workflows.” - Alan Darling