From left to right the people are:
Prof Adam Habib
Mr John van Heeswijk – owner of the machine
Dr Anette van Vuren
Dr Pieter Hattingh
Dr Rookaya Bawa
The EBM brings to South Africa a revolutionary book-publishing technology that is the only digital-to-print at retail on the market. Within minutes the EBM produces a bookstore quality paperback book with colour cover, in any standard trim size, at point of sale. The content is fed to the machine via EspressNet software, On Demand Books’ growing digital network of over 8 million titles.
Much like an iTunes for books EspressNet retrieves, encrypts, transmits and catalogues books from multiple English and foreign language sources (including public domain sources, traditional publishers and self-published authors). Writers can upload their own books for printing into a physical book, and, if so desired, for inclusion on EspressNet.
The EBM technology offers libraries and bricks-and-mortar retailers the opportunity to become community self-publishing centres. In addition the EBM provides a new sales channel for publishers and vastly increases the availability of titles for physical bookstores, thus significantly reducing loss of sales due to books being out of stock. The EBM improves efficiency and sustainability by eliminating shipping, returns and pulping of unwanted books.
“The implications of the EBM for education in Africa are enormous,” says Dane Neller, CEO of On Demand Books. “We are very excited to have our technology installed at the University of Johannesburg.”
Dr Rookaya Bawa, Executive Director of Library and Information Services at UJ says: “We are excited to be working with Self-Publish Press on this pioneering EBM. Following the lead of the Library of Alexandria in Egypt and other prestigious universities in the USA and Canada, UJ can claim a first for Southern African Universities.”
Xerox will play an important role in South Africa by providing the X4112 high-speed printer that produces the book-block and by maintaining and servicing the EBM in South Africa. They will also be marketing the EBM throughout sub-Saharan Africa.
About On Demand Books
On Demand Books was cofounded in 2003 by Jason Epstein, former Editorial Director of Random House; Dane Neller, former CEO of Dean & DeLuca; and Thor Sigvaldason, former technology consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Espresso Book Machines have been placed in bookstores, libraries, universities, and other locations in the USA, Canada, the UK, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, and the Caribbean. In September 2010, On Demand Books and Xerox announced a partnership whereby Xerox will market, sell or lease and service the Espresso Book Machine worldwide. Made in the USA, Espresso Book Machines are environmentally efficient, reducing production, shipping, and waste. For more information, go to www.ondemandbooks.com.
About Self-Publish Press
Newly founded company, Self-Publish Press, has brought the EBM to South Africa in order to offer a true print-on-demand facility to publishers, academics and all aspirant authors. The EBM satisfies the demand for short print-runs by thousands of book-lovers who may need only a single copy of a book, whether that is their own manuscript or a published title that is out of print.