CTB McGraw Hill

_McGrawHill
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A division of McGraw-Hill Education, CTB/McGraw Hill provides materials for statewide assessment programs to more than 18 million students in all 50 states and in 49 countries. One of the first American publishers to introduce objective, standardized achievement tests to schools, CTB/McGraw-Hill is recognized as a leader in educational testing. Dedicated to advancing the use of student performance data to inform instructional decision making, CTB/McGraw-Hill's technologies include web-based assessment and reporting, student response device software, and automated scoring of student essays.

A Fineline customer since February 2013, what CTB/McGraw Hill sought from us began with our MBE status, which opened the door for their work in all 50 states. They also discovered a quality resource for near perfect accuracy and security in printing educational testing related materials.”

The Challenge

CTB/McGraw Hill needed a MBE-certified printer to fulfill state requirements in test printing. Their previous printer was certified, but had too many quality issues to retain as a partner. Educators must have tests and testing materials that are 100% accurate and 100% dependable in scoring. The futures of teachers, schools, school systems, and students depend upon this.

When CTB/McGraw Hill began seeking a new MBE print partner for its work in Indiana, Fineline was strongly recommended as a resource because of our quality certified printing standards and experience with similar testing companies here and in New York.

Besides our MBE status and high quality standards, CTB/McGraw Hill had a tight time frame and security concerns. They needed flawless printing for highly secure material with a hard due date. They needed rigid quality control processes in place they could count on – fast. Our printing integrity was on the line. The new testing semester was quickly approaching.

 

The Fineline Solution

Our Director of Quality Jason Hoffman helped Fineline develop and strengthen top-notch quality processes specifically for error-proof printing. After several strategy and quality control briefings with our new client, Jason was able to take Fineline’s existing quality and proofing methods and customize them for McGraw Hill. McGraw Hill’s quality auditors came out to check and verify our new system, offered several security recommendations, and we began printing testing-related material, books and instructor “how to” manuals.

In addition:
  • Fineline made quality and integrity our top priority by installing a highly sensitive camera-based binding and finishing verification system for every CTB/McGraw Hill publication.
  • Every printed piece is computer verified for design and pagination accuracy and content as it is being printed and finished.
  • Random “quality pulls” are frequently administered on and off line to verify all testing materials to keep our error rate to zero.
  • Testing related materials are kept in strict confidence. No pieces may leave Fineline’s printing floor unless they are being securely shipped to a verified location.
  • Heads of state education departments were invited to verify and approve our printing and finishing processes prior to our first product run.

 

The Outcome

Fineline’s exceptional attention to detail and willingness to adapt new technology and purchase new finishing equipment was a breakthrough for CTB/McGraw Hill. As their first experience proved, all 154,000 testing materials were produced accurately and on time, CTB/McGraw Hill went on to involve Fineline in educational test printing for several other states. CTB/McGraw Hill’s client satisfaction began to grow in response.

Not only did Fineline solve existing CTB/McGraw Hill problems, but they went above and beyond, offering cost-saving ways McGraw Hill could update test designs for changing state regulation. CTB McGraw Hill was able to save substantially on re-designing costs. We also satisfied requests for printed material and testing information in a much more timely fashion, saving school systems and teachers time and hassle.

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