PrintPlus Group is to target more B2B work following its investment in an Intelligent Finishing Systems’ supplied Horizon StitchLiner 5500 with three VAC-600 tower collators.
The Lancashire operation works with a wide range of customers from trade firms to blue chip operations. It invested in the system as part of an overall £1m group-wide spend. This included the relocation from two sites into one to create a more streamlined workflow.
Explains managing director Adam Ray: “Previously print production and finishing were in two different locations. Now they are together. We do a lot of trade work but we want to move into more B2B. The StitchLiner will help us do that.”
After a thorough review of the market the StitchLiner was chosen for a number of reasons including speed, ease of set up and flexibility. Says Ray: “It enables us to five-knife trim which means we can complete jobs two-up. Not having to top and tail work makes completion a lot smoother and faster. It is quick to set up and easy to change over from A6 to A4 to A5 etc.
“The flexibility to handle a wide range of run lengths from 100 to 50,000 will push productivity to a higher level. The build quality is also really good – it is extremely robust.
PrintPlus Group’s StitchLiner incorporates a high definition icon-based colour touchscreen for set-ups in less than two minutes. It can work from flat four-page sections, eliminating the need for separate bindery stages to be undertaken such as signature folding and guillotining.
Its integral ACF-30 Accumulator with scoring, plow-folding and heavy-duty HTS-30S Three-Knife Trimmer means there is no need to pre-fold into signatures or pre-cut sections top and tail – resulting in significant time, waste and energy savings. It includes three Horizon VAC-600s with flexible but powerful programming and user-friendly operation.
Adds Ray: “We expect that it will pay for itself between 24 and 30 months. It is going to have a lot of work going through it.
This is combined with the up to £50,000 a year that Ray says the group will now save through its move from two sites to one. “We no longer have to deliver work from one site to the other costing time and money. Overall we anticipate turnover will increase by as much a 20%.”
He concludes: “Everything has come together at the right time.”
