Offset Printing
Acanthus centralises and re-equips with two new B2 presses
Thursday 10. July 2008 - Next month Acanthus Press will take delivery of two new Speedmaster presses, an XL75+L and an SM 74-5-P. The presses will be housed in a new 12,000 sq ft factory in Wellington, Somerset.
Acanthus is a quality colour printer offering in-house graphic design, finishing and mailing, with a turnover of £3m and 38 employees. It has been in business for 40 years but since the 1990s has enjoyed meteoric growth and, as a result, ended up with four separate sites.
Following a management buyout by Roger Trivett, Mark Tierney and Philip Sydenham in 2005 the aim was always to consolidate into one site with updated presses.
“We felt this was necessary to properly compete in a changing and competitive market,” says Mr Trivett, managing director. “The new presses and premises will give greater flexibility, improved quality control, faster turnrounds and make us more attractive for longer runs.”
Both presses feature the new Intellistart press control software for even faster makeready, automatic plate loading, Image Control and temperature controlled inking.
Mr Trivett adds: “Compatibility with plates will give flexibility in production; coaters and perfectors will enable sheets to be moved onto finishing quicker to help cope with increased customer expectation. The added speed of the XL will help cope with the challenge from B1 and overseas competition. Shorter runs and variable data will be produced on the HP Indigo 5000 seven-colour.”
These presses replace a Heidelberg MOVP, Speedmaster 72 and MAN Roland 300. With the move to the new premises the company is hoping it can improve on existing green credentials and it is currently working towards ISO 14001 with the help of consultancy Envision.
The presses will run with reduced and potentially zero alcohol and the company is also currently trialling chemistry-free plates on its Suprasetter 74S CtP device.
Roger Trivett says: “There is a responsibility to consider environmental impact with every purchase, but it is one of many considerations. If you can maintain quality without a financial penalty then the decision is easy.”
Staff at Acanthus press are very positive about the investment in the company and are looking forward to the switch to the new site during September.