Offset Printing
Leachprint Moves Up to Four Colours and Into New Premiseas with Komori LS429
Friday 01. August 2008 - Abingdons oldest surviving print house has recently completed its relocation to new premises on the outskirts of town. Leachprint, formerly trading as Leachs the Printers and founded by Thomas Leach in 1901, had been situated on its old site in Ock Street for almost 71 years.
Lack of space and the need to install a four colour press instigated the move to Nuffield Centrum; a larger, modern unit with good access and parking. Along with the move came the installation of the companys first ever four colour press. After months of rigorous testing involving four different manufacturers, the company chose a Komori Lithrone S429, a B2 press with in-line coater, on the grounds of speed, flexibility, technical support and price.
As production director Ian Austin says: “Aside from the move itself, this is the biggest single purchase in our history, so it was important to evaluate all the options and ensure that we made the right choice.”
Managing director Neil Stratford continues: “Traditionally we have used two colour presses to print four colours but in todays competitive market this is no longer always time efficient. Turnaround times have increased steadily and pricing has become tighter so we needed a new press to address these issues. The Lithrones quality was the best of all the models we looked at and Komori came out top in production speed and flexibility and they put the right deal on the table. The new press prints and coats inline which will drastically speed up turnaround – essentially the whole process will be much faster and the sheet will be finished as it comes off the press. Because Komori is based in Leeds we will benefit from the service support on offer and the speed of getting engineers out to us if we ever need them.”
Turnover has steadily climbed over recent years and, whilst many other printers have perished, sales director Chris Williams is buoyant about the future: “Despite tough trading conditions, we have made remarkable progress in the last two years. Now that we have the new press we can move into markets that were previously beyond us. There should be no holding us back!”
Phil Holland, General Sales Manager (South) concludes: “This is an exciting time for Leachprint with the move to a new factory and Komori is delighted that Neil and the team have chosen the LS29. This press will produce the quality and productivity they are looking for and I would like to wish the company all the best for the future and take this opportunity to welcome Leachprint into the Komori family.”