LFP - Large-Format-Printing
HILLSIDE GROUP TO OFFER TRULY INTEGRATED MARKETING CAMPAIGNS WITH WIDE FORMAT INVESTMENT FROM PAPERCO AND ROLAND DG (UK)
Wednesday 30. April 2008 - Rochdale-based commercial print and design specialist, the Hillside Group, has invested in a wide format digital press and laminator to give it the ability to offer truly integrated design and print services to its broad range of clients.
The 30-employee company, which offers litho, web-fed digital and a full portfolio of finishing services, has installed a Roland DG SolJet PRO III XC- 540, 54-inch wide press along with a laminator to keep revenue in-house and retain control the entire production process.
The wide format press was supplied by North West Paper, a subsidiary of The Paper Company (PaperCo). The decision to invest was made by Hillside Group Managing Director, Peter Moore, after he saw the six-colour SolJet PRO III XC- 540 in action at an event held in early April by North West Paper at Manchester’s Museum of Science and Industry. The event, the first in a series, was extremely successful for North West Paper and PaperCo as it was attended by more than 100 commercial printers and achieved in excess of £150,000 in wide format sales on the day.
Peter Moore said: “Print technologies do not exist in isolation. They are complementary because most marketing campaigns require a range of printed products and services. The wide format Roland DG machine gives us the ability to offer integrated campaigns, which may have an element of conventional offset print, personalised and short-run print from our digital presses, as well as wide format work. Last year alone, we outsourced around £13,000 worth of posters, so this investment will allow us to keep that turnover in-house and develop additional revenue streams with wide format as we make our client base aware of the opportunity.”
The SolJet PRO III XC-540 has bolstered the Hillside Group’s existing arsenal of print equipment, which includes two Komori litho presses, a six-colour B2 and five-colour B3, as well as a an Océ VarioStream 9000 high-volume digital press.
The new press can deliver a print resolution of 1,440dpi and gives the company the ability to produce a wide variety of applications, including vehicle graphics, signs, point-of-purchase (POP) displays, banners and labels. The Hillside Group operates a 24-hour production schedule and its client base includes LA Fitness, Carcraft, as well as local councils and advertising agencies.
“As well as opening up new revenue streams the XC-540 also gives us ownership of all production stages of a campaign, which helps us to control colour management and reduces the time it takes for us to get a job to market. Previously we had to send a disc to Manchester to get wide format work printed, which could take up to three days. Having an in-house wide format capability means that we can run off posters or banners in a matter of minutes. Retaining control over all elements is critical when you’re delivering integrated campaigns across multiple technologies,” added the Hillside Group’s Peter Moore.
PaperCo’s Digital and Technical Solutions Manager, Phil Tomlinson, said: “As a supplier of paper, consumables and hardware to the commercial print sector, we are seeing an increasing interest from traditional print companies in wide format technology. Not only does an investment in wide format give the printer the opportunity to make impressive margins, but also the ability to offer truly integrated marketing campaigns. Furthermore, from a technical perspective, wide format technology draws on skills that printers already have in-house.”
PaperCo expects to announce the details of further regional events shortly.