Offset Printing

Healeys follows up carbon neutral investment with digital expansion

Monday 08. October 2012 - It is just weeks since UK company Healeys Print Group ordered the UK's first carbon neutral press, a Speedmaster XL 75-5+L, for installation at Christmas. Now the company is replacing its Ricoh C651 EX, the first in Europe, with a Heidelberg Linoprint C 901 which will give it higher digital output.

Philip Dodd predicts that within five years non litho activities – digital but also new initiatives like augmented reality and e-mail enterprises in partnership with others – will account for 25-30 per cent of turnover. It puts the job run breakpoint between litho and digital at about 300 although the type of work can adjust that. It has also run combined litho and digital jobs.
Healeys has long since seen itself as more than a printer and already offers subscription management, fulfilment, storage, wide format and digital production alongside its battery of B2 and B3 litho presses.
“The C 651 was a starting machine and now that we are more confident we want to progress to the higher productivity of the Linoprint C 901. We know the quality of these machines and, with an aggressive local marketing campaign about to launch, we will need the higher output. Although initially this press will run a single shift (the litho presses operate are round the clock) we will be disappointed if we cannot justify moving it to double day shifts within six months. This technology gives us really good quality which is important to our customers.”
Healeys has had Indigo, Xerox and the Ricoh C 651EX so is an experienced user of digital technology. It has also recently recruited Kelly Harris as sales and marketing director so is looking hard at its future growth and development.
Its confidence in the future of digital is reflected in this investment and its decision to re-site the new press to a dedicated purpose built area with air conditioning. The apprentice operator who ran the Ricoh C 651 EX will now run the Linoprint C 901.
The company is hoping to increase its turnover by 20% in this financial year.