Offset Printing
High spec long perfector arms online service for expansion
Thursday 01. November 2012 - Tradeprint.co.uk, the online trade print service, is investing heavily to beef up its short run response business. The company wants to remain a front runner in the high productivity Web to print sector where jobs are ordered online and combined on a sheet to increase time and resource efficiency.
In a massive £3.5m investment it is buying the hugely productive Speedmaster XL 106-10-P long perfector. To speed makeready times, increase throughput and maintain colour quality it is also taking the Inpress Control spectral measurement device and Autoplate XL synchronised plate changing.
Topping and tailing the new press will be the company’s second Suprasetter S105, Prinect Color Toolbox colour calibration software, a Stahlfolder KH 82 and an RA4 jogger, completing the company’s B1 guillotine Flowlines.
“Web to print work is about low touch and specialisation brining efficiencies to compete in today’s market,” says Rod Scrimgeour, managing director of Tradeprint.co.uk. “Our average run length is around 2,000. Having this B1 long perfector with Inpress Control and Autoplate XL means we can makeready in under five minutes. We looked at all suppliers who offered rivals to the XL 106 but this was the one we could see working job on, job off, day in, day out at maximum speed. Compared to our SM 74-10-P workhorse, which is only a little over two years old, the doubled sheet size and XL efficiencies will increase our capacity fourfold. “
Printing both sides in one pass, most jobs require eight or ten plate changes between jobs. Tradeprint.co.uk’s current set up means plate changing of 1 minute 15 seconds per unit whereas with simultaneous plate changing using Autoplate XL all plates can be switched in 1 minute 45 seconds. The operator no longer has to go from unit to unit; the plates for the next job are placed in the guides and the machine changes the full set of plates in one go.
“Inpress Control is specified to reduce makeready times and give us the confidence that we are always running to top quality, leaving the operator free and able to prepare for the next job. We have also specified Color Toolbox which allows us to monitor our colour and make calibrations when necessary,” says Mr Scrimgeour. “There will be a reduction in waste sheets which our calculations suggest could be a six figure sum over a year.”
Running at 24/7 week, tradeprint.co.uk currently averages 14 runs per eight hour shift. With numerous makereadies and high plate output the company has added a second Suprasetter S105 with Multi Cassette Loading for manless operation. The CtP devices have to produce plates for three different formats – the B1 XL 106, an SRA1 Ryobi and the Speedmaster SM 52-4+L Anicolor.
“Many smaller printers are struggling in this tough market and some have opted to sell their equipment and become resellers, sourcing print from us. We believe there will be a new structure to the printing market in future,” says Mr Scrimgeour. “This investment will set us apart from our competition and, together with our fast turnrounds and professional and reliable service, allow us to continue to expand our customer base.”
This is among the most comprehensively specified Speedmaster XL 106s in the UK and will be unusual in applying it to web to print trade services.