Heronswood Latest “2 for 1” Printer with RMGT 924 LED

Tunbridge Wells-based Heronswood Press has announced details of the purchase of an RMGT 924 LED press to replace its two existing B2 format presses. The machine has been supplied through an MPL partner company and installed by the UK’s official RMGT distributor MPL, Surrey.

Commenting on the decision, Nigel Room, managing director of Heronswood Press, said: “The A1 format will allow us to print eight A4 pages to view, meaning that we will be able to print twice as much work that we could on the B2 format. Add the LED instant drying producing dry-to-the-touch sheets, and the pile can be turned immediately ready for instant back-up – providing for overall faster production than two B2 presses.

“Add to that the reputation of ultra-reliability for RMGT – we’ve spoken to users who have had zero downtime due to machine failure in two years – and we have the ideal single press configuration.

“If the press is reliable that means that we don’t let our customers down. It also means, of course, that we can enjoy tremendous savings on our fixed costs by running one single offset machine for our larger format litho work – something that every printer is desperate for as businesses begin to surface post-lockdown.”

The LED-UV drying system also means that the company can compete on a level playing field with the turnaround times of digital.

“The unusual sheet size, the high print quality, the reliability, and space requirements of the machine – it takes up no more room than one of our outgoing B2 presses – all made it a straightforward choice. We now have space to consider expanding other areas of our business.”

Heronswood, which has an annual turnover of £1.2m and employs 10 staff, will use the machine to print general commercial work.

Commenting on behalf of MPL, Mark Stribley, joint managing director, said: “One critical aspect of shrinking from two presses to one is the reliability of the single machine. Current RMGT press users can already testify as to what that means. These machines are designed and built to run. First time users are astounded at how little they need to spend on service, support, and spares. Reliability is built in to RMGT presses. Machines are designed and built to the same standard, and with the same know-how, as a Mitsubishi aircraft – and air travel is an industry where failure is simply not an option.” Mitsubishi is the M in RMGT!

About Heronswood Press

Tunbridge Wells printer Heronswood Press is a family-owned and managed company that has operated successfully now for over three decades.

About MPL

In 2010 MPL took on the management of both sales and service for Mitsubishi Litho Presses in the UK and Ireland. This relationship has since grown to encompass responsibility for technical service across the whole of Europe for the now re-named RMGT business. MPL also manage spare parts storage and distribution for the former Mitsubishi branded machines across Europe.

This representation joins established products such as GUK folding and inserting equipment, primarily focused towards the pharmaceutical packaging sector.

MPL offers manufacturers considerable marketing and business expertise across both the printing and packaging sectors and provides high-quality national coverage for sales, support and technical service.

ENDS

 

Digital Printers: Paying for Not Printing?

Many businesses are seeing the world in a different light in these crazy days of lockdown, furlough, queuing for a supermarket, long hair, and daily government updates. Printers are certainly no exceptions.

Print is – and will be in the new future – an essential business for the promotion and marketing of companies right across the board. Newspapers are certainly playing an important part of lockdown – bringing trustworthy, reliable news to the masses. And so, after we emerge, blinking in the sunlight, will marketing materials, local newsletters, customer information pages, personalised mail, and more. These will all be key items of printed work that will serve to remind target markets of products and services.

Digital printing businesses have grown significantly in recent years. Targeted at short run work, personalisation, and fast turnaround jobs, the tech giants behind the digital print machines have illustrated a mastery in creating complex contracts that generally create one winner – a clue: it’s not the printer! Smoke and mirrors have been successfully employed to squirrel away negatives for the printer, who has been allowed to enjoy a few small victories en route to the final agreement.

However, our current unforeseen situation has highlighted one specific area of such contractual obligations that could seriously damage printers the world over: the previously agreed minimum monthly click charge. The contract specifically details an amount of prints that will be produced – a standing charge you might call it. The large digital printer manufactures are generally faceless organisations that can hide behind contracts with little room for flexibility.

Whether the printer produces zero or precious little work for weeks on end, the machine supplier will still expect his “pound of flesh” – the payment previously agreed to. The minimum monthly click charge requires payment, even though a business might be making no money at all. In short, we have a situation that ensures digital printers are being charged for not working!

For many it might well be the case of shutting the stable door well after the horse has bolted, but undoubtedly there will be businesses that need to review the costs of digital and litho. Litho typically presents no such click charge. Perhaps the jump to digital was made too soon?

Personalisation – the run of one – is the single area that litho can’t compete with, but the vast majority of printers using digital equipment do not have any great volume of personalised print work. That still remains a specialised service.

Litho printing, when compared, only costs when you print. A cost that increases in competitiveness as the print run grows in number. With increased automation and the low cost of consumables, litho is becoming increasingly competitive on those small runs that were previously considered digital work.

The advances that have been made in UV instant drying – specifically LED-UV – to produce dry-to-touch prints at the delivery end of the press takes away the digital advantage of immediacy of print.

So, a cheaper to run press, with matched instant print service, and no risk of paying for not printing: perhaps litho still presents opportunities in new the changed world.

ENDS

A One for Two deal? Better Value than it Sounds!

Supermarket regulars will be very aware of the buy one get one free offer – two products for the price of one. What could be better? The printer that survives the current pandemic might need to look at such a deal from a different angle: one press for significantly less than the price of two!

A number of quality print company’s are already reaping the rewards from such an approach. A great many more printers will need to examine this option as the most sensible way forward.

Those that are able to do so could re-establish a profitable business well ahead of the pack. Why? Five specific areas will allow them to produce much more effective and affordable print from one single litho press. Let’s examine them:

Reliability

One critical aspect of reducing from two presses to one is the reliability of the machine. Current RMGT press users can already testify as to what that means. These machines are designed and built to run. First time users are astounded at how little they need to spend on service, support, and spares. Reliability is built in to RMGT presses. Machines are designed and built to the same standard, and with the same know-how, as a Mitsubishi aircraft – and air travel is an industry where failure is simply not an option [see photo above: in case you were not aware, Mitsubishi is the M in RMGT!].

Print Performance

The quality of the printed sheet will be, as always, essential. Printers looking to re-establish a business in the new world cannot afford to produce anything less than perfect print. RMGT gives you that quality. In addition to providing tools for print perfection, the addition of LED-UV instant drying aids the performance of the press by speeding work through the factory – back-up instantly with no drying time, and get the work to the finishing department with no work-in-progress sitting around to dry. Our “Digital Extra” focus provides litho equipment that can deliver that dry-to-the-touch sheet to match that of digital printing equipment, bringing litho performance and digital delivery together for medium run profitability.

Low Cost of Ownership

Control of overheads will be critical in the new world. RMGT presses offer that through minimal downtime and market-leading low service costs. Add those together and you have the highest uptime – printing time – of any press in the industry today. Ask any owner of a German press what they pay for a service contract and you will immediately see what we mean!

Cost of Labour

Quality labour will still be a significant part of a company’s cost. In the new world there may be a reduction in the available skills, further escalating the cost. By reducing the litho department to just one operational press printers are cutting costly staffing issues and getting the most out of the most expensive assets.

Automation

The high level of automation on the latest RMGT presses helps a print business to speed work through the press hall, assisting in faster make-ready, meaning the machine is swiftly into saleable quality sheets. A range of automatic features are supplied as standard and can further enhance productivity, and make the most of the company’s key assets.

The new post-virus world will present challenges to all businesses. A printing company needs to arm itself with the best tools to produce work swiftly and cost effectively. RMGT is with you all the way to help deliver the profitable print business of the future.

ENDS