Agreement signed to purchase an
HP T230 Color Inkjet Web Press.
(L to R) Rob Hutcheson (director, Ashford Colour Press), Graham Dove (Direct Mail & Publishing Specialist for Indigo & Inkjet, HP) and Allan Gray (director, Ashford Colour Press) at Hunkeler 2013UK based Ashford Colour Press, of Gosport, Hampshire, has signed an agreement with HP to purchase an HP T230 Color Inkjet Web Press. It’s believed the new press will be used to print short-run books in mono and colour and to provide additional services to publishers.
HP said that the addition of the HP T230 Color Inkjet Web Press will not only benefit Ashford Colour Press, but also its sister company, Jellyfish Solutions, a marketing, creative services and print production management company which has full access to Ashford Colour Press's printing and finishing resources.
"We were experiencing increased demand for production of multi-page books in mono, two and four-colours in quantities between 50 and 2,000 copies," explained Rob Hutcheson, managing director, Ashford Colour Press. "We were impressed with the HP T230 press's ability to run full colour at 400ft/min while maintaining excellent, consistent quality."
Ashford Colour Press offers EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) ordering, as well as digital web and sheet-fed printing. In a fast moving market the company has seen the needs of its publishing customers change with the rise of digital media and increased requests for shorter runs and fast-turnarounds. As with similar enterprises, it reflects businesses needs to save on logistics and warehousing costs, as well as waste.
With key customers in the academic and educational publishing sectors, quality and cost are significant factors - and print is not the only thing they require. Ashford Colour Press also offers a range of binding options, CD/DVD duplication, global procurement and pack make up. With the new press and existing equipment, it is the intension of the company to create a flexible structure, enabling it to respond better to current market conditions and changes brought about from e-books, online information, downloads and other digital media.
"With the HP T230 press, publishers can now benefit from cost-effective shorter runs, with unit costs comparable to rates only previously achievable through litho production," Hutcheson continued. "The press will be an excellent complementary technology to our conventional capabilities and will enable us to expand our business, provide a much broader service and have a real competitive advantage."
Ashford Colour Press and Jellyfish Solutions currently manage print production totalling more than £14 million for well-known international publishers producing books in the UK, Europe, the United States and the Far East.
"Adding the T230 press will enable us to work closely with publishers looking to move into ARP (Automatic Replenishment) models, where books are printed in shorter print runs ensuring sufficient supply while not over-stocking," said Hutcheson. "In this way, we can offer an affordable solution to publishers, improving their stock levels and cash flow whilst also bringing their backlists into print again."
HP said that the HP T230 Color Inkjet Web Press prints at up to 122m/min (400ft/min) in four colours on web widths from 203 to 558mm (8 to 22in). The press can print on coated and uncoated stocks (matt and gloss) from 60 to 215g/m2, providing the versatility to meet publisher’s specifications.
"The economic and time demands on publishers turn into similar challenges for book printers," said Aurelio Maruggi, vice president and general manager, Inkjet High-speed Production Solutions, HP. "The HP T230 web press gives Ashford Colour Press a versatile solution that can not only meet the needs of its existing customers but also help the company to grow."
Established in 1981, Ashford Colour Press offers, design, prepress, print, finishing, fulfilment and print management. The company has 128 employees and current printing services include sheet-fed digital and offset printing, digital web printing, colour inkjet and large format litho printing.
Installation of the HP T230 Inkjet Web Press is scheduled for completion in March.
More information is available at www.hp.com/go/gsb
http://www.ashford-colour-press.co.uk/
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