The Mark V, in development for several years, offers an expanded format range - including A4 landscape - and speeds of up to 6,000bph, for a UK starting price of £300,000.

Jason Seaber, technical sales director of Intelligent Finishing Systems (IFS), Horizon’s UK agent, told Printweek that the new machine’s automation capabilities make it ideal for on-demand applications.

“The Mark V is focused really on processing printed reels, or being configured in line to an inkjet web press, where a customer wants to produce on-demand booklet applications from a white paper roll to finished book, all in-line.”

The new machine has therefore been designed to run either with a JDF workflow, or by reading job barcodes off the web sheet, representing a step up from its sheetfed predecessor, the Mark III.

When using the barcode-reading mode, printers can store different size or format booklet templates within the machine’s memory, and effectively tag each job for a simple automatic setup.

“The machine will basically recall the template for a setup according to the template. It gives customers a lot of flexibility: they can have a fully JDF-driven workflow, or they can just use a simpler barcode recall system,” Seaber said.

Horizon has incorporated its cloud-based iCE LiNK workflow technology, too, which allows users to automate the workflow from upstream to post-press through a real-time dashboard accessed on smartphone, tablet or desktop.

According to Seaber, too, the finished product is of a higher quality than ever before.

“Sheets and covers are scored and plow-folded individually,” he said, “to produce flatter and higher quality saddle-stitched booklets.”

And while the £300,000 asking price does not include third-party ancillaries such as an unwinder or cutter for the reels, or a web buffer printer interface, Seaber pointed out that the machine has been validated for the Tecnau C50 and C20 rotary cutters, which IFS also sells.