The ten-year outsourcing contract will involve Communisis taking over the bank’s transactional print facilities.

The move is part of the bank’s plans to simplify its operations following a strategic review in 2011, and is the result of a detailed evaluation process that has taken around a year. It was the last of the ‘big four’ banks to produce its own statements.

It covers all the Lloyds TSB Banking Group (LBG) brands, which include Halifax, Scottish Widows, and Cheltenham & Gloucester. The overall group has more than 30m customers across its retail and commercial banking operations.

Communisis will make a further multi-million pound investment in HP T-series full-colour inkjet presses for the operation, effectively mirroring the facilities at its transactional print supersite in Speke.  

Chief executive Andy Blundell said: "As far as I’m aware this is the biggest deal ever in Communisis’ history. It’s roughly equivalent to our entire pack output at Speke. It’s big."

LBG employs 243 staff at its print facilities in Crawley and at Copley near Halifax, of which Copley is the largest site. There is also an associated site in Edinburgh that dates from the Scottish Widows integration.

The bank currently overprints monochrome variable data onto pre-printed base stock, whereas Communisis has moved to a ‘white paper’ solution with fully variable colour using HP presses.

Adare currently produces the pre-printed base stock. 

Blundell said Communisis would work with LBG to develop the right manufacturing footprint for the future. "We will invest behind that and consult with employees accordingly," he said.

The re-equipping is likely to involve two HP T400 presses and possibly an additional narrow web T200 device, Blundell said, along with associated finishing and mailing kit.

Longer-term the group could also produce work for other customers at the revamped facility. "There is potentially scope to commercialise it over time, but first and foremost it’s about maintaining service levels and providing a seamless transition with Lloyds TSB," Blundell added.

The £20m of additional funding gained by Communisis through a share issue four months ago has given the group the scope to take on the contract.

The money was earmarked for contract acquisition, restructuring and potential M&A. Blundell said the group was looking at a number of possible acquisition opportunities, with developments in that area likely in the third quarter. 

Communisis’ share price jumped to a 52-week high of 61.5p after the news was announced.

The deal is subject to formal ratification by the LBG board next month, with implementation planned to take place from October.

Edit note: This story has been amended. There was an inadvertent miscommunication between LBG and PrintWeek. The separate contract for general direct mail print handled by Xerox Global Services is not affected by the Communisis arrangement.