The trimmer, sold by Intelligent Finishing Services (IFS, N3-D291), is being installed at Peterborough-based Print On Demand to boost automation and production, enabling growth of the company’s new ‘virtual warehouse’ www.thegreatbritishbookshop.co.uk, designed as a competitor to Amazon.co.uk and launched in February.
The £250,000 HT-1000V is being installed as part of a wider investment in Print On Demand’s short-run book capabilities. This will also see the firm soon install an unspecified inkjet web press, and a £100,000 Palamides/Ribler layflat book binder, which it also signed for at Ipex.
The Palamides machine, supplied by Perfect Bindery Solutions (PBS, N3-D255), will enable Print On Demand to offer its legal and academic publishing customers short-run case-bound and layflat perfect-bound books for the first time, and an alternative to wire-bound books.
It will feed the Horizon trimmer, along with two existing Horizon BQ-470 four-clamp binders.
The trimmer will complement three manual trimming machines and allow the company to lower the unit price on runs of one to 2,000.
The company is also adding a new 650sqm Print Technology Centre for beta testing new kit, to be up and running by the end of the year.
The aim of www.thegreatbritishbookshop.co.uk is to provide a complete book retailing solution, explained Print On Demand managing director Andy Cork, by working with wholesalers to print and distribute books on demand on their behalf.
“We are trying to offer publishers the complete solution where we are the wholesaler, the retailer and the printers,” said Cork. “That really is the future. The printer takes a small cut within the supply chain; we are after the complete supply chain. We currently print 5,000-plus books a day and we are looking at tripling that volume.”
The high-end configuration of the Horizon trimmer will include a conveying system, barcode reading for on the fly automatic adjustment from one sized book to another and supporting software.
This makes the firm’s set-up the first European install of a “fully automated workflow system” said general manager of exports at Horizon Yoshihiro Oe. There are currently 30 other units installed worldwide, including 10 in Europe.
