Ballyprint’s Acuity Prime 30 flatbed press replaced an older HP Scitex in April, and was followed by the arrival of the Revoria PC1120 in August, which replaced a Xerox Iridesse.
Aaron Klewchuck, Ballyprint managing director, told Printweek: “Just looking at Fujifilm as a whole, there’s a lot to be excited about. Obviously, they’ve entered the POD market in the UK, and they’ve grown that over the last year or two – obviously, they’re the manufacturers of their own machines, and there are obviously extra features that aren’t passed on to Xerox.
“It’s exciting to see all the R&D they’re investing in.”
The old machines had needed replacement, Klewchuck said, as they were coming to the end of the company’s five-year installation cycle.
Given that Ballyprint and sister firm Impro – acquired in 2022 by Klewchuck in a pre-pack deal that has helped turn the business around – both needed to refresh their toner press offering, and Ballyprint’s Scitex was ageing out of productive competitiveness, it made sense to consider Fujifilm, Klewchuck said.
“Their roadmap matched our own,” he said.
“They were able to cover the flatbed, the Revoria, and potentially B2 digital [in the future] – there’s obviously a good partnership there that we have across all the devices.”
The devices’ capabilities cemented the sale, with the Acuity since proving itself a particularly timely upgrade.
“With those extra white and clear inksets, we’ve opened up a lot of new markets with creative and designers, and those extra embellishments we could never really offer on the large-format side,” Klewchuck said.
“Even just for speed, it’s incredible compared to the old machine. We’ve taken on bigger jobs that could have taken us three or four days to print, and now they’re taking less than half a day production time. It has made a massive difference allowing us to take on jobs that we previously would have been hesitant to accept.”
Ballyprint employs 10 at its Ballymena site, with Impro employing 16 in Belfast. Along with third sister company Perfect Day Print, the group turns over around £3.5m.
The new Fujifilm machines are not the only investments going in for the group, with solar panels going in at Ballyprint in September, following Impro’s lead. Impro is now able to generate around 36% of its own power needs, with Ballyprint hoping for between 30-40% generation on-site.
All three firms are undergoing ISO qualifications as part of the group’s net zero ambitions.
