The new machine, installed in late June and supplied by CMYUK, will join kit including a Canon Colorado 1650 and a Mimaki JFX UV flatbed at the Llanelli, Wales-based firm. It follows the company’s investment last year in a Titanium 2516 cutting table with router.

Primarily a roadside and large-format media owner, Emerge Advertising has a growing in-house sign and print arm according to owner Shaun Jones.

He told Printweek the installation of the 3m-wide EFI printer has greatly increased the company’s capacity, particularly when using the machine’s dual feed capability.

“We liked its versatility, speed, the capacity advantages, and the ability to do both roll and flat substrates. Due to demand we just wanted to take the next step into industrial printing.”

The machine will be used for large banners, billboards, lorry curtains, and general signage for pop-up shops, exhibitions and the like.

Further investment in cutting is planned in the coming months. The business already runs Summa cutting equipment and other finishing kit from Kala, as well as the aforementioned Titanium cutting table.

Initially – and still – a digital media advertising specialist, the business only started printing in-house in 2019, when it installed an HP Latex 360 to support the production of printed billboards, “but over the last 12 months it’s gone from strength to strength,” Jones said.

“We deal with a huge number of car dealerships around South Wales, local businesses, council contracts, businesses like Screwfix – it’s going in the right direction, especially assisted now by picking up some national logistics firms.”

Last year the group – including both the print and advertising arms – turned over north of £1.2m but this is expected to balloon to £3.4m this year.

Currently employing six staff, three more are due to come on board shortly, supported by the increase in capacity following the EFI install, which was part of a £192,000 spend that also included software.

The business currently works from a leased 465sqm site but is set to move into much larger 6,000sqm premises around five miles away before the end of the year, which it plans to buy.

“We’re in early talks about bringing packaging machines in, so the whole production line from print all the way to branded compostable cups,” said Jones.

“We’re very conscious of moving in the direction of leaving the plastics behind and making sure that everything we sell is compostable.”