The 3.2m-wide machine printer was installed at the company’s Cardiff premises during the summer.

Sitting alongside a Durst 1330 as a frontline printer, it is the 17th digital printer in the company’s line-up and the first Gardners has bought from CMYUK.

All work from Gardner’s existing HP Scitex FB7600 printer has been migrated over to the HS125, along with significant amounts of roll and sheet output from its other 5m-wide machines. The 7600 has been decommissioned.

The HS125 produces graphics at resolutions of 600dpi or 1,000dpi and variable greyscale print capability.

The printer’s fast 4 (F4) technology uses eight ink channels (double CMYK) for faster throughput. Its ink delivery system also allows for 100% ink utilisation, reducing waste.

The 225 boards per hour machine is designed for continuous, round-the-clock shifts and long print runs, featuring three-quarter loading for multiple rigid sheets.

Gardners has configured its machine with a camera on the gantry to give the single operator a 360˚ view during production.

The company has also added a self-engineered roll-to-roll offline cutting system to the front of the printer to further decrease finishing times.

Gardners managing director Richard Courtney said: “[The HS125 will] become a main printer for us to provide a significant amount of extra capacity to service additional retail work.

“It will also help deal with ever-decreasing lead times, and will boost capacity by increasing our opportunity to say yes.”

Gardners was acquired by UK private equity fund Elaghmore earlier this year.

In response, Gardners operations director Adrian Hallett anticipates a period of expansion: “We’ll be looking for another printer, potentially the same again. This one is getting volume through our facility. It’s definitely a workhorse.”

Gardners specialises in retail, fleet, out-of-home, and experiential print experiences. The Hexcite Group together turns over more than £60m per year.