GreenShires, the Kettering- and Leicester-based magazine, commercial and screen printer, has bought the UKs first CreoScitex Lotem Quantum.


It signed up for the system, which will be installed at its Leicester site by the end of the month, at Northprint last week.
"We havent ventured into CTP until now because the machines werent fast enough," said production director Reg Green. The firm has CreoScitex B1 imagesetters and full digital workflow at both sites with a high-speed digital link between them.


At 25 B1 plates per hour the Quantum is the fastest thermal platesetter on the market. It will be driven by a four-processor Brisque workflow to keep up with the machines speed.


It will feed GreenShires bank of Heidelberg CD 102s including a 10-colour, six-colour and three five-colours, all with coaters.


"For magazine work at Kettering we still get film supplied, so its not going CTP yet," said Green.


The firm predicts that the Quantum will produce 4,000 plates per month. It has yet to finalise which plates it will use, but is at an advanced stage of negotiations with a supplier.


It is also investing in its screen print and cardboard engineering side, which produces point-of-sale work. And in May it will install a two-colour screen press from ITS and a UV ink pumping system supplied by Sericol at the Leicester plant.


Later on in the summer the firm will open a training and presentation room at Leicester.


"We felt the need to do something to educate our customers," said managing director Tom Hewitt. "Were doing it out of a sense of responsibility, but it is also an opportunity to show customers what we can do. Weve got a package under one roof that is unique in print."


By Barney Cox