The Stockton-on-Tees firm has ordered an eight-colour Rapida 106X with double coater that is set for installation in January next year. 

The press has been specified with the high-speed package for production at up to 20,000sph.

The firm has an existing Rapida 105 seven-colour with coater, and the new Rapida will replace an older six-colour B1 press. 

Managing director Mike Baum said it had been the most involved investment process the firm had ever undertaken, including a “diligent comparison between equipment from a number of reputable manufacturers”.

“The new technology the press boasts will ensure that our print process becomes faster and more agile, delivers greater efficiency and produces much less waste, all critical in us providing a sustainable future for all those associated with Harrison,” he said. 

Harrison has also invested in new die-cutting and CAD kit, and is planning to upgrade its CTP setup over the summer.  

The firm works for leading brands in food, beauty, healthcare and household markets including Taylors of Harrogate, Lidl and Mars. It describes its approach as “unrelenting and uncompromising in our pursuit of quality”.

The business had sales of just over £19m in its most recent financial year, to 31 January 2020 and employed 126 staff. 

Chris Scully, sales director at Koenig & Bauer UK, said: “We are delighted to have Harrison Packaging as our first customer in the UK to purchase the Rapida 106X and to have them as a returning customer.  

“Like ourselves, they have a long history and have continued to innovate as a business. This is the biggest investment in their history and they have invested in technologies and know-how that will set them apart from their competitors.”

K&B took the wraps off the ‘X’ model a year ago, at its online 'Live' event. It has shown the new Rapida 105 generation of presses at China Print this week.