The Delta Group has the kind of mammoth boardroom table James Bond villains would sit around plotting world domination. But while managing director Mike Phillips looks nothing like Ernst Blofeld, anyprinting company that passes off 6m worth of investments as "nothing out of the ordinary" deserves to be a little feared.

Delta is growing at a phenomenal rate it's heading for a turnover of 33m this year and Phillips isn't planning on slowing down any time soon. Last week, PrintWeek revealed that Delta is spending 3.5m on a new MAN Roland XXL press, which will make it the only printer in the country to operate two. The XXL's capacity of up to 10,000 sheets per hour, each at sizes of up to 1,850x1,300mm, will provide Delta with the kind of large-format firepower about which most printers can only dream.

"If you look at Delta's investment strategy, you will notice that we have invested heavily everyyear," says Phillips. "This one is no different. It is a continuous trend. As we get bigger and better, we have to invest in bigger and better kit. Investment keeps us on top." Alongside the XXL, Delta is installing its second Inca Columbia Turbo digital press, a B1 six-colour litho press withcoater, and a new Dims! MIS system.

Preparing for the future
Output doubling stuff, but for Phillips, such investment is not just a way of staying ahead, it is also a means of preparing his company for the future. "There will soon be far fewer players, made up of much larger companies," he says. "It is going to affect us, as we are part of it. The competition is either going, or it will grow stronger and bigger." According to Phillips, Delta has already had numerous approaches from potential City investors, which suggests that further consolidation in the sector can only be around the corner.

Phillips feels Delta is blazing a trailwhen it comes to customer service and account handling, taking tips from print management companies along the way. "The old way is to have a single salesman going down the wine bar with his client," he says. "Now, it is all about the total team solution a team of people led by an account director. I am not saying the single salesman is obsolete today, but in the future it will be. Printers need to become more client and customer service focused; that is where we can learn from the print managers."

Committed to expansion
Delta is committed to growth. Phillips is proud of the fact that despite employing more than 300 people, the group is always on the lookout for more. "While our competitors are laying off, we are always employing," he says. "If you check the job pages, you are very likely to see one of our adverts." Staff aren't the only thing Phillips is on the hunt for either. "We are currently exploring opportunities in America and Europe for expansion, through both acquisitions and partnerships," he says. "That is not saying that we are going to have plants all over Europe, but we could definitely acquire one or two over the next couple of years."

Delta already undertakes a substantial amount of business abroad. The company has just won a 4m contract to produce in-store print for half of a major fashion retailer's European and US shops, and produces posters and banners for all of the Disney Store's European outlets. Delta's eclectic client list includesTesco, 20th Century Fox and EA Games, and the company says it has many more large contracts in the pipeline.

Move into design
Phillips isn't just content with providing customers with print either. Delta has just made its first foray into design. Lick Creative is its new design arm specialising in retail and in-store communication. Sixteen designers are now producing 3D point-of-sale and cardboard engineering from its base in Walthamstow, east London, allowing Delta to offer an end-to-end service. So far, it has won all five contracts for which it has pitched, and Phillips is finding the service is providing an effective new avenue for winning print work. "We won a major printing contract with Disney  through Lick," he says. "It is great being able to go into companies, win on the designs and then suggest who prints it for them. It's another angle in."

It's in the can
Another surprising area Delta is experiencing sustained growth is its storage arm, Moving Print Distribution(MPD). Film-can storage and distribution as in cans containing movies for cinemas may not be a typical business for a printer to get involved in, but with Delta's large cinematic client base, it has proved a natural progression. MPD's turnover has doubled over the past year to about 4.5m, while its move to a new 17,000sqm facility offers it even more scope for growth.

So while world domination may not be on the cards, rapid expansion certainly is. Delta looks like one to watch in the coming years.

Delta Group factfile
Founded: 1991

Staff: 300

Projected turnover (2006): 33m

Investment in company (2006): 6m+

New kit: MAN Roland XXL, IncaColumbia Turbo, Dims! MIS, B1 six-colour litho press with coater

Clients: Tesco, 20th Century Fox,EA Games, Disney, H&M

Size of site: 5.5 acres