Crewe-based Jaymar bought the self-adhesive transparent film, a Printgraph product called Finito Dress, from consumables seller BFS Pressroom Supplies, which has had UK exclusive rights to sell the product since its UK launch in 2013. BFS arranged the wrapping of Jaymar's six-colour-plus-coater Manroland 700 with the film. The press was also the first in the UK to be UV retrofitted by IST (UK).
The product can be supplied clear, or printed with colourful images or company branding. Graphics are screen printed onto another smaller piece of Finito Dress and then applied to the back of the original Finito Dress so you can see it clearly through the transparent film.
Jaymar production director Gary Marsh said: “The press came in nice and clean from the Czech Republic and we wanted to keep it clean. Any dirt, such as inky handprints, wipes off quite easily with a rag, you don’t need abrasive solvents. It’s a bit like a Teflon pan.”
Marsh, who said he likes the pristine look of a new press and remembers being taught as an apprentice that ‘a clean machine is a happy machine’, added that once they start to go downhill with ink drips or finger marks presses can never be cleaned back to their original condition.
“Finito Dress keeps the presses looking brand new. After two or three years you take the dressing off completely and then re-dress it. It does exactly what it says on the tin.”
Marsh likes the Finito Dress so much he has decided to wrap it on his second Roland, a 705. He aims to decommission the machine, give it a deep clean, dress it and move it to Jaymar’s newly-expanded 4,645sqm print room. The company, which has 32 staff, serves clients in the pharmaceutical, automotive, FMCG and other packaging markets.
Printgraph export manager Luigi Casella visited Jaymar to oversee his team deliver the first UK application, which took two days in October as normal production continued. BFS Pressroom Supplies intends to train a member of staff with experience in vehicle wrapping to undertake future commissions.
Casella said: “In this case the customer has decided to use a totally transparent film although personalisation is also possible. After this first installation we have received enquiries from other customers who would like to wrap their new investment and give a different look to the press."
BFS Pressroom Supplies director Nicky Hope said Finito Dress was not a high-volume product but BFS saw the value in stocking it.
"Everyone was really pleased with the outcome. It's a dirty business, printing, and especially if you're printing onto food packaging you've got to be quite careful.
"Our tagline is 'lasting longer to save printers money' so this is ideal. People don't buy presses from new that they want to keep nice and clean that often but Finito Dress will help the resale value when they do."
Finito Dress starts at £72 per square metre without graphics.
