Delivered last month, the circa six staff firm’s Duplo DBM-150 bookletmaker was installed after the firm took on some extra space at its Melbourne site.
According to managing director Paul Wilson, while the firm had previously managed okay with its hand-fed Duplo Auto Bookie Pro, it had enough regular work for products such as orders of service to justify the low five-figure spend on the DBM-150.
“When we looked at it we realised it would pay for itself with our current work, but importantly, also open us to some new work, and there’s also work that we outsourced that we can now bring inhouse,” he said.
“That’s what gave us the confidence to invest.”
The line can handle up to 2,400 sets per hour, and produce booklets up to 2.5mm thick, or 25pp, with covers up to 300gsm and text pages 130gsm.
The Derbyshire-based digital print business configured its line with a DBM-150T trimmer and DSC-10/20 collating tower, the latter being a pre-owned unit fully refurbished by Duplo engineers.
“It’s great. We’ve still got a little bit of messing around to do with it and try different booklets, we haven’t tried A6 for instance yet, but it’s been really good,” said Wilson, who added that the speed of the line and fore-edge trim had been a revelation for the business, compared to the manual device.
“Our only issue, and we knew this before we got it, is that the tower’s not great with high-coverage silks – so there’s a bit of learning on that for us.
“So, we might upgrade the tower, it’s not a problem and was worth having a go with it, but we might need to upgrade it to a digital tower.”
While the firm runs a couple of wide-format machines, its digital workhorse is its Konica Minolta AccurioPress C6085 production press.
The business, which Wilson bought in 2011, produces a wide range of commercial work, ranging from marketing literature to social stationery and exhibition signage, and is also a Nettl store, with two inhouse designers.
It also manufactures greetings cards for its sister business Dandelion Stationery, run by Wilson’s wife Jo, which supplies cards and notebooks to independent retailers.
The Duplo investment followed Wilson taking on the 200sqm unit directly behind its retail/commercial unit to boost its production space. A bricked-up doorway was cleared to give direct access to the adjoined unit from its shop front.
“We were almost in the retail space really with the kit, so it meant that we could move the machines, because before we just put them where we could fit them and it was a bit higgledy-piggledy, but now it’s all laid out in a good way and we still have a little more space for when we buy something else,” he said.
“But we need to get a little more business before we do that.”
The extra space and the lockdown also gave the business the opportunity to revamp and rebrand its shop front and create additional meeting space.
“We’re just trying to finish the decorating. Like everybody, it’s been a quiet 18 months, but things are starting to pick up now – so we’re hopefully looking forward to a busy 12 months.”
