The iGen 5 was installed on 23 December and went into operation on 9 January. Launched in 2015, it was the first in the iGen range to offer an optional fifth colour, and all three, orange, green and blue, have been installed with Printwell’s machine, making it the only business in the south of England to offer this service.
Along with the iGen, which replaces an outgoing iGen 3, Printwell has also installed two Canon imagePrograf iPF 9400s, two Hybrid UV wide-format machines, upgraded its Esko Kongsberg cutting table and brought in a Vivid digital laminator with foiling facility, a square-back bookletmaker and a business card slitter-cutter-creaser.
It also invested in building works and upgraded its servers to incorporate a bespoke online system catering for multilingual languages that has been deployed for clients across Europe.
“The iGen buy was part of a bigger project, to move Printwell into the next five to 10 years, not just a one-off investment call. We analysed the whole business model and saw how we could move forward as a business,” said Printwell commercial manager John Smith.
Smith added that with the new machine it would be looking to target specialist marketing agencies with strict guidelines with respect to colour and brand control. Current clients include Superdrug, New Look and Samsung, and an “elite potential client” is visiting Printwell’s premises to look at the machine and its capabilities this week.
“Things that are heavily brand controlled, which we would have had to have done litho historically we can now do on short-run digital,” added Smith.
“Existing clients have started asking questions and wanting to see samples. This has opened up a new stream for us, especially in the elite end.”
The iGen prints at speeds of up to 150ppm using an EFI Fiery print server and has a resolution of 2,400dpi, taking stocks at a maximum sheet size of 364x660mm and handling coated, uncoated, textured and speciality stocks of 50-350gsm.
Smith added that Printwell is considering investing in a second iGen 5 within the next 18 to 24 months.
The investment also included a perfect binding machine for Grays bookbinders, the business acquired by 50-staff Printwell two years ago, which was relocated to the same site as Printwell in May 2015.
