The independent contract publisher hopes to make annual savings in excess of 120,000 by moving the repro of 14 of its 22 titles in-house. It will, however, continue to work with the preferred suppliers of the remaining eight.

Redactive took its first titles in-house last October and the group will gradually wind down its 17-year association with London-based DL Repro. By May, it hopes to have installed its own data asset management system.

"We're pacing ourselves to ensure the production team is not overloaded with a sudden influx of layout duties and technical problems," said production director Gary Smith.

Redactive is currently tendering for the new system, around 100,000-plus, and has shortlisted Picdar, cenSure (InDesign server systems) and Fresh Media Group's web-based VIP.

Smith praised DL Repro, which it still plans to use for colour proofing and specialist work, for its support throughout the process and its "realistic" attitude.

"They've been very supportive of us and are a real industry secret. I can't believe a secret this good could fly under the radar," Smith said.

"DL Repro knows this is the way the industry is going. It has invested heavily in web-based systems and DAM workflows in the past 12 month," he added.

Two more fortnightly titles, FM World and Supply Management, will move in-house at the end of this month.

Smith said the next phase of the process would involve linking the in-house workflow to suppliers, possibly via JDF.

Redactive's announcement follows last month's BBC Magazines' move to drop its repro suppliers.

Redactive, formerly Centurion Publishing Group, currently prints around 17m magazines annually at Southernprint, Polestar and Wyndeham Heron.