The South Yorkshire trade printer installed a Renz AP360 high-speed automatic punching system two months ago to meet demand and increase capacity for wire-bound books.
It features a two-finger paper pick-up system, which can handle a range of mixed stock, fast die-changes and has optional two-part split dies for book and calendar work.
Operations director Jim Swain said: “We got through the busy Christmas season for calendars and wanted extra capacity to handle work such as wire-bound books."
He did not disclose the cost of the kit but said it was in addition to the company's existing machines and would run with a manual punching machine for low-volume jobs on thin papers.
“As we increase volumes we need automation and chose the Renz model because it complements other Renz equipment we have.”
The company was founded in 2012 as part of the Bluetree Group and now dispatches about 5,500 jobs every week from its 10,000sqm base. The business has 280 staff and a £32m turnover.
The purchase follows installation of a Renz Punch 500 ES and a Renz MOBI 500 ring-wire-binding equipment last autumn to introduce a calendar production service at busy times.
Route One Print in Rotherham uses litho, digital and inkjet technology from Heidelberg B1 & B2 presses, Xerox iGens, HP Indigo and large-format HP Scitex, plus Fuji & Screen inkjet systems.
Swain said: “We chose this equipment because we wanted to add calendar production to our portfolio of solutions. We looked at expanding capacity and finding a solution for thicker booklets.
“We chose the Renz AP360 high-speed automatic punch and expect increased interest around our booklet ranges, especially personalised notebooks.”
He added: “This will enable us to have fresh conversations with our existing customers and target new business. We are also in a very good position for the next calendar season.”
The existing Renz P500 ES handles all types of books and calendar punching production with ring wire, plastic comb and coil options on different paper formats and a wide range of mixed stocks.
The Renz MOBI 500 is a semi-automatic ring-wire binding system for books, calendars and skip binding. It can handle different paper formats and oversized products up to 260 sheets thick.
