The machine, which was supplied by Southern Print Finishing Services and arrived at the end of March, took just a day to get up and running, according to managing director Steve Basterfield.

Exchanged for the firm’s old Morgana BM350 bookletmaker, the new machine can handle a wider range of sizes, from A4 landscape all the way down to A6, and has allowed a “dramatic” increase in throughput for the Berkshire printer.

Having installed a second Konica Minolta digital press in January 2022 – an AccurioPress C4065 to run alongside the firm’s existing C3070 – Richfield’s production had become bottlenecked by its finishing capacity.

Basterfield said: “The system replaces the handwork approach that we had previously taken.

“The numbers of A4 booklets being required by customers had just grown to the point where some automation was definitely needed. It’s a very impressive machine.

“The new bookletmaker just glides through the work – eating up work in minutes that might have taken us hours to produce by hand with an extended stapler.”

He added that the machine had been easy for the three-strong team to get to grips with.

“The machine is so easy to set up, which is important when you have inexperienced operators, and the SquareBack finish is a great improvement for the finished document – something that our customers have already commented positively on. 

“The paperback book appearance means that there is a spine that can be printed on, should customers need to do that.”

Richfield’s acquisition in February of a defunct printer’s sales book has given the company plenty to do, he added, with revenue set to hit £400,000 this year.

During the pandemic, the company set up an online presence for the first time, leading to a steady stream of business as well.

“We have gained a good number of small business and personal customers from the online ordering capability,” Basterfield said.

“The work that comes from it is a bonus really, rather than our main focus, but hopefully that will grow over the next few years, as people become more aware of its existence.”