The modular press, which was unveiled at Printing United in Las Vegas last October, is a single-engine duplex CMYK press for 521mm print widths on webs up to 558mm.
The 152m/min (or 244m/min mono) machine features a single arch with a paper path that loops back on itself for duplexing, enabling a compact footprint. It is configured with HP's HD 2,400dpi thermal heads, running water-based extended-gamut HP Brilliant Inks suited to coated paper, plus uncoated stocks treated with HP Optimiser.
TCW Solutions managing director Tom Lipman said he saw the machine in both Las Vegas and also at Hunkeler Innovation Days earlier this year and was blown away on both occasions.
The Kent business, which operates sites in Belvedere and Wrotham, has been running HP PageWide technology for around five years, leading Lipman to describe the latest investment as a “natural progression”.
"We are truly honoured to continue our partnership with Tom, Paul and the team at TCW. It is a pleasure to be working with such an entrepreneurial and dynamic business that is growing, with a focus on automation, which is positively impacting the bottom line," said Peter Jolly, UK&I country manager for HP.
TCW Solutions currently runs a pair of T240 presses at its high-speed digital site in Belvedere.
When it arrives in the new year, the A2200 will initially be configured with twin dryers and replace one of the T240s.
“The big difference is that it’s faster, especially on heavier coverage, and also we can take coated and heavier weights. That’s the big edge,” Lipman said.
“So, if someone wants their job on 250gsm, sopping in ink and on coated, well we’ll be able to do that.”
The business already operates three Hunkeler finishing lines, which Lipman said are run offline – to offer maximum flexibility. So, he said he has enough capacity even with the A2200 coming, and the supporting, immediate post-press investments will focus on additional inserting/enclosing lines.
“We’ll be able to print as fast as the big boys, but we won’t be able to put them into envelopes as quickly without further investment,” said Lipman.
The 13-staff business will generate sales of around £5.5m this year, which Lipman said was enabled by running the latest, best, most highly automated technology.
“[We] always aimed to be slick and efficient, and with our planned investments I believe we will have the capacity to add another £3m-£4m without increasing staff significantly.”
He added that being tightly run and agile, with an ethos of every job being important was key to its success.
“If you asked us, can we do a million A4s or A3s… we can do that and have it back to you tomorrow. But because we’re smaller, if someone gives us a £20,000 or £30,000 job we’re also an awful lot more interested than the big boys might be.”
Lipman described the business as “a bit of industry secret”, despite he and the business’s name having industry pedigrees dating back decades via B1 commercial printer The Colour Works (see boxout), which he used to own.
The Colour Works
B1 commercial printer The Colour Works was formed in the mid 1990s. DSI Group acquired a 50% stake around 2005, before taking taking full control a couple of years later. DSI Group itself merged with Corporate Mailing Matters (CMM) in 2007, with the merged businesses acquired by DST, which rebranded as IOS. IOS was bought Lateral Group and rebranded again as DST Output. DST was then acquired By Paragon in 2017, becoming Paragon Customer Communications.
TCW Solutions was formed in 2012 by Lipman, Paul Emberson and Scott Bramley, following the expiry of Lipman’s non-compete with his former business, with a focus on digital print.
“We had been doing digital for years, and just felt it was the far more exciting area, in my opinion, to get into than conventional.
“There’s no money in conventional.”
TCW’s core business was originally football coupons for the major bookmakers, which remains an important part of its mix, however over time it broke into financial services and, via its Replica Solutions business, the production of ‘sales without product’ packs for major game retailers.
And while Lipman said the business specialises in the complex end of “programming and digital” projects, it was becoming increasingly involved with direct mail, which it has targeted as a significant growth opportunity.
“I think you’ll be writing about us a lot more in the future as we invest,” he quipped.
‘We’ve been making good inroads into DM already, and as that gathers pace don’t be surprised if more and more of the mail coming through your door is produced by us.”
He noted that the business was already capable of producing 300,000 A4s per hour at its main site in Belvedere, Kent.
“Which is a lot, so we’re going to be challenging people that probably turnover 10 times what we do now.”
