Laying claim to be the UK’s largest provider of out-of-home (OOH) advertising services, Titchfield Group is a major supplier of commercial property build and refurbishment services, with a dedicated media services division and a delivery and management business while it also supplies digital LED screens.
It is the preferred contractor for Global, a specified contractor for Network Rail and TFL, and also does more than 90% of Wildstone’s installations.
The 200-staff group is headquartered in Cuffley, Hertfordshire, and also has UK operations in Lancaster and Hatfield as well as international sites in France, Spain, Italy, and Germany. It has a turnover of £20m.
The first stage of its three-year partnership with Durst was revealed on the manufacturer’s stand (Hall 16, Stand A41) at Drupa at Messe Düsseldorf yesterday (29 May). It will involve the installation of two industrial digital production machines at the Titchfield Media 9,290sqm production plant in Cardiff.
This site is the former operation of Gardners, which was part of the troubled PFI Group and shuttered towards the end of last year.
Titchfield Group subsequently acquired the firm’s kit and other assets – including 14 machines, and took on a new 11-year lease at the Cardiff site.
The first of the new installs will be the Aleph Laforte 600 Paper printing system that achieves an output of up to 1,000sqm/hr and can print high quality posters and billboards with six colours and 1,200dpi. Using water-based and sustainable printing technologies, the Aleph installation will be in June.
Meanwhile, a Durst P5 350 HSR D4 3.5m-wide roll-to-roll LED machine printing up to 670sqm/hr will be installed in the late summer.
Titchfield Group founder Nigel Brunt said: “Before committing to a partnership with Durst, which is highly regarded and respected in the industry, we did a lot of research.
“I visited many factories in China and across Europe, crawled all over Fespa and spent many weeks of trials and demonstrations. I analysed the total cost of ownership and Durst stood out as offering the best solutions for our business, development and growth.
“Hand on heart, I am a big fan of Durst because I am a big fan of printing. I am also impressed by the advanced software offering, enhancing the total solution. All these reasons made it a compelling choice to partner with Durst Group. It has incredible manufacturing facilities, plus it is the only factory I have ever known that cultivates its own honey and olive oil!”
He added: “Print is not in decline in out of home, it’s just evolving. And I know there is significant growth in print for outdoor signage, which is environmentally friendly with the opportunity for direct sales to site owners as well. I am incredibly optimistic for the future. We have an £8m capital investment plan over the next three years on print with Durst.”
Durst Group CEO and co-owner Christoph Gamper added: “We are delighted to announce this partnership at Drupa. With a focus on innovation, quality and exceptional customer service, we share the same core values as Titchfield Group and are delighted to be partnering with them as they seek to substantially expand their operations within the next three years.
“Durst Group, driven by the mantra of innovation, offers complete solutions from pixel to output. In a collaborative approach, we support our customers on their own business journey and help them with a vision: to create something new, to inspire and to always ask the next question.”
Peter Bray, managing director of Durst UK & and Ireland, also commented: “We really appreciate the trust placed in Durst Group by Titchfield. We’re looking forward to a strong working relationship with Titichfield as they develop and grow through our market-leading technology.”
Prior to the Gardners deal, Titchfield Group was only running one 5m-wide HP printer, predominantly for building wraps.
“We’ve been a printer that you’ve probably never heard of all the way through. We were running five machines up until 2015 but then there was a decline in billboards so we cut down to one machine,” Brunt told Printweek at Drupa.
But the Gardners deal added a plant list including several other Durst devices and further kit from EFI and HP, as well as extensive finishing kit including cutting, welding, and sewing.
