The firm has installed a high-spec MAN Lithoman IV 72pp-80pp press that came from Stibo Complete in Denmark.
The Lithoman can produce a wide variety of products and has a balloon former, twin ribbon decks, five ribbons and inline stitching and inline gluing.
It started printing its first commercial job yesterday (2 October).
This morning, CEO Linda Boyes was on the way to the York factory with celebratory breakfast butties for her team.
Posting on LinkedIn, she said: “I’m so proud of all of you, you’ve built the factory from scratch. From landscape gardening, painting and decorating to building a press to ink on paper and first clients’ job on press – a massive well done and bacon sandwiches on me.”
“Then we start all over again with M600 installation!” she quipped.
York Media is adding a five-colour with coater M600 16pp web press for covers, and a Muller Martini Corona perfect binder because of client demand for that type of product.
“A lot of potential customers have been coming through our door, and they have committed to support us if we get a perfect binding line,” Boyes explained.
The firm has already installed two high-speed Muller Martini Prima Plus stitching lines from Bindery Machinery Services.
The 5,580sqm ‘Hanger One’ unit has been updated and remodelled with a factory makeover including improved customer facilities.
York Media is part of Boyes’ €61m (£50m) turnover YM Media Europe Group, which already has a web offset facility on the continent, and places a lot of work with other web printers.
She is financing the UK investment from the group's own resources.
“I have a really great team here and they're moving forward with the plan. Everyone here is really passionate about what we're trying to achieve," Boyes told Printweek.
“I was never in a rush and would rather get it right. Over the next three weeks we'll be doing test jobs and checking the formats we can produce. I'm in a position to do that because we're not run by a finance company.”
York Media recently made a further addition to its team with the appointment Terry Allen as production and facilities manager.
He has spent more than 25 years in the industry, most recently as factory shift manager at Walstead Peterborough.
The M600, sourced from Estonia, is set to start arriving at the end of the year.
