The B2 sheetfed machine is due for installation at the Verwood, Dorset-based business sometime this year, although exact timings are not yet confirmed.

One of HP’s Drupa launches, the manufacturer said the Indigo 18k “handles the widest range of print applications ever produced with a single B2 digital press” while advanced AI features like auto recovery and proactive alerts enhance productivity and simplify the entire production process, achieving up to 80% press availability within a single shift.

The machine supports more than 2,000 certified substrates, three-quarters of which are sustainable media, and can flexibly accommodate different media thicknesses with exclusive duplex printing on thick substrates, as well as smooth handling of light substrates.

The press includes up to seven colour stations that can be loaded with a variety of specialty inks.

Dayfold managing director Del Simmons told Printweek in Düsseldorf yesterday (30 May) that one of the biggest drivers for the purchase was to move the company into B2 digital.

“Also the fact that it’s got lots of flexibility, and lots of enhancements and embellishments we can do using various different inks and colours. And data variability and being able to do personalisation is also really important to us,” he added.

“What we’ve realised is that the print B1 market is under big pressure from lots of different players, and actually the business has always been built around doing things that are a bit different and unique. So following on that path, we decided the best route was to get a B2 Indigo.”

Dayfold currently operates a B3 HP Indigo 7k as well as two Heidelberg Speedmaster litho presses – a B2 six-colour plus coater and an SRA1 LED-UV machine – but it intends to replace the latter with the new Indigo 18k.

It also runs a Ricoh digital toner press with a long sheet attachment while its in-house finishing options include foiling, folding, stitching, and cutting and creasing. It also operates a raft of specialist box making kit.

Simmons said the company had a look at what else was on the market but felt that the B2 Indigo “is tried and tested, has been in the marketplace for a long time and we know it, we feel comfortable with it, and it sits really comfortably with our 7K B3 press”.

He added: “We have a great relationship with HP. We work really closely with the team, both on a service level as well as an account management level. HP have always been very forthcoming and helpful with providing us ideas and thoughts about what we’re doing. They’re also showing some of our work on the Drupa stand this year.”

On sustainability, Simmons said the main driver behind its initiatives in this area generally come from cosmetics retailer Lush, a major customer of the business.

“We have a great relationship with them and they support us through processes; things like CarbonQuota which we have in the business, instances where we make paper from downstream waste, and we’ve got a foil recycling scheme that’s coming out later in the year.”

“So [the 18k] fits in with that model – it’s low on waste, low on energy, the personalisation, and being able to put through some of the papers Lush have used through the machine.”

HP industrial marketing lead EMEA Andy Pike also commented: "We are delighted to have partnered with Dayfold to install the new HP Indigo 18K.

“The HP Indigo 18K has the ability to handle the widest range of print applications ever produced with a single B2 digital press, while simultaneously delivering 24% energy savings per sheet.

“It is through working with our partners, HP is the trusted provider of digital press solutions and enhance our customers’ business and drive value for their customers. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Dayfold in the future.”

Dayfold employs 55 staff and has a turnover of around just over £5m. Working from a circa-1,700sqm site, the team specialises in the production of high-end marketing materials and luxury packaging – both cartonboard and rigid boxes.

“The B2 Indigo gives us opportunities to push the boundaries in packaging, especially with the rigid side because very few people have got the technology to be able to produce individual sheets with very different inks and very different processes and where everything is individual and personalised, so that’s an area we’re really keen to explore,” Simmons added.

“The size of the sheet means we can increase the size of the box, so that gives us a lot more opportunity.”

Drupa runs at Messe Düsseldorf until next Friday (7 June). HP is based in Hall 17.