Oxford-based Ashgate Automation has been working with Dunstable manufacturer KAS Paper Systems for nearly 20 years. It's been a solid partnership, clocking up nearly 2,000 sales of bookletmakers and creasers. The relationship developed further due to the demand for a machine that could crease digitally printed stock. The outcome was KAS's first entry-level product, the CreaseMatic 150, in October 2004.

"Five years ago, there was a market for niche, hand-fed creasing machines. The 150 was ideal for digital runs of 50-500 - really short runs, where it's easier and quicker to streamfeed by hand than set up suction feeders," explains John Price, managing director at Ashgate Automation. "Once the sheet is fed down the feed table, it is fully programmable and automatic from then on."

When the 150 was introduced, it was competing against suction-fed machines and, as a result, was ridiculed by some in the trade. However, it defied the critics and found an audience in printers that had short-run requirement work.

"Other players in the market got in as well after its success and produced their own," says Price. For example, two years after the launch of the CreaseMatic 150, Morgana launched its handfed DigiCreaser in 2006.

Added benefit
A year and half after the CreaseMatic was launched, a perforating system was added to the design. "This was an optional rotary perforating system, which around 90% of customers have added in the past few years," says Price.

The CreaseMatic 150 was sold alongside Horizon folders until last year, when KAS released a dedicated online card folder, the CreaseFold. It was built to sit behind the CreaseMatic to crease and fold in one pass.

"The Horizon was for lighter work such as 200gsm. We asked the factory to develop a machine to cope with heavier weights of 300-350gsm and that's where the CreaseFold came from," says Price.

But the CreaseFold could only do single folds, so it was limited to 4pp work. However, the CreaseMatic 150 can crease any combination of pages, including six-pagers.

Programmable
The 150 could programme up to five jobs and put up to nine creases per sheet on card, from A5 to SRA3 and 6pp A4. There were four creasing width tools supplied to cover stock weights of 80-350gsm.

To date, there have been more than 150 machines sold in the UK. "The biggest advantage of the machine is our choice of matrix tools," says Price. The width and length of the crease are dependent on the choice of matrix tools.

Last year, an automatic suction-fed version of the machine was brought out for higher-volume runs. The CreaseMatic Auto50 runs at 7,000 sheets per hour (sph), compared with the 150's output of 2,000sph, and is designed for CD-sized work through to SRA2. Many customers also use the Auto50 for A3 portrait work.

As customers upgrade to the Auto50, the 150 will inevitably find its feet in the secondhand market. "There are machines that people are replacing after four and a half years that we buy back and refurbish," says Price.

Service contracts are available offering preventative care. Ashgate has two engineers in the UK and carries 99.9% of spare parts in stock.

As with any secondhand machine, it's worth checking the electronics when purchasing a secondhand model. "You might also want to check the nylon drive pad as they wear out, but they are inexpensive," advises Price.

A refurbished machine will cost around £3,000. There are small cosmetic changes Ashgate can carry out when it refurbishes the machine, such as gripper roller changes.

Specifications
Max number of creases 9
Number of programmes 5
Max sheet size 330x999mm
Max speed 2,000sph
Footprint 1,030x470mm
Weight 63kgs
Price
    New 150 £4,395
    New 150P £4,895
    New CardFold £3,995
    Refurbished 150
    £2,600-£3,000
What to look for

• Electronics
• Nylon drive pads