Profile

Standing in the middle of BGP’s cavernous new press hall, sales director Bob Caley cracks a smile. “You can’t fail to be impressed really,” he says. He’s right. Towering over him, for all the world like the bridge of some German battleship, is the folding structure of one of the firm’s two new 72pp MAN Roland presses. It is, indeed, an impressive sight.

A quick about-face brings the other press into view, albeit in pieces awaiting assembly. These monstrous twins form the backbone of BGP’s £25m investment in what will be the UK’s largest web-offset site, featuring a total of four 72pp presses, a 48pp and 32pp press and two 16pp presses. Caley and his colleagues are understandably excited by their new toys. However, if you listen to the rumours, then you’d be forgiven for thinking this was all some sort of elaborate illusion. The presses, you see, are not supposed to be here.

In February 2007, things were not looking good for BGP. In the space of a year, it had lost its 20m directories-a-year BT Phone Book contract to Spain, replaced its senior management, made 80 redundant at Bicester and closed its Colchester site. The UK’s web-offset sector was going through some rough seas and, to some, BGP looked like it might be sinking.

The company had different ideas and, in March 2007, it revealed its blueprint for a £25m web offset supersite that, in the words of group chairman and Reading Football Club owner John Madejski, would take BGP “to the top of the premier league as the UK’s largest web-offset printing plant”.

It was a bold move in a climate where web-offset plants were closing rather than opening – New Jarrold Printing (NJP) and Cradley Print had closed in the previous 12 months. NJP’s demise had come, ironically, after years of promises of a move to a new web-offset supersite. Meanwhile, the growing market seemed to be in gravure, with the two new plants in Sheffield and Liverpool.

Riding the storm
But the announcement had an immediate effect and three months later, BGP signed a €55m (£37m at the time) contract with Dutch directories group European Directories.

Since then, more contracts have been signed, including a Polish deal with another European directories giant,

Eniro. “We’re literally seeing three new prospective customers a day who want to work with us,” says Caley. What’s even better for BGP is that the stormy weather that put paid to the likes of NJP, Graphoprint, Polestar Greaves and Quebecor World, has lately given way to calmer seas. Two months ago, it emerged that long-run prices were on the rise for the first time in almost a decade, thanks to the strong euro and recent capacity reductions (PrintWeek, 6 March). Timing is crucial
in business, as is luck, and BGP currently seems to be enjoying both.

“Prices are going up and all our new capacity is for new work, so it’s being sold at today’s prices, not yesterday’s prices,” says Caley. “Our investment will enable buyers to enjoy sustainable prices and reliability in what is going to be a difficult period over the next few years.”

However, the one cloud on the horizon for Caley has been the persistent rumour that BGP would not be getting its two shiny new behemoths. MAN Roland was allegedly withholding the presses for unspecified reasons, the implication being that Madejski had pulled the funding. Mention of this is enough to wipe the smile from Caley’s face. “I’m fed up quite frankly with rumours that the presses aren’t here,” he says. “Because, unless David Copperfield has performed one of his best illusions ever, they’ve arrived.” Faced with God knows how many tonnes of German-manufactured machinery, it’s hard to argue. The presses are here and, barring a natural disaster, they should start firing up in June and July respectively. Caley can hardly wait.

“It will all be up and running for autumn, which is perfect for the Christmas rush. We’ve pre-sold capacity and these two presses are already full for parts of the year,” he says.

What’s more, the increased firepower will potentially open up new markets for BGP, taking them into the lower end of the gravure market. Who knows, perhaps The Phone Book could even be in line for a return to our shores. Stranger things have happened. A UK printer winning a contract to print Polish directories, for instance. At the very least, Caley – like Madejski – believes the investment will make BGP the stand-out printer in the UK web-offset market.

“At the moment, we’re still in the pack – there isn’t a printer in the UK that stands out,” he says. “With our new investment we will, by setting a new standard in the industry, but that’s a two- to three-year plan. It takes time and it takes money, but we’re getting there and when we do, we will be competitive against people we aren’t currently competitive against.” The presses are here alright, and they’re hungry.

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BGP TIMELINE
January 2006 BGP Colchester loses BT Phone Book contract
February 2006 Group managing director John Cooling leaves to be replaced by ex-Polestar man David Holland
July 2006 BGP restructures Bicester plant with 80 redundancies
February 2007 BGP closes Colchester
March 2007 Blueprint for £25m Bicester supersite announced
June 2007 BGP wins €55m contract with European Directories
October 2007 Work begins on Bicester site
March 2008 New MAN Roland 72pp presses arrive