Fuller Davies buys NexPress to boost digital firepower

Ipswich print-and-mail specialist Fuller Davies has purchased a Kodak NexPress SX3300 digital colour press to upgrade its digital capabilities.

The new press is to be installed tomorrow (21 January) at the £3.2m-turnover company’s plant and is expected to be up and running by the end of the week at the company’s 1,600sqm facility.

According to Fuller Davies, the new investment will help the company boost its flexibility, increase differentiation from local competitors and bolster its environmental performance.

“The format size increase is the real appeal,” said managing director Neil Stones. “With B1 printing, A4 landscape was impossible, but it can be done on the NexPress as it can print 914x356mm sheets thanks to the long sheet feeder.

“Getting rid of plates and makereadies also reduces the costs,” he added.

The 28-staff company is also keen to maintain its environmental performance, according to Stones, where the NexPress will also be helpful: “Part of that is reducing the amount of paper and consumables we use.”

The NexPress will run alongside Fuller Davies’ range of litho and digital presses, including a B1 five-colour Manroland Roland 705, a B2 five-colour Heidelberg Speedmaster CD 74 and a Xerox 700, and has a list price of around £400,000.

Stones added: “The NexPress will also give us the speed and capability to take short-run faster turnaround work from our litho presses and, because it runs the same stock, there will be no noticeable difference. When people ask for 50 advanced copies, we know we can deliver it to them.”

Fuller Davies also intends to use the new press to support its web-to-print service, which enables business customers to create tailored marketing materials through a template-based system from software partner ROI360.