Installing the Pro8 has enabled the Bromsgrove-based firm to improve production efficiency and capacity by dedicating its Fujifilm Acuity HS flatbed printer to rigid materials and using the Pro8 for rolls.

"Our clients have been increasingly asking us to do internal signage and graphics as well as the external signage and most of the internal work is printed," said Image Technique managing director James Dawson.

"While we’ve always had small roll-fed printers in house the Acuity was the first big step into production printing with its white ink capability and the roll-to-roll option."

In the two years since it installed the flatbed machine to insource its print requirements demand for print has increased, resulting in the need for additional capacity.

"We’re doing more and more rigid work, so we needed to free up capacity on the flatbed for that," said Dawson. "We needed a roll-fed machine that could ensure high quality suitable for close-viewed interior graphics but much quicker."

Even at high resolution the Pro8 is twice as fast as the Acuity in roll-to-roll configuration.

In addition to higher productivity and the ability to print multiple rolls at the same time the machine also handles wider media, up to 3.8m wide. This is enabling the firm to address new applications such as flexible printed skins for exterior signage.

Image Technique works for a range of retail clients including B&Q, Harrods, Pizza Hut, The Body Shop and Vue Cinemas.