"We spent extra on the AMRYS [Automatic Make-Ready System] so that it would be fully JDF compatible," said head of manufacturing Helen Kennett.

"We've got pre-press to pressroom already working that way as much as we can be we are now fully JDF."

The PrimaPlus replaced the firm's 321 stitcher, which it bought used nine years ago. "We looked at Muller and one other manufacturer... and the PrimaPlus was the right package for us," said head of manufacturing Helen Kennett.

The firm specified its 14,000cph PrimaPlus with four stitching heads and six-feed stations, plus cover.

Ling's stitcher was also configured with ASIR II, Muller's Automatic Signature Image Recognition. The system eliminates the possibility of incomplete or incorrect sections being included in the final items.
The firm also opted for Muller's Copy Control, which automatically shuts down and ejects work that has misfed, jammed or is failed by ASIR.

The Dorchester, Dorset-based firm produces scientific, technical and medical books and journals via a mixture of digital and litho presses. The variety of runs it produces "from 15,000-20,000 at the top end going as low as a few hundred," according to Kennett, was another reason the firm opted for AMRYS.

"Our makereadies can be a big proportion of jobs, so that's why it [automation] is important," she said. "The market is getting tougher so we needed to become more efficient."

Family-run Ling started life 140 years ago. It now employs 100 staff and has offices in Dorchester town centre and a modern factory on the town's outskirts.

Its clients include Blackwell Publishers, Elsevier, the Royal Society of Medicine and the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Story by Darryl Danielli