Central Mailing Services supports growth with new kit haul

Central Mailing Services (CMS) has supported its continued growth with a £170,000 investment in a raft of new machinery and software.

In the next four weeks the Kings Norton, Birmingham-based business will take delivery of a Xerox Versant 2100, a Xerox Nuvera 157 and XMPie software from supplier Zerographic as well as an EBA Guillotine and a Major Paper Folder from Morgana.

“Last quarter, we were the largest Xerox Versant customer in the UK in terms of colour volume, and that’s going from being a company that did virtually no colour printing three years ago,” said CMS managing director Mitesh Chouhan.

We’d bought one Versant 80, and very quickly had to buy another, but because of the volumes that we’re putting through now we’re buying the more expensive and higher spec Versant 2100 instead of buying a third Versant 80.

“It’s a lot faster and enables us to cope with increased volumes of work, and work nights and weekends when required as well. The Hyper Fiery is also on there, which enables us to process personalised work a lot quicker.”

He added: “We already run a Nuvera 144 but we’re investing in a Nuvera 157 now because our mono volumes are growing as well.”

The Morgana Major Paper Folder, which will run alongside four existing Buhrs BB300 envelope enclosing machines, will help the firm to cope with its increasing folding volumes. It already operates a number of other folders, including two Morgana UFOs.

“We invested in the EBA guillotine because we’ve only currently got one full production guillotine and when you’re printing so much volume, nature has it that you have to trim it all down as well,” said Chouhan.

The XMPie software will help CMS to process personalised work. Separately, the firm has also bought an additional licence for its PrintShop Mail software from developer Objectif Lune.

This latest round of investment follows a £150,000 spend on new kit last summer. More recently the firm secured a £10m three-year contract to deliver a range of print, fulfilment and mailing services for Oxford University.

CMS also serves clients in the performing arts sector, B2B customers and small businesses. The firm has 67 staff, six of which have joined in the past few weeks in the bureau, client services and production departments.

Chouhan said the company, which operates from three leased sites with a combined space of more than 2,500sqm, is on target to achieve a turnover of £7m for the current financial year.