Park kicks off investment programme with HP buy

Park Communications has bought kit including a new digital press as part of an investment set to top £3m over the next year.

The east London-based 124-staff company installed a new HP Indigo 7800 to help target clients demanding high-quality, short-run and variable-data printing at competitive prices.

Managing director Alison Branch said: “We've had a digital department for a long time, using Xerox equipment, but our markets have changed; we are serving more high-quality, luxury customers. 

“We felt the HP technology was more appropriate. Customers wanted Indigo and the machine allows us to offer personalised, tailored publications, which need an Indigo solution.”

Branch said the new machine's seven-colour gamut enabled the close matching of Pantone colours, which compared well against litho alternatives. The new press replaced a Xerox 2080 colour machine. 

Park Communications, which turns over around £13m, also recently expanded its floor space to accomodate an intelligent, high-speed envelope-inserting system.

The Kalmar KC45 machine is capable of handling up to three camera-matched inserts of bound and stitched documents. The device enables smaller inserts and books up to 25mm thick.

Park Communications provides a one-stop shop for typesetting, digital and B1-size litho printing, finishing, mailing and distribution services.

Branch said: “Investment this year and the first part of next year should be around £2m to £3m and we are looking at buying a press, which could be another Heidelberg or a KBA machine.

“We moved to our current site in 2007 and have completely repositioned ourselves. We were a financial printer and that's still an important part of our business.

“But we now serve a wider range of markets, especially the luxury end – property, fashion, yachts. We focus on areas where its all about colour and the touchy-feely emotional impact of print.”

The company has also attained ISO 12647-2 colour management certification and an ISO 27001 information security management certification.