HEROprint has announced a major expansion of its Sydney and Perth offset plants with the addition of a new HUV10 colour Komori 40” press in Sydney and a 40” Komori 5 colour and coater going into Perth.
The new 10 colour is the only one of its type in Australia and the two extra units signal the start of a new trend in UV presses. It makes spot colour or varnish available to HERO clients.
“The press has just been commissioned and is already producing very exciting results," said enthusiastic HEROprint CEO Alex Coulson. "Uncoated stocks can be cut instantly and varnish and spot colour offer a whole new option. The last 3 years have been big for us and have confirmed our belief that many clients want the coating option. We have ramped up capacity to fill the need. We’ve stuck with Komori all the way - we love the quality," he said.
"The amount of book work we are doing has gone through the roof and the extra capacity is essential if we are to maintain our expansion rate. Clients expect quality offset with delivery deadlines imitating digital printing. We have reduced offset delivery times dramatically and it has paid dividends. Careful planning, especially in offset pre-press, can result in big time savings. "Expectations are higher but I reckon the staff quite enjoy the challenge. It’s a get it in and get it out mentality - top quality of course!"
HEROprint's digital department has also seen expansion with the addition late last year of a new Indigo 7800, the flagship of the SRA3 sizing. The company will soon be adding extra capacity with the addition of an on-line booklet maker. Previously, digital booklets have been produced in the Melbourne plant and freighted overnight. With the new digital bookmaker in Sydney, turnarounds can be reduced in some cases by 24 hours.
“Digital multipage booklets have a next day expectation and we now have booklet and long sheet production in our Sydney, Melbourne and Perth plants,” said Coulson. "The long sheet enables four page A4’s to be folded on the short edge and we are getting plenty of call for it. Whatever is different, designers go for. It’s hard to fault the quality and you often have to look hard to tell the difference between offset and digital. It’s just the quantities that determine how to print each particular job."
What’s next for HEROprint? "In a few weeks we will be increasing our stock range quite dramatically in both the coated and uncoated stocks. The volume is there to produce product on more stocks economically, so we will be expanding the range. At present we are producing a stock selector to show what will be available. If you have ever tried to put one together you will know its not easy! It should be out in about a month so if you don’t receive one by two months give us a call and we’ll get one out to you - if you are in the trade of course!"