NEW PROFIT CENTRE

Sign Design GB has brought a range of services in-house, enhanced production capacity and is now exploring further application opportunities following their investment in an Epson SureColor SC-V7000 UV flatbed printer.

Established in 2009, the Tees Valley signage solution specialist works with the construction, retail, education, manufacturing, transport and medical industries. It chose the system to enable greater control over quality consistency, reduce turnaround times and eliminate additional costs.

Ben Kennedy, Commercial Director at Sign Design GB, explains: “We were sub contacting about £80,000 to £100,000 of direct to substrate work a year. We decided it was time to bring that in-house so we could ensure consistency, reduce turnaround times, cut our carbon footprint and also develop that part of the business. Now we have additional capacity and the ability to offer some unique products. We can promote these services more widely, confident in the knowledge we can deliver the desired results. We can also explore other application possibilities, run samples, and show clients what is possible.”

He continues: “We looked at what was on the market and chose the Epson system for two reasons. First, ease of use was very important. We wanted something that was operator friendly and not too complicated to use. Despite its specialist features, there is no need for specialist training and we already have four people confident in running it.”

The Epson SureColor SC-V7000 flatbed printer was supplied by Epson reseller Perfect Colours. Ben comments: “The second reason we chose the Epson was because of the support from Perfect Colours. We have bought a number of solutions from them over the years, and they are always very helpful. They provide the right level of technical help and it is good to know they are there even if we don’t need them.”

The system has been in for just a couple of weeks. “There have been no problems at all”, comments Ben. “It is working very well, and we have been running it every day. It will enable us to continue to grow in the direct to substrate sector and develop a more complete and versatile offering for our clients. It will also enable us to employ another apprentice in this area of the business.”

He adds. “By completing the work in-house we can better improve our margins and ensure quality consistency.”

Darren Walker, Regional Director at Perfect Colours, adds: “After undertaking a review, Sign Design GB took the considered decision to drive operational growth by investing in Epson technology. It did this knowing it could access on-going support if it was ever needed. We were delighted to help them make the best investment choice for their requirements and look forward to continuing their journey with them.”

The SureColor SC-V7000, Epson’s first UV large format printer, allows sign and display makers to expand their portfolio of products. It offers exceptional image quality and the flexibility to print on a wide range of media. It was developed for printing eye-catching retail and outdoor signage, window displays, hoarding panels, packaging, promotional goods, and décor products. It manages a versatile range of applications, which enables companies to expand their product offering and deliver consistently high-quality results. It features Epson’s unique UltraChrome UV ink configuration, including red, grey, white and varnish. www.epson.co.uk

HALLOWEEN — SPOOKY PRINT

Celebrating Halloween is easier than ever with our tasty suppliers EML. Eat My Logo supply treats with party print. Whether you’re working on internal events, staff gifts or themed days, don’t miss this Halloween trick of printing on cakes and biscuits. EML provide a scary range branded with Halloween themed artwork. https://eatmylogo.co.uk/trade-portal-home/halloween 01772 472 580

PRINT ON BINS? — OH WHEELIE

Sov Print manufacture bespoke labels and stickers that can be applied to a variety of waste management products, including wheelie bins! Sovereign are leading manufacturers of durable and bespoke labels, tags, and signs. Innovators of SUPA TUFF™, the super-tough, super-strong label.

SCREEN AND DIGITAL SERVICES FOR THE PRINT AND SIGN TRADE

Sovereign has over 40 years of printing experience with a quick print pro reputation for loyalty, integrity, and confidentiality. Combing a comprehensive range of screen and digital printing presses with extensive finishing equipment, Sov Print provide a total in-house service for trade frontline printers — essential for meeting urgent client deadlines. Finished goods are shipped to you — for forwarding to your client, or direct to your customer under plain labels. Contact their friendly team today. www.sovprint.com • 01443 816414 • sales@sovprint.com

BROADEN YOUR OFFERING WITH ‘POWERHOUSE’ PRINTER

Photographer and owner of Etsy Shop ‘Steph Yt Shop’, Steph Yt, required a compact printer to deliver on speed amid rising demand and quick growth. On hearing of its printing expertise, she turned to Fujifilm for a solution that would open up possibilities for new products and provide the fast output needed for fulfilling booming orders.

Since its establishment during lockdown, the e-commerce store has sold almost 3,000 prints, greetings cards and stickers. With demand not slowing anytime soon, an upgrade of equipment from a desktop home printer was required to quickly fulfil orders. The small business also needed to source a compact printer that would produce high quality photo prints and greetings cards that would help maintain its five star reviews, without taking up too much room in the home office.

SMALL FOOTPRINT, LARGE POTENTIAL

With customers expecting the highest quality printed products, the required solution would need to be able to print large volumes of product on thick card and paper, elements that are compromised with desktop printers. As such, Steph Yt, turned to Fujifilm’s CX 3240 printer to help elevate her online business to the next level.

With plenty of orders through the Etsy shop, the CX 3240 needed to make operations as efficiency as possible. The machine also needed to be easily operated by one person and deliver high volume of product with minimal input. For a small business like this, Fujifilm’s latest print technology provides the ability to print on demand, quickly and on the same high quality, heavy weight greeting card material that you find in any store.

Steph explains: “I knew that the quality of printed products my customers would be expecting needed to go beyond the usual home printing setup, but I was also very aware that I operate from a home office. The CX 3240 was the perfect fit thanks to its small footprint and the multiple drawers. Its ability to print at speed on up to 330 gsm card stock has meant I can really step up my product quality, too. The clean design also means it doesn’t look out of place in my home!

“The setup was super easy as well. Once it was delivered, it was simple to assemble and is pretty much plug and play without any requirement for additional software downloads. I operate the printing from my laptop, being able to programme in the different product types and printing media. I have found the CX 3240 allows me to fulfil my orders quicker than ever before.”

RETAIL QUALITY AT HOME

Its ability to load multiple types of card stock and paper into its different drawers and have the gsm value accordingly on a computer, the CX 3240 makes light work of the store’s requirements. Compared to the existing desktop printer the store was using, the CX3240 was able to bring the same high quality and speed experienced by large retailers to the home office of Steph Yt Shop.

Steph said: “The printer is a really smart solution that has helped me make my operations slicker, removing a lot of the manual steps for greetings card production. With borderless printing, I don’t have to trim the edges of each card sheet. When operating, the printer automatically folds the pre-scored card for you, producing a customer ready product in an instant. As a small business team of one, this is a lifesaver as it helps me delegate the time I would have used to score and fold the cards into other tasks.

“The CX printer also offers double sided printing, a function I have found extremely useful for adding personalised notes within my cards. This is something my old printer did not offer, and it definitely adds more creativity and professionalism to the products. It is all extremely straightforward to use and very easy to tell the printer to do exactly what you require it to do.”

ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES

For a small e-commerce business like Steph Yt Shop, a printer like the CX 3240 is ideal, as it produces quality products in high volumes. Beyond this however, the wide ranging capabilities of the printer will be able to open up new avenues for the shop, including personalised photo gifts.

Steph comments: “The quality of the prints that come out of the printer is extremely high thanks to the impressive ink and technology used. Thanks to the printer’s capabilities, I can now look to add photo gifts such as calendars, personalised photo cards and photo books to my store. I am excited to see where it will take my small business in the future.”

Mark Wade, Product Specialist at Fujifilm Imaging Solutions UK, says: “As demand for personalised and photo products grows ever more, the CX 3240 provides the ability to quickly deliver high quality products. As it can accelerate output and expand product portfolios, the CX 3240 is an innovation that fully supports varying print requirements for businesses of any size.” For more information on how the CX 3240 can be implemented into your retail space, contact Fujifilm at business.solutions_uk@fujifilm.com