Guardian Print Centres in consultation
The core business of Guardian Media Group, which prints The Guardian, The Observer and Guardian Weekly newspapers, employs 108 members of staff across its Manchester and London Guardian Print Centres (GPCs). A GNM spokeswoman confirmed to PrintWeek that the organisation was in consultation but that no comment could be made on the number of jobs at risk while conversations were ongoing. She said: “It is anticipated that the proposed changes will result in a number of redundancies across GPC London and GPC Manchester, though the company will seek to achieve as many of the redundancies as possible through voluntary means. “We recognise that this is very unwelcome and unsettling news, and deeply regret that redundancies are necessary. GNM will do its best to support staff during this difficult process and will work closely with Unite throughout the consultation period.” In 2011, GNM announced a five-year transformation plan to adopt a ‘digital-first’ strategy, resulting in greater resources and investment dedicated to digital output over print, although the organisation said at the time that print would still be its biggest source of income by 2016. Last year, GNM recorded a £44.2m operating loss for the 12 months to 31 March 2012, largely as a result of declining print circulations and advertising sales and heavy investment in its digital activity. As a result, and as part of the ongoing ‘digital-first’ restructure, the organisation announced that it would cut 100 editorial jobs across its titles by March 2013. This year, operating results at GNM improved as a result of ongoing cost savings, although the division still posted losses of £30.9m for the 12 months to 31 March 2013....
read moreB&D Print Services doubles finishing capacity with new Horizon SPF-FC200A
The 4,500bph JDF-ready Horizon SPF-FC200A was bought to complement an ageing, seven-year-old SPF/FC-10. It has allowed the £4m turnover firm not only to double its capacity but also eliminate overtime. “It’s not given us anything we couldn’t do before,” reported joint managing director Glenn Whewell. “But it gives us more capacity. We were getting bottlenecks and it’s allowed us to just get more through.” He added: “We do a lot of booklet work, a lot of small format booklet work – 8 pages up to 40 pages varying from 50-10,000 copies. The machine is very flexible. We run a lot of instruction manuals for the gaming industry, advertising brochures for theatres and cinemas and general company brochures.” Key to the machine handling short-runs, is its quick makeready times, said Whewell: “The makeready is very quick, it’s just a series of keypad instructions and very straightforward and simple.” The new machine cost B&D around £40,000 from Intelligent Finishing Systems. The Horizon SPF-FC200A features 200-programme job memory storage, an icon-based touchscreen, Horizon’s patented suction rotor drum feeding system and mis-feed, double feed and jamming sensors. B&D didn’t look at any other brands when shopping for the new booklet making line, said Whewell. He added: “We were very familiar with this and were just aware it was the product we wanted. We didn’t feel the need to look elsewhere. It was just a case of tried and tested.” B&D Print Services was established in 1976 and also runs two five-colour B2 presses, a two-colour B2 and a five-colour B3 – all Heidelberg. It also has a Xerox Nuvera, Kodak NexPress, two Polar Guillotines and a Heidelberg Stitchmaster....
read moreB&D Print Services doubles finishing capacity with new Horizon SPF-FC200A
The 4,500bph JDF-ready Horizon SPF-FC200A was bought to complement an ageing, seven-year-old SPF/FC-10. It has allowed the £4m turnover firm not only to double its capacity but also eliminate overtime. “It’s not given us anything we couldn’t do before,” reported joint managing director Glenn Whewell. “But it gives us more capacity. We were getting bottlenecks and it’s allowed us to just get more through.” He added: “We do a lot of booklet work, a lot of small format booklet work – 8 pages up to 40 pages varying from 50-10,000 copies. The machine is very flexible. We run a lot of instruction manuals for the gaming industry, advertising brochures for theatres and cinemas and general company brochures.” Key to the machine handling short-runs, is its quick makeready times, said Whewell: “The makeready is very quick, it’s just a series of keypad instructions and very straightforward and simple.” The new machine cost B&D around £40,000 from Intelligent Finishing Systems. The Horizon SPF-FC200A features 200-programme job memory storage, an icon-based touchscreen, Horizon’s patented suction rotor drum feeding system and mis-feed, double feed and jamming sensors. B&D didn’t look at any other brands when shopping for the new booklet making line, said Whewell. He added: “We were very familiar with this and were just aware it was the product we wanted. We didn’t feel the need to look elsewhere. It was just a case of tried and tested.” B&D Print Services was established in 1976 and also runs two five-colour B2 presses, a two-colour B2 and a five-colour B3 – all Heidelberg. It also has a Xerox Nuvera, Kodak NexPress, two Polar Guillotines and a Heidelberg Stitchmaster....
read moreGuardian Print Centres in consultation
The core business of Guardian Media Group, which prints The Guardian, The Observer and Guardian Weekly newspapers, employs 108 members of staff across its Manchester and London Guardian Print Centres (GPCs). A GNM spokeswoman confirmed to PrintWeek that the organisation was in consultation but that no comment could be made on the number of jobs at risk while conversations were ongoing. She said: “It is anticipated that the proposed changes will result in a number of redundancies across GPC London and GPC Manchester, though the company will seek to achieve as many of the redundancies as possible through voluntary means. “We recognise that this is very unwelcome and unsettling news, and deeply regret that redundancies are necessary. GNM will do its best to support staff during this difficult process and will work closely with Unite throughout the consultation period.” In 2011, GNM announced a five-year transformation plan to adopt a ‘digital-first’ strategy, resulting in greater resources and investment dedicated to digital output over print, although the organisation said at the time that print would still be its biggest source of income by 2016. Last year, GNM recorded a £44.2m operating loss for the 12 months to 31 March 2012, largely as a result of declining print circulations and advertising sales and heavy investment in its digital activity. As a result, and as part of the ongoing ‘digital-first’ restructure, the organisation announced that it would cut 100 editorial jobs across its titles by March 2013. This year, operating results at GNM improved as a result of ongoing cost savings, although the division still posted losses of £30.9m for the 12 months to 31 March 2013....
read moreBible and Gospel Trust adds to bindery
The Drupa 2012-launched perfect binder has been installed at BGT’s Chessington print site and has replaced the not-for-profit organisation’s existing Kolbus KM470 Ratiobinder, which has been reassigned to one of its overseas sites. The Kingston-headquartered publishing house produces millions of booklets and gospel tracts as well as traditional bibles each year, partially for distribution in the UK, with around 60% exported. BGT invested in the new Kolbus after a demonstration proved it could produce a two-page perfect-bound ‘book’ on a single sheet of 152x99mm, 130gsm paper and four-page cover, at 9,000 copies an hour. The books were then trimmed with a Kolbus HD153P three-knife trimmer. According to BGT plant manager John Marsh the business was sold on the speed of the new Kolbus. He added: “We did trials using some of our existing products and were particularly impressed by the gatherer and trimmer of the Kolbus KM6000C, which had the edge over anything else we had seen for quality and speed. “Consistent high-speed operation was important with run lengths often in the tens of thousands in order to achieve an annual overall throughput of well over 3m perfect-bound publications.” BGT’s new Kolbus KM600C is linked to a polywrapping line with products addressed, sorted and boxed inline ahead of dispatch. Kolbus UK sales manager Greg Bird said: “The line is now installed and living up to expectations. We were delighted it was able to fulfil the speed and quality criteria of BGT.”...
read moreBible and Gospel Trust adds to bindery
The Drupa 2012-launched perfect binder has been installed at BGT’s Chessington print site and has replaced the not-for-profit organisation’s existing Kolbus KM470 Ratiobinder, which has been reassigned to one of its overseas sites. The Kingston-headquartered publishing house produces millions of booklets and gospel tracts as well as traditional bibles each year, partially for distribution in the UK, with around 60% exported. BGT invested in the new Kolbus after a demonstration proved it could produce a two-page perfect-bound ‘book’ on a single sheet of 152x99mm, 130gsm paper and four-page cover, at 9,000 copies an hour. The books were then trimmed with a Kolbus HD153P three-knife trimmer. According to BGT plant manager John Marsh the business was sold on the speed of the new Kolbus. He added: “We did trials using some of our existing products and were particularly impressed by the gatherer and trimmer of the Kolbus KM6000C, which had the edge over anything else we had seen for quality and speed. “Consistent high-speed operation was important with run lengths often in the tens of thousands in order to achieve an annual overall throughput of well over 3m perfect-bound publications.” BGT’s new Kolbus KM600C is linked to a polywrapping line with products addressed, sorted and boxed inline ahead of dispatch. Kolbus UK sales manager Greg Bird said: “The line is now installed and living up to expectations. We were delighted it was able to fulfil the speed and quality criteria of BGT.”...
read moreBoE launches polymer banknote consultation
Under the proposals BoE banknotes, currently printed on cotton paper, would be printed instead on thin transparent flexible film made from polypropylene. If the plans go ahead, the first notes to be printed on polymer would be the new-style £5 note featuring Winston Churchill, followed by the new Jane Austen £10 note and larger denominations after that. At the same time as switching to polymer, the BoE also intends to reduce the size of the notes. The new £5 notes will measure 125x65mm, while £10 notes will measure 132x69mm. Each subsequent denomination will be 7mm longer and 4mm higher than the previous one, making them slightly larger than Euro notes. Polymer banknotes have been used in Australia since 1988 and are now issued in more than 20 countries globally. The notes are produced by coating the film on both sides, in multiple layers of white ink, with a ‘window’ usually left clear, often used for security purposes. The white ink forms the base layer used to carry the printed design of each banknote, while security features can be embedded or laid onto the banknotes. The BoE banknote printing contract, which has been held by De La Rue since 2003, was put out to tender at the end of last year with up to five potential operators invited to bid for the new £1bn contract, due to start in 2015. A stipulation of the tender was that the selected supplier would need to accommodate any changes in substrates requested by the governing body. A spokesman for De La Rue, which operates BoE’s Debden, Essex facility, said: “We understand that the Bank of England is considering alternative substrates and we await their decision on that. We are perfectly able to accommodate changes as we have both polymer and cotton paper options. Our methods for both are tried and tested.” A key benefit of polymer notes highlighted by the BoE is cost savings: In the short-term polymer notes would be more expensive than cotton paper to produce because of their increased cost over cotton paper and because of the significant quantities initially needed. But in the long term, because the notes last on average 2.5x longer than cotton paper, fewer would need to be printed to replace worn notes. Announcing the consultation today the BoE’s deputy governor for monetary policy Charlie Bean, said as well as cost savings the notes would bring a raft of other benefits such as greater counterfeit resilience, better durability and higher environmental credentials than paper. He added: “Given these benefits, we are confident that a switch to printing notes on polymer makes sense. But we also recognise that the public takes pride in their banknotes, and that changes to the design and format of notes are consequently of great interest. Because of this, we have decided to consult with the public before making any final decisions.” The consultation will run across the country until 15 November 2013 and a decision will be announced in December....
read moreBoE launches polymer banknote consultation
Under the proposals BoE banknotes, currently printed on cotton paper, would be printed instead on thin transparent flexible film made from polypropylene. If the plans go ahead, the first notes to be printed on polymer would be the new-style £5 note featuring Winston Churchill, followed by the new Jane Austen £10 note and larger denominations after that. At the same time as switching to polymer, the BoE also intends to reduce the size of the notes. The new £5 notes will measure 125x65mm, while £10 notes will measure 132x69mm. Each subsequent denomination will be 7mm longer and 4mm higher than the previous one, making them slightly larger than Euro notes. Polymer banknotes have been used in Australia since 1988 and are now issued in more than 20 countries globally. The notes are produced by coating the film on both sides, in multiple layers of white ink, with a ‘window’ usually left clear, often used for security purposes. The white ink forms the base layer used to carry the printed design of each banknote, while security features can be embedded or laid onto the banknotes. The BoE banknote printing contract, which has been held by De La Rue since 2003, was put out to tender at the end of last year with up to five potential operators invited to bid for the new £1bn contract, due to start in 2015. A stipulation of the tender was that the selected supplier would need to accommodate any changes in substrates requested by the governing body. A spokesman for De La Rue, which operates BoE’s Debden, Essex facility, said: “We understand that the Bank of England is considering alternative substrates and we await their decision on that. We are perfectly able to accommodate changes as we have both polymer and cotton paper options. Our methods for both are tried and tested.” A key benefit of polymer notes highlighted by the BoE is cost savings: In the short-term polymer notes would be more expensive than cotton paper to produce because of their increased cost over cotton paper and because of the significant quantities initially needed. But in the long term, because the notes last on average 2.5x longer than cotton paper, fewer would need to be printed to replace worn notes. Announcing the consultation today the BoE’s deputy governor for monetary policy Charlie Bean, said as well as cost savings the notes would bring a raft of other benefits such as greater counterfeit resilience, better durability and higher environmental credentials than paper. He added: “Given these benefits, we are confident that a switch to printing notes on polymer makes sense. But we also recognise that the public takes pride in their banknotes, and that changes to the design and format of notes are consequently of great interest. Because of this, we have decided to consult with the public before making any final decisions.” The consultation will run across the country until 15 November 2013 and a decision will be announced in December....
read moreBell & Bain takes delivery of Jet Press 540W
The colour inkjet web press was delivered to the book printer’s Glasgow factory yesterday (9 September). It confirmed its order for the machine in June. Managing director Stephen Docherty said: “The arrival has been pretty flawless and it’s being installed as we speak. It’s a wonderful looking bit of machinery.” Installation is set to take a fortnight, with print tests due to commence early next week. Engineers from Fujifilm, Muller Martini and specialist inkjet integrators Matti Technology are on site to set up the press and configure the 100m/min device to run inline with Bell & Bain’s existing Muller Martini Sigma binding line. Docherty said the firm was testing a number of paper stocks for the Jet Press, including a digital silk grade. The £9.3m turnover company employs 82 staff. It recently won an additional contract with client Oxford University Press involving two- and four-colour work for the academic publisher....
read moreBell & Bain takes delivery of Jet Press 540W
The colour inkjet web press was delivered to the book printer’s Glasgow factory yesterday (9 September). It confirmed its order for the machine in June. Managing director Stephen Docherty said: “The arrival has been pretty flawless and it’s being installed as we speak. It’s a wonderful looking bit of machinery.” Installation is set to take a fortnight, with print tests due to commence early next week. Engineers from Fujifilm, Muller Martini and specialist inkjet integrators Matti Technology are on site to set up the press and configure the 100m/min device to run inline with Bell & Bain’s existing Muller Martini Sigma binding line. Docherty said the firm was testing a number of paper stocks for the Jet Press, including a digital silk grade. The £9.3m turnover company employs 82 staff. It recently won an additional contract with client Oxford University Press involving two- and four-colour work for the academic publisher....
read more