IFS celebrated a series of milestones in its 36-year relationship with Horizon in London last week, in front of company president Ejiro Hori and IFS chairman Tony Hards.
While both men are now winding down to the end of their successful careers, it was very different at the beginning of the long partnership. Then Hards had to press the case to represent the Japanese company in the UK, eventually making the breakthrough to what has been a spectacularly fruitful arrangement. The presentations last week celebrated this with trophies to mark landmark machines installed in the UK.
These included the 200th Horizon StitchLiner installed at Enveco in Milton Keynes; the 100th BQ470 four-clamp binder at BCQ where it is linked to an HT1000V trimmer; the 175th BQ270 perfect binder at Flexpress, Leicester; the 200th AFC folder at Orphans Press in Leominster and the 250th booklet maker at DG3. This is soon to be joined by another booklet maker, following receipt of a signed order from DG3 at the presentation lunch in London last week.
Healeys and Remous also received recognition as members of the IFS Premier User Group.
Hori-san took in the event while on a visit to Europe with his wife. His son has taken over leadership of the European operation in Germany and is being groomed to follow his father at the head of the expanding finishing equipment supplier. Hards was also accompanied by his wife, Pauline, known to a generation of customers dealing with the business when located in Perivale.
When the collaboration between the two companies (IFS was then Graphic Arts Equipment) began, Horizon was building light production equipment suitable for inplant and small offset printing, including collating towers and its booklet makers. In the years since, it has pushed into litho with B2 and now B1 folders, the highly successful StitchLiner and perfect binders. The pinnacle of this currently is the SmartStacker for automated finishing of B2 sheets.
Hards, now 76, became chairman of IFS earlier this year and has remained active in the business this year as it has transitioned under managing director Bryan Godwyn, who has been joined as a shareholder by technical sales director Jason Seaber.
Godwyn says: “It was an event to celebrate the 36 years of wonderful cooperation with Horizon and the generations of users and machines made by the Horizon company. We also wanted to thank our incredible customers for their continued support and loyalty.”
The presentations were not all one way. Helen Bowden, director of Orphans Press, handed a copy of Visualising the Beatles, a copy of a book that the company had designed, printed and published itself. It is available through Amazon, the Beatles experience in Liverpool and branches of Waterstones. “We are now trying to get distribution in the US,” she says, “where the interest in the Beatles is vast.” The same can be said of Japan.
The book tells the story of the pioneering pop group through very modern infographics. It prints on two B2 Speedmasters and an HP Indigo before folding on the Horizon AFC folder. It had earlier bought a Stitchliner from IFS. “Our satisfaction with the performance and durability of previous Horizon kit cemented the decision,” she says.
Healeys installed a further Stitchliner earlier this year leading to managing director Philip Dodd rising thank the Japanese business on behalf of the guests. Enveco has installed its Stitchliner to develop a business producing bespoke branded notebooks for high street retailers. ”We did look at other systems on the market but we had already had a Horizon system so understood the build quality and usability,” says chairman Piyush Shah.
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Helen Bowden, director of Orphans Press, presented Ejiro Hori with the book of infographics about the Beatles that the company has published and printed. She had been presented with one of the awards handed out by IFS managing director Bryan Godwyn.
