Holywell Press has replaced an ageing Muller Martini Minuteman saddle stitcher with the latest Horizon StitchLiner MkIV. And despite some initial concerns from managing director Ben Burrows, the performance since the machine arrived in August has allayed these.
The Oxford company took a great deal of care before committing to the new machine. Burrows visited the Horizon open house in Germany last year to look at both the machine and the manufacturer. Demonstrations there and since satisfied Burrows that the fold quality could match the separate folding and feeding process that describes traditional saddle stitching.
It is far easier for the business to take on short run work than on the very analogue line. The levels of automation make it fast to set up and fast to change over between jobs with fewer overs needed for set up. The Horizon is easier to operate for less experienced operators and as the operator for the Muller Martini had opted to work fewer days, this became a consideration. As it happened Holywell has taken on an operator with experience of the StitchLiner.
“We wanted a system that is ideal for the short run fast turnaround digital print work we are now doing more and more of,” says Burrows. “Our younger team members are very happy running our Horizon BQ270 single-clamp perfect binder, Horizon folder creaser and HT30 three-side trimmer. They like the touch screen operation and ease of set up.”
The company has felt the impact. A 48pp monthly magazine is now printed in the morning and finished the same afternoon, taking a day out of the production cycle. Burrows also enjoys the fast set up for short run jobs on Colorplan which mans a reduction in the number of sheets needed for makeready.
The longest run so far is 15,000, with the shortest a single-copy proof. “It has surprised me a little in how efficient we have become in short run saddle stitched production,” he says.
The company has been able to cope with some unusual configurations, reducing concerns that the highly automated machine might reduce the company’s flexibility. It has also used the StitchLiner to gather folded book work signatures ahead of sewing and case binding.
Book printing for a range of publishers and individuals in the Oxford area has become something of a speciality for the business.
