Always at the forefront of new technology, Portsmouth-based Key2 Group is set for further growth after the recent purchase of a brand new Mimaki JV300-160 from Graphic Printing Technologies.  

Key2 Group is a direct manufacturer of signage, graphics, acrylic display, precision plastic fabrication and digital print. The company was founded in 2002 and has always been a pioneer in terms of adopting the latest and most advanced technology in the industry. Mike Keating, the company’s managing director, said: ‘We are a multi-disciplined, ISO-accredited company with the ability to completely handle an entire project for our clients – everything from design and prototype, through to manufacture, print, branding and distributing or installing.  Our customers come from virtually every area of industry; cosmetics, supermarkets, fashion, engineering, design and marketing companies, local government, electronics and pharmaceuticals to name but a few.’

In 2013, the company purchased an Agfa Anapurna M2050, which Mr Keating describes as a defining moment. ‘The Agfa made an immediate impact on our capacity and ability to print direct to substrate, whilst keeping our quality high.  We have also been able to utilise the white printing element to replace screen printing in certain circumstances. This feature is good for us because we can offer a valuable service and it is also good for our customers as it passes on the saving of not having to “buy in” a relatively expensive service for them.’

Continuing the company’s considerable investment in new technology always needs to be balanced with having confidence in the market. The market has been steady over the last 12 months, said Mr Keating: ‘It seems more stable and there is also general vibe of positivity about the coming year. We are very well placed to offer a wide range of services from under one roof and one of our important USPs is that we do everything ourselves – we manufacture and install all our graphics and signage and this helps keep costs down for us and our customers. We also have our own in-house plastic fabrication facility so we can create, for example, bespoke display items for our clients and then continue to brand them ourselves with our own print and graphics.’ 

‘By investing in new machinery, we are able to stay at the forefront of our industry and offer continual excellence in both output and continued quality,’ he continued. ‘We have always had an ethos of investing in the best machinery and this allows us to pass on the benefits it offers in terms of cost savings through faster output or better resolution to our clients, which helps us to retain clients and grow the business.’

The long term relationship with GPT means that Key2 Group also has a lot of experience with the Mimaki range of printers. Mr Keating explained: ‘We have purchased Mimaki machines for the past 10 years due to their general quality of build and reliability, as well as the fact we feel they are reasonably priced. We get exactly what we want for a price we feel is realistic. We have also appreciated the support we have received from GPT. They have very good experience and knowledge of Mimaki printers and have always been responsive and co-operative with everything we are doing.’  

In February 2015, Key2 Group became one of the first companies in the country to take ownership of the new JV300. ‘The new machine will further add to our bank of printers and provide continued reliability and quality because we are very aware we are using the latest technology, which is cost effective.  The high speed of the JV300-160 allows us to maintain the quality of print we are widely known for whilst increasing output to allow us to handle even more projects. We did look at alternative machines but returned to the Mimaki from GPT because we have a good working relationship with them. The Mimakis have excellent build quality and by offering the latest technology we can make a good impression on our very discerning customer base,’ he said. 

In conclusion, Mike Keating said he looks forward to a positive future. ‘With greater technology to offer and the fast speed of the JV300-160, we are keen to promote this widely and gain more enquiries. Many customers are worried that higher speed means suffering in terms of resolution quality, as they have sometimes experienced this with other service providers, but thanks to the Mimaki track record and the benefits of this new machine, we can certainly reassure them. We actively encourage our customers to visit us to see that we actually do what we say we do. They can see our printers working and the output quality they offer which always makes a big difference.’