The Horizon StitchLiner 6000 can run at 12,000 books per hour in two-up mode.
The purchase of a first digital press can often lead to a reappraisal of finishing capabilities, and that is exactly what has happened at PBL Print in Chester-le-Street.
The result has been investment in a Horizon StitchLiner 6000 from Intelligent Finishing Systems to replace an SPF 200A/FC-200A bookletmaker, as the company seeks to become more responsive to short turnaround work.
PBL Print recently added a Linoprint digital press to its pressroom firepower of four B2 and B3 Heidelberg offset presses. The £4 million turnover company specialises in public sector clientele, with half of its work for the NHS and the rest focusing on public sector organisations such as universities and the police.
Eric Stevenson, managing director, explained: ‘We needed to speed up our booklet production as we were getting backlogs that were creating bottlenecks and resulting in the need for overtime.
‘Runs are getting shorter and shorter so we bought the Linoprint for work that wasn’t as profitable to run on the Heidelberg presses. Then we needed a faster finishing solution that was quick to set up for the short runs. We liked the StitchLiner 6000 because we can interrupt long run work to complete quick turnarounds.’
He said that ease of set up, ease of use and productivity were the main benefits. Also, the books produced are much flatter, which improves their overall appearance, and enables more to be packed into each box for easier transportation.
The StitchLiner 6000incorporates a centre knife in the three-knife trimmer to double running speed to 12,000 books per hour in two-up production. A new landscape feeding and straight saddle-stitching flow enables the smooth production of thinner paper stocks and larger, landscape-oriented sheets.
