James Lavin, managing director, Leach
Graphic display specialist Leach has purchased a new Durst Rhotex 325 printer, doubling its capacity.
The half a million-pound investment – the latest technological evolution since the Chargeurs acquisition – means the company can now achieve a 500sqm per hour print rate.
The Rhotex 325 is capable of printing onto an array of materials using water-based ink, and will also widen the project briefs that the Huddersfield-based printer is able to satisfy.
With a suite of equipment within the 30,000sqm factory, the company can now manufacture both indoor and outdoor graphics, reusable products, as well as graphics for technologically challenging shapes, structures and specifications.
James Lavin, managing director, said, ‘As demand from the retail, exhibition and heritage sectors continues to rise, we are passionate about being able to help more clients, as quickly as we can, without any detriment to quality. The addition of this equipment means that we now have technology capable of satisfying virtually any print brief, regardless of budget, environmental agendas, lighting specification and material preferences.’
A site visit to the manufacturer’s production facility in Brixen, North Italy, was required before the final decision was made.
Mr Lavin continued, ‘We had to be certain of the run rate and quality, and the only way to truly verify this was to see the Durst Rhotex 325 in action. The system can alternate between direct-to-textile and transfer printing, meaning maximum flexibility for our busy team moving forwards. When the printer and sublimating technology arrived at our Huddersfield HQ, it took a full week to install and configure, but we were ready to accommodate the machine without any disruption. We’d also revised some of our wider factory layout in readiness and have achieved further operational efficiencies as a result.’
