Demand Sees Hickling & Squires Install Third Titanium Cutter News by Hannah Davenport
The additional machine joins the recently installed Konica Minolta AccurioJet 30000 in a newly built room
Hickling & Squires has responded to increased customer demand by adding a third Titanium 2516 digital cutter to its operations.
Choosing the cutter, supplied by International Graphic Supplies (IGS) and installed this month at the company’s Nottingham facility, was an easy choice said Jamie Gilbert, production director at Hickling & Squires.
Gilbert described the Titanium cutters as “absolute workhorses”.
He explained: "As our volume in custom packaging and wide-format signage has grown, bringing in a third Titanium cutter was the natural next step.
“The reliability and precision give us the confidence to take on larger, more intricate jobs without worrying about bottlenecks."
The firm spent £30,000 on the refurbished machine.
Talking to Printweek, Gilbert noted the cutter’s familiarity and reliability as pull factors in choosing this model.
“We know the software, and it is a reliable machine. I've never had any problems with the other two that I've got,” he said.
Choosing the same model meant training wasn’t necessary, except for roughly 30 minutes on software updates.
His six-year-long working relationship with IGS managing director Peter Flynn was also an influential driver in sticking with the machine.
Motivation to add another cutter came from a recent increase in customer demand.
“We're busy all the time, so we just needed the extra capacity,” said Gilbert.
POS had experienced the biggest increase in demand, Gilbert said, while the company had also received a flurry of customers following Printweek’s coverage of its recent Konica Minolta AccurioJet 30000 install.
“Soon as that went in Printweek, that night we had six or seven emails from new customers that we would never have had,” said Gilbert.
In May the business took delivery of the UK’s first AccurioJet 30000 B2 inkjet press.
It has since helped Hickling & Squires take on new jobs and output on a wider range of substrates.
A new custom-built room was erected at the commercial printer’s production facility to accommodate the AccurioJet.
This room is now also the home for the additional digital cutter.
However this has brought the printer’s space to near capacity, “I've got no more space for anything else,” said Gilbert.
The printer specialises in litho, web-to-print, digital and large-format.
Since bringing in the extra cutter, “we're turning around jobs a lot quicker,” Gilbert reflected.
Hickling & Squires employs 39 people, generating sales of around £5.5m.