The Future of Print Finishing by Duplo International’s Marc Legge

We spoke with print finishing experts Duplo International about their company and future print business predictions…

Introduction to Duplo International

Hi, my name is Marc Legge and I am the UK Marketing Manager for Duplo International Limited (www.duplointernational.com). All Duplo equipment is manufactured by Duplo Corporation in Japan. Duplo International Ltd. is an independent, family-owned UK business. From our office in Surrey we have been distributing Duplo print finishing equipment throughout Europe, Africa and the Middle East for almost 30 years. In all we supply to 108 countries using one or two appointed agents in each country. We also have subsidiary offices in France and Poland. Approximately two-thirds of our sales are via exports and the remaining one-third is business transacted domestically in the UK.

Duplo Products

Duplo products are designed and built with the concept of what we call Automated Precision. This literally means we aim to create reliable, accurate, flexible and highly productive solutions to the challenges faced by today’s print businesses. The equipment we sell is manufactured in ISO 9001 and 14001 certified factories giving our customers the assurance of international quality control standards and environmental sensitivity. Historically Duplo was renowned for its paper collators and bookletmakers and these are still a best seller amongst litho printers the world over. In recent years the company has spearheaded development of print finishing solutions for digital printers and today the company is widely regarded as the market leader in this area. With 25-UK based engineers and technical support staff, we have more field service engineers than any other print finishing supplier in the country. We hold £2m of spare parts held in Addlestone HQ (17,000 units). We also run a successful apprenticeship scheme for training the next generation of print industry engineers.

Solopress and Duplo

Solopress chose to invest in a Duplo System 5000 Bookletmaking line in spring 2011. The machine works by automatically collating together the printed pages, before stitching, folding and trimming the edges to produce a finished book. The System 5000 is particularly relevant for businesses like Solopress where they produce a range of different applications, with different sizes, on different paper stocks and from different print engines. At the heart of the System 5000 is the Duplo DC-10/60 collator tower that features a dual fan feeding system that enables it to handle a huge range of different paper types. Once the operator has loaded the towers, the machine can be made ready for another job in as little as 30 seconds. Fine adjustments to folding and stapling positions can be made within 0.1mm. Together, the turnaround and accuracy combine to produce phenomenal productivity. Solopress are producing premium quality brochures on their System 5000 and the company’s customers have been delighted with their brochures.

The Future of Print

Print has evolved dramatically over the years. In the past it was all about huge production runs, customers would hold tonnes of literature in stock, you’d get one or two gigantic orders a year. Today’s print is about short-runs, personalisation, fast turnaround and just in time delivery. More and more, cross media campaigns use print to drive customers online through technology such as QR codes and Augmented Reality. As a visibly dynamic and technology-centric organisation, Solopress are well prepared for the future. The company already maximises the use of social media and online marketing to win and retain customers. Behind the scenes, Solopress is constantly investing in the best print production machinery on the market to enable it to meet future challenges. Duplo are delighted to be able to count Solopress amongst our best customers and we look forward to working with them on future projects.