Newcastle commercial printer Shiremoor Press has installed a new Konica Minolta Accuriopress C7090, replacing an eight-year-old Konica Minolta machine.

The new press was bought from reseller SOS and configured with Konica Minolta's IQ-501 automated fast set-up and colour registration software. Installed in January, it was a straight upgrade for Shiremoor in productivity and print capacity.

The firm’s old machine, the Bizhub 1085 that was the company's first foray into digital printing, has been retained for use “now and again,” according to operations director Joe Burke.

Burke added that while the company had decided to swap the old Konica Minolta machine out with a newer model, the decision had not been a foregone conclusion.

He said: “We exhausted the options: other than Konica, we went out to the market, the likes of Ricoh, Xerox, all the others. We went through all the numbers, and what would be beneficial for the company going forward.”

Shiremoor has a diverse workload, printing with a five-colour SRA2 litho press and wide-format machines alongside the two Konica Minoltas.

Stock flexibility was therefore an important factor in choosing the new digital press. The C7090’s ability to print extra long sheets allows for six-page A4 printing, and it will duplex print thicker stocks up to 400gsm, which Burke said was ideal for the firm’s carton manufacturing business.

“Cross platform consistency was another issue which SOS has solved for us,” Burke said, explaining that the firm had recently completed a full Fogra 51 colour audit.

“SOS sent a colour specialist to make that happen, he looked at our pre-press, CTP, litho and digital to calibrate our entire operation to Fogra 51 standards. 

“As it happens, the Konica Minolta was the most accurate machine – SOS made sure the rest of our output was up to the same standard."

The supplier likewise helped Shiremoor switch its platemaking process to Kodak Sonora processless plates.

“It makes CTP a much cleaner and more eco-friendly process,” Burke said, adding that the extra floorspace had been handy, too.

Shiremoor employs 16 staff, turning over £1.2m.