Fero has invested in an EFI Nozomi 18000+LED single-pass digital printer to enhance its retail campaigns.

Retail and brand marketing specialist Fero, part of the Branded group of agencies, has purchased an EFI Nozomi 18000+LED for its Letchworth Garden City facility to boost its 2D and 3D brand and retail POS campaign offering to clients. It is being installed currently and will be operational by July.

The device is in addition to Fero’s existing range of presses including a KBA Rapida 205 and Heidelberg Speedmaster in the litho department, while the digital side runs two Inca Onset X3 machines and Inca Onset S50.

Launched by EFI at Fespa 2022, the single-pass printer is based on the Nozomi 18000+ but has a number of enhancements targeted at the display and POS market.

The 1.8m wide 1,000-board per hour machine features pre- and post-coat units, CMYK with orange, violet and white capabilities, and can print on fibre-based and synthetic substrates up to 1.5x3m. It can also be configured to run pallet-to-pallet.

According to Fero managing director Richard Saysell, the new press has been on the company’s radar for some time for its POS work, due to the flexibility to print onto a range of substrates from paper to corrugated and plastics.

“We truly believe the Nozomi Display Graphics model to be the future of our industry,” he said.

“We are excited to be one of the first installations in the world and are looking forward to sharing the potential of the machine with our clients." 

Saysell said the Nozomi would likely impact the firm’s litho print department and that a review of capacity and usage would be carried out once it was fully operational. 

“At Fero, we are driven by continually innovating and improving how we work. This investment is another significant step-change in our future development,” he said.

Fero employs 164 people across two Hertfordshire sites, 51 at Sandy and 113 at Letchworth Garden City. Its services include POS creative, production and fulfilment with Sandy dedicated to collate, pack and fulfilment while the main production takes place at Letchworth Garden City. 

The B-Corp listed business rebranded from Showcard Print in 2020 to reflect its revamped offering under the ownership of Writtle Holdings and sits within the firm’s ‘Branded’ group of businesses.

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