14 February 2020

Route 1 Print takes first Konica Minolta MGI JETvarnish 3D Evo 75 in the UK

The UK’s largest online trade printer, Route 1 Print, has partnered with Konica Minolta to enhance its product offering with the investment in an MGI embellishment press. The top of the range JETvarnish 3D Evo 75 + iFoil L, which is the first of its kind in the UK, will be adding high value effects to print jobs at the company’s South Yorkshire facility.
 
The trade print division of Bluetree Group, Route 1 Print, already boasts an impressive line-up of equipment, including four litho and ten digital printing presses, at its 147,000 square foot production site in Rotherham. Dispatching over 5,500 jobs every week, the company serves the majority of its trade customers via a dedicated online portal. It had been relying on an older digital varnishing press for creating spot UV effects, but the machine was no longer fit for purpose as customer demand was outstripping capacity.
 
To find a solution, the company turned to Konica Minolta and its MGI portfolio of embellishment presses, quickly homing in on the JETvarnish 3D Evo 75 + iFoil L. Route 1 Print operates a sophisticated production workflow, and the investment in the most advanced and highly automated model, complete with inline foiling, will enable it to offer premium finishes to increase value and appeal.
 
The versatile MGI JETvarnish 3D Evo 75 is a B1 format digital spot UV and foiling press, which can process up to 2,291 B1 sheets per hour, tackling stock between 135 and 800 gsm. It can lay down coatings from just 6 microns in thickness up to raised 3D tactile effects at 232 microns, all done using a single clear varnish, while the integrated iFoil L module adds hot foil effects. The Evo benefits from a range of automating features, including the Artificial Intelligence Smartscanner (AIS) for precise and fully automated registration, without the use of crop marks, in real time.
 
“We were incredibly impressed with the capabilities of this machine and the opportunities it offers,” said Route 1 Print’s Managing Director, Adam Carnell. He explained, “With the MGI JETvarnish 3D Evo, we can introduce spot UV on a wider range of products, the option for low and high-build spot UV and, in due course, foiling. It’s also highly automated, meaning we can set up multiple jobs one after the other, moving from long-run booklets to short-run business cards with ease. This was especially important to us because the demand for spot UV has increased in the past year. We needed equipment that would speed up production times without sacrificing quality. In fact, the MGI will improve our spot UV quality due to the AIS registration and inline corona treatment.”
 
On the new partnership, Mr Carnell commented, “So far, working with Konica Minolta has been fantastic. They have given us unrivalled support throughout the entire journey, and we would not hesitate to work with the team in the future.”
 
Grahame Megilley, Industrial Print Business Development Manager, Konica Minolta Business Solutions (UK) Ltd, said, “We are extremely pleased to partner with such a dynamic company and enable them to add advanced digital embellishment capabilities to an already extensive offering. Before making the final choice, the Route 1 team did a thorough assessment of the competition, but it was clear that the MGI JETvarnish 3D Evo offered the best potential. Most importantly, the Evo’s very advanced automation features fit perfectly with the established workflow at Route 1 Print, and there is no doubt that this machine will support the company’s growth hugely as it continues to lead the online trade print market.”