Bespoke Printing
We raising the bar for turnaround times, quality and value for money with our latest investment. At Expert print we’re delighted to announce that we have recently added a new press to our current plant list. The Heidelberg XL75 is renowned as the world leader in the B2 market and print unrivalled quality in super quick time.
The Speedmaster XL 75 with its innovative technology and highest automation level has secured a leading position in the Peak Performance Class. It offers the solution without any compromise in the 50 × 70 format range and a maximum of availability, shortest makeready times as well as consistent high production speeds which ensure the decisive competitive edges in technology and productivity.
The Speedmaster XL 75 offers comprehensive configuration possibilities and satisfies even the most unusual and demanding requirements of customers in commercial and packaging printing. The configuration possibilities range from two to ten printing units, either with or without perfecting device or coating unit. Depending on requirement, the Speedmaster XL 75 can be equipped with packages that allow to reduce makeready times and increase productivity as well as with various components such as, for example, from the Star System. The result is a customized machine that offers you the added value you need for an exceptional market positioning and the guarantee that you are optimally equipped for the future.
As a pioneer for eco-friendly printing Heidelberg develops solutions to reduce CO 2 and process emissions as well as waste and to eliminate it. Therefore, the Speedmaster XL 75 is not only the benchmark for productivity. The high energy efficiency and the careful use of resources make it the most eco-friendly machine in its class. If requested, the Speedmaster XL 75 can be offered as a CO 2 -neutral press, as is the case with all other presses from Heidelberg. By means of a measuring device it is possible to measure and visualize the machine’s energy efficiency per 1000 sheets during the production. This allows the operator to operate the machine in a very energy-efficient way. Another possibility to reduce the energy demand is to use again the waste heat of the DryStar Combination dryer for the drying process by means of heat recovery. The Star System peripherals are perfectly coordinated with the press. They are highly efficient and designed to conserve energy and resources. The reduction or even the complete renouncement of alcohol thanks to the equipment of the machine with special packages is another important contribution to eco-friendly printing. This results in a print process that delivers eco-friendly operation at lower costs.
We print thousands of business cards each week. They come in so many different forms, shapes and sizes and there isn’t really an idea that we haven’t seen. But do you know where they originated from? We didn’t and what we found was quite interesting…
Business cards are in fact an adoption from the French court etiquette. The first form of business cards were called Visiting Cards or ‘Visite Biletes’ and were the size of playing cards. In fact, in there rawest form, they started as playing cards and visitors would write their signatures, promissory notes or a little message on them. These later developed into greetings cards and the like which we give today.
The first Visiting Cards appeared in France during King Louis XIV reign and were used as a way to introduce the owner in grand display of wealth and importance. Across different countries, there was a more separation between Visiting Cards and Business Cards though.
If we skip across the channel to England, they were known as Tradecards and were around in the 17th Century. They were a mix of what we would today class as Business Cards and Leaflets; with the company name and address on them, sometimes along with a map as there was no formal numbering system at that time.
Once we reach the 19th Century, Tradecards were still used but in monotone but engraving had become more popular. Sometime in the 1830’s lithography using several colours became established in Europe and throughout the 19th Century new technology and improved speed of communication made printing more and it became easier and more affordable to print.
So there you have it. The slightly obscure history of the business card as we have found it. It does throw a different light onto something that we no consider to be a basic business necessity and it show just how far we have come in the printing industry!
Now many people will argue that the printing industry isn’t exactly the most eco-friendly industry around. And yes, obviously printers use paper and ink and such; but many printers now offer a whole range of ‘green’ products for companies that want to do their bit for the environment.
With the government putting more pressure on businesses to look at their Green Policies, printers have had to look at new ways in which they can offer this to businesses and keep them coming back as repeat customers.
For example, we offer a recycled leaflet range that is printed on 100% uncoated paper and, if the customer wants a gloss or silk finish, we boast a 55% recycled rate. Not only does this appeal to customers who want to be able to show that they are making steps towards being eco-friendly; the organic look that it gives the promotional material is really popular to recipients.
Talk to you printer to see what range of recycled products they do; you may very well be surprised. While not everything the print industry does is eco-friendly, we are certainly starting to develop a new and better way of thinking when it comes to our green credentials.
Everything from leaflets, brochures, postcards, business cards and presentation folders could potentially be made from recycled material. Maybe one day all printed materials will be made using recycled paper, but until then we will always try to do our best to meet customers’ expectations in the area of recycled printed material.
There are many different ways that you can present your company and brand to customers and other businesses. Most of the time it can come down to personal preferences or budget but there are other factors to consider when making the choice between a Brochure and a Presentation Folder.
Your typical brochure is widely popular as way to send information out to customers. It is a neat and effective way of collating all of the information about your company. Brochures can come in all shapes and sizes and it is this versatility that makes it a powerful tool. The fact that you can use it to really show off your creative flare is a major attraction too. Practically, it means that you can have a set of brochures which keeps all of your marketing material in one place, making it easier to store.
Presentation folders are becoming much more popular with SME’s and start-up businesses. The main reason for this is the cost effective nature of having a Presentation Folder combined with inserts.
A company can have a main folder or cover that has all of its branding and company logos on, but the inserts give the company flexibility in what information they can send out. Waste is reduced and it means you can be much more specific and target certain services to certain customers. The other advantage is that if a new product or service is added, or something significant changes within the business, then the you don’t have the larger cost of printing a whole new range of brochures (plus losing out on any you still have in stock). You can simply add a new insert or update an insert which is considerably cheaper than printing a full re-run of a brochure. The down side is that you physically have more materials to store, and the on-going cost of replacing inserts.
So there are cases for both that need to be considered. It is always best to look at who you are targeting, the services you are offering and your budget. In the end, they both do the same job, just in a different way.
