Prepress
Reeds succeeds in establishing its colour credentials
Thursday 03. March 2011 - H&H Reeds Printers has underlined its reputation for quality and strong customer service by becoming the first printer in Heidelbergs Northern Division to successfully complete its ISO 12647-2 colour certification programme.
The consultation and calibration stages of Heidelbergs ISO 12647 programme culminate in the evaluation of printed sheets by a team in Germany and only those printers achieving the required colour standard can secure the certificate.
“Being able to run to standardised colour levels and being able to prove it with a credible standard from a company like Heidelberg which is trusted is a key differentiator in a crowded market. Today buyers expect printers to have ecological and colour quality credentials. These are important buying points and we are pleased to be the first in the north to have the Heidelberg certification in place,” says Andy Jackson, managing director.
Reeds Printers was bought by one of its customers H&H Group at the end of last year. Brian Richardson, chief executive of H&H Group (which specialises in business to business enterprises in a variety of industrial and commercial areas), says: “We knew this company well when we bought it and respected its standard of service. Now with ISO 12647-2 colour standard certification it has further evidence of its ability to stand out from the crowd. Reeds dates back to 1878, longevity we want to build on.”
Last year Reeds bought a Speedmaster XL 75-4+L which it runs alcohol free and with vegetable inks. It holds ISO 14001, FSC and PEFC certification, reflecting its emphasis on sustainability and its ability to operate to established procedures. The move to full print colour management is an extension of that.
“Inpress Control has helped a lot in getting us to this stage. It takes the operator and guesswork element out of colour control. It has taken a little time for operators to change their mindsets, to trust this device to adjust the colour and register on the run without any starting and stopping of the press. Now they love it,” says Mr Jackson.
Although there are other routes to attaining evidence that a company is working to ISO 12647-2 standards, H&H Reeds felt working with Heidelberg was a natural extension of the partnership between the two companies and a name that customers would recognise and trust.
Reeds, which is based in Penrith, serves a comprehensive market, from councils and local government through to large and small independent customers, with a broad range of products. These include everything from business cards to 500,000 run colour leaflets and magazine work.