March 14th 2024 in Case Studies, Technology, Company, Uncategorised
How things have changed…
In 1991 Park Lane Press operated as a trade printer catering primarily to the local book manufacturers and to other printers who struggled to achieve the quality their clients required. We out-sourced the film and plate making and all of our finishing; it was how many printers operated in those days.
We used three lithographic presses, a guillotine and a fork lift truck, a total of five pieces of equipment. It wasn’t easy but so simple back then when clients just wanted leaflets and brochures. We didn’t have mobile phones or even a computer and relied on a fax machine for quotes and orders.
Roll on 30 years and how things have changed. So have we, physically, mentally, and professionally. Since 1991 we have produced 62,532 invoiced jobs to date. That’s a considerable amount of communication and problem solving with very few jobs going wrong – I know that’s hard to believe but it’s true!
The reason I’m being so nostalgic is that we are about to buy another price of equipment next week – a paper banding machine. Not the biggest investment but an important part of the change to our industry. Our clients now prefer belly band finished goods, rather than shrink wrapping.
This got me thinking about the amount of machinery we have at the factory now that we are a “one stop shop”, basically we do it all. On a walk around the factory I counted dozens of machines, some large and some small. I’m sure this is replicated around the country in one form or another, but as they say it’s not what you have it’s the way that you use it, and I’m proud to say we know how to use it!
We are no longer a trade printer but a full service provider, handling variable data, online stock control, pick and pack, fulfilment, distribution and logistics, and the usual weird and wonderful jobs, always finding solutions to clients’ individual requirements and taking their hassle away, currently 62532 times!
