CPI Antony Rowe takes fifth award-winning Océ press
Growing demand for high quality on-demand book printing prompts new investment
Brentwood, Essex, 7 September, 2009 — CPI Antony Rowe, which is part of the CPI Group, Europe’s largest monochrome printer, has invested in a fifth award-winning Océ VarioPrint 6250® printing system with in-line folder. This latest investment by the pioneer of “on-demand” printing is the next piece of a planned three-year strategy to ensure the company’s capacity stays well ahead of customer demand.
The deal is another milestone for CPI Antony Rowe, which has been helping publishers transform their businesses by meeting the ever-changing demands in a marketplace which has seen many changes in the last 10 years. From inventory management to direct fulfilment, CPI Antony Rowe has been instrumental in changing the way publishers and authors think about book production.
It is also another landmark success for Océ, an international leader in digital document management, as new research confirms its position at the forefront of on-demand printing with a 65% market share in the UK.
The Océ presses at the Eastbourne, Sussex site, are helping to meet the increase in demand through greater productivity and keep CPI Antony Rowe not only at the forefront of the print-on-demand digital revolution, but also its position as one of the UK’s premier suppliers in this market sector.
The further investment at the innovative printing plant in Eastbourne follows the successful installation of four other Océ VarioPrint 6250 printing systems in the last two years. They are being run on a 24 hour basis, seven-days a week for ultra short run and single copy on-demand book printing.
“Print on demand has revolutionised the book printing industry and transformed our business, as no book is ever now needed to be placed out of print. Typically our Eastbourne site receives in excess of 30,000 orders per month with an average run of four copies. With run lengths starting at just one copy we are able to economically manage through our automated order control system which connects directly to the Océ 6250s through the PRISMA server.” said Martin Collyer, CPI Antony Rowe’s General Manager at Eastbourne. “All publishers can now bring books to market at minimal risk, by having the ability to print short run lengths cost effectively they are able to measure market demand. All of this has been enabled through Océ’s technology. The Océ VarioPrint 6250 is a fast, reliable and productive printing system and has been consistently producing the high quality results demanded by our customers.”
‘’The CPI Group has seen significant growth in shorter runs, not just for the academic market but for trade books as well’’ says Ralph Bell, Division General Manager. ‘’We are in a unique position in the UK book manufacturing sector to handle titles from one to a million copies across group companies.’’
Steve Wilson, Océ UK’s Production Printing Director, said: “Online bookstores have expanded choice and availability almost to infinity. Ultra-short-run reprinting and print-on-demand are critical agents for these changes. We are delighted to be at the forefront of the surge in on-demand book printing, which means printers can produce books to order with absolutely no barriers on quality.
“Our own research among 200 publishers shows that, in the UK, Océ has a 65% market share in terms of short run book production volumes, but being No. 1 doesn’t mean we’re complacent. We’re constantly investing in new technology and introducing new products so we can offer the widest range and most cost-effective systems – both colour and mono – in the marketplace.”
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Notes to Editors
About Océ
Océ is one of the world's leading providers of document management and printing for professionals. The broad Océ offering includes office printing and copying systems, high speed digital production printers and wide format printing systems for both technical documentation and colour display graphics. Océ is also a foremost supplier of document management outsourcing. Many of the world’s Fortune 500 companies and leading commercial printers are Océ customers. The company was founded in 1877. With headquarters in Venlo, the Netherlands, Océ is active in over 90 countries and employs some 24,000 people worldwide. Total revenues in 2008 amounted to € 2.9 billion. For more information on Océ visit www.oce.com
About CPI Antony Rowe
Antony Rowe is part of CPI Group, the world’s largest producer of mono books. Its core business is in short- to medium-run book production and has a strategy of embracing and adapting new printing technology to suit their customers' needs. Antony Rowe has a £19m turnover and employs 260 people across three UK sites. It is the market leader in short-run manufacture and pioneer of the on-demand printing revolution. Antony Rowe prints and distributes for a wide variety of specialist publishers - from legal and scientific to technical and historic - and offer customers cost-effective solution for their books, E-books, journals, dictionaries, directories, yearbooks, reference books, indexes, guidebooks, legal books and loose-leaf publications.