Kings Lynn based commercial printer DSD Colour Printers have upgraded their first generation iSaddle to the latest three tower Duplo iSaddle 5.0 automatic saddle stitcher.
This latest upgrade comes on the back of a 20+ year relationship with Duplo and DSD Printers, dating back to when it was owned and operated by the current owner’s father Dougie Simpson in 1975. Starting out locally by serving neighbouring towns, the Norfolk based printer has grown steadily over the years.
“We’ve been a Duplo customer for decades,” says Shaun Simpson, Managing Director of DSD. “It all started with a Duplo DBM-120 with friction feeder, and as we’ve upgraded our capabilities and grown, and so has our need for faster and more automated booklet makers. We had the original 400 System, then moved onto the 5000 System, graduated onto the first iSaddle and now with Duplo’s flagship iSaddle 5.0. It’s all about how you are looked after down the line, after the purchase. We’ve known Neil Barrett, the Duplo Service Manager in the North for over 20 years now. I trust him completely and we have a great understanding. Any issues arise, it’s Neil to the rescue.”
Neil Barrett, Service Manager North at Duplo said, “Shaun is a straight talker and we get along very well. With the history we’ve both shared I’ve come to see DSD as much more than another Duplo customer. I look at their production and we talk about what they want to achieve, always keeping an eye out for Shaun’s family at DSD, because that’s what it is, everyone there is like family. It’s a really lively place. Their customers absolutely love them and they expect the best from their suppliers – which is fair!”
DSD Colour Printers are a mainly litho run commercial printer with Digital Printing capabilities for short run work. But the iSaddle will be put through its paces on much longer magazine work. “Our magazine work runs from extremely small all the way to 1.7 million – like we did the other day! The iSaddle is a bloody good bit of kit, and Neil is a life saver. I probably keep purchasing Duplo kit simply because I know Duplo’s service is superior to anyone else’s. I know that if I have an issue, Neil will move heaven and earth to fix it. That kind of after service care is difficult to find, even if you are under contract. It’s not just keeping the machines running at peak efficiency but allowing us to fulfil orders on time and at a consistent high quality, it’s priceless.
The iSaddle 5.0 is the latest automatic saddle stitcher to be launched by Duplo. Designed with ease of use in mind, its complete automation and intuitive programming make it possible for a single operator to perform change-over in minimal time, thus swiftly and easily tackling a wide range of formats from the very small to oversize A4 landscape with no manual intervention. In addition to simple booklets, the iSaddle 5.0 can handle covers with pockets and flaps, as well as produce stepped format pages made from up to six different sized sheets within the booklet. Despite being designed to support the varied needs brought on by shorter runs, the iSaddle 5.0 has also been engineered to suit longer runs. This is most apparent at the end of the system in the DKTS-200 Trimmer which will finish a book with a three or five knife trim, allowing 2-up layouts of small format books and so doubling the speed! Production is constantly recorded, allowing users to collect the data and analyse for improving products, services, and operational performance.
Shaun continues, “Duplo equipment has always been quite user intuitive, but with the iSaddle and now the iSaddle 5.0, my operators spend minimal time setting up and changing jobs. Everything is automated and we hardly need to do any manual adjustments. It leaves them to do more complex and labour intensive work around the factory floor. I’ll also put a hand in. I won’t ask anyone to operate a machine that I won’t do – except the press – I’m not touching those again!
We have a great reputation of quality, and the iSaddle is hugely important for this. The majority of our work comes from referrals. We offer a good service at a good price, and our customers keep coming back for more. We offer anything and everything print related, barring newspaper work, and we’re not simply local printers, our customers are from all across the country. We’re comfortable with the steady work and the honesty that comes with it, we offer no artifice or special treatment, we treat all our customers the same, from huge multi nationals to students asking for the odd print job. I think that is key, we are open and honest and it’s why customers keep returning to us. With the current financial market upheavals and energy prices, 2022 saw a downward trend in our output, but these last six months have seen our revenue go through the roof!
