CDM Plastics brings printing in-house with Dlican flatbed purchase

British acrylic and plastic fabrication company, CDM Plastics, has brought its printed point of sale (POS) work in-house for the first time by installing a Dlican DLI-2513 UV flatbed printer and a Kartech KT1625 digital cutting table from China Print Supplies (CPS).

The Redditch-based acrylic fabricator produces displays, signage, and graphics for a range of UK retail brands. Until this year, it outsourced most of its printing work to subcontractors.

By running both processes in-house, CDM Plastics can now gain more control of its deadlines and keep its print margin inside the company.

Carl Way, production director at CDM Plastics, says: “We had a smaller printer which we used for roll work and prototyping, and then we subcontracted everything else.

“We were subbing out so much that it was getting more difficult to effectively manage workflows. Thanks to the new machines from CPS, we have taken control of the process as well as benefiting from additional margin.”

The search for a new in-house production solution led to a shortlist of two machines, including the Dlican 2513, with Way arranging to see both running before committing.

The Dlican is able to print on rigid sheet up to 2.5m by 1.3m and was specified with additional printheads than the competitor machine, which can result in increased output speeds on longer runs.

Way explains: “In our demonstrations, we felt that the Dlican was much better and much faster. The quality was really good, and with the extra heads in it, the speed was phenomenal.”

In terms of the cutting table, CDM was already running CNC routers and lasers so the requirement was for a digital cutter to sit alongside them rather than replace anything.

Way notes that the combination of price and quality that the Kartech machine provides helped it beat out other options. He adds: “An added benefit is that it works seamlessly with the Dlican, creating a fast, high-quality workflow.”

CDM also highlights that the service and expertise provided by CPS was a key reason for the purchase, with engineers from China who are specialists on the machines arriving to help with installation and training.

Alongside this, Way notes that as a company quite new to printing, the user-friendly nature of the solutions was a key benefit.

Way adds: “We expect a rapid return on our investment by removing the need to outsource our printing and finishing work.

“The new setup gives us more control over workflows and costs. We are not waiting on anyone else to hit our deadlines now and that means we can take on more work, more competitively, and with better margins.”