Print Extra, jointly owned by Maciej and Robert Pospiech, installed its first Komori, the four-color Lithrone S29 H-UV in 2015, primarily for commercial print, and it has the fast-drying low-energy H-UV technology that helped Print Extra introduce packaging production into its portfolio.

So much so, that in 2018 the company installed another press, this time what was Poland's first Lithrone G29 -- with five printing units, coater, and the added flexibility of hybrid H-UV.

Says Maciej Pospiech, "With the Lithrone G29 we made substantial inroads into the packaging market, giving us the confidence to introduce more packaging-focused equipment into our finishing lines, including a die-cutter and a folder-gluer."

Adds Robert Pospiech, "The UV technologies of the five-color Lithrone G29 enabled us to add special colors and different varnish finishes, giving us a stronghold in the packaging market. Despite Covid, which adversely affected the demand for commercial print, packaging production demand increased significantly, and as we increased our packaging client base across Poland and beyond, we knew that the packaging sector was the key to the company's future development."

Maciej Pospiech notes, "This had far-reaching consequences. To capitalize on our planned future investments, expansion and consolidation of our headquarters were needed, with an enlarged machine park to accommodate the additional press, prepress, and packaging-specific finishing equipment. Our recently completed reconstruction has tripled the size of our production area and also created more warehousing for raw materials to ensure we are always able to deliver quick response times and to provide storage when necessary to relieve the pressures on customers' storage facilities."

Packaging Specification Lithrone G40 advance

The new six-color Lithrone G40 advance at Print Extra includes the packaging print specification with the Full-APC Automatic Plate Changer, the PQA-S Inline Print Quality Assessment System, and the PDC-SX Spectral Print Density Control. The press runs at speeds up to 16,500 sph, a benefit which influenced Print Extra's decision to add a 40-inch press to its machine firepower.

Explains Robert Pospiech, "As high volumes of packaging print started to feature more prominently on our production schedule, we had no doubt that extra printing capacity was essential. Our first thoughts were to add another 29-inch press but when we looked at the new 40-inch Lithrone G40 advance series and, in particular, when the teams from Komori and Reprograf-Grafikus, its sole distributor in Poland, introduced us to the packaging version, its productivity and control technologies were decision changers for us."

"It had everything we considered a packaging production machine should have. The additional plinth to increase feeder and delivery pile heights, the inline optical inspection camera, the spectral density control, the automated plate change, varnishing options -- and critically, every streamlined aspect of press management."

"We could see that not only would it massively increase our output but also improve our competitiveness. That has held true, and now even runs reaching hundreds of thousands integrate smoothly into our schedules. The flexibility to produce on a full range of packaging substrates and add a whole variety of hybrid and UV varnish finishes also gives our design team the opportunity to propose new added value creative ideas for our clients' packaging. We also added new high-speed finishing facilities such as saddle-stitching, foil stamping, further binding options, and laminating to accompany our 40-inch die-cutting and folder gluing."

Print Extra has maintained a growth rate of 30% before and after the installation of the Lithrone G40 advance. As Maciej Pospiech reports, "Almost every week new customers provide us with the opportunity to explain how our investments such as the Lithrone G40 advance, under our philosophy -- Printing for Business -- are all in reality for the benefit of their businesses!"