Devon-based model manufacturer and printer has added a SinoColor compact UV flatbed printer to an existing DTO line-up after testing it against the established brands
PECO has installed a SinoColor FB-0906 compact UV flatbed printer from China Print Supplies (CPS) at its factory in Beer, Devon. Pritchard Patent Product Co Ltd, which trades as PECO, has been manufacturing models and accessories since 1946 and has operated in Beer since 1971. The company is using the new printer to support product development and commissioned work and is the latest of several direct-to-object printers it uses.
Tim Vincent, Head of Manufacturing at PECO, says, “The initial investment was made not only to grow our product lines but also to keep pace with commissions. We really wanted to see how the technology from a Chinese manufacturer stacks up against our existing machines.”
Much of the printing at Beer is applied directly to the model wagons and coaches. PECO has been doing this work for years on flatbeds from established manufacturers, so it entered the market knowing exactly what it needed and put the SinoColor FB-0906 up against the machines already on its floor.
Tim says, “We were initially attracted by the machine’s specifications, print quality and speed. All commercial aspects of this printer leave the competition in its wake. It is faster, cheaper and the quality is far superior.”
PECO’s operators were already familiar with direct-to-object printing, so the installation focused on getting the most out of a new machine rather than learning the process. Scott Clutton, Managing Director at CPS, carried out the on-site installation and training. “Scott was great and tailored the pace of training to our experience levels. Since installation, we have also been very happy with the level of support offered by CPS,” says Tim.
Printing directly onto objects requires holding each item in the same position each time it goes on the bed, so the first task was to build the fixtures to locate PECO’s own components accurately.
Tim concludes, “After the initial set-up of the various fixtures, we started using the machine and haven’t looked back. Our next question is, when do we get a second one?”
