AG/CAD Sets Platform For Future Success With Digital Sign

Evolving from a company set up to produce linings for oil platform legs in 1978 to its current position as a prestigious print manufacturer at the cutting edge of technology, has required considerable change for Digital Sign Services Ltd. The Guildford based manufacturer has invested considerably over the last three decades to move from producing banners, lorry curtains and trailer covers to large scale digital printing for the outdoor advertising industry and indoor promotional services for retail and exhibition centres.

The innovative print manufacturer has always remained at the forefront of technology by investing in the latest equipment. This has seen Digital Sign develop from a company using 3m and 5m solvent printers in the 2000's and more recently two new 5m wide UV printers, a UV board printer and now a DYSS cutting machine from AG/CAD. The latest investment, the DYSS X7-3220C cutting machine was made as the perfect complement to a Vutec QS3200 board printer that has a 3.2m wide bed for printing roll to roll or boards.

With the 3.2m wide board printer and UV printing machines capable of printing any width up to the 5m maximum, Digital Sign Services realised the need for a cutting machine capable of accommodating the 3m wide boards that are an increasingly important part of the business. As Digital Sign Services Director, Mr Gerry Howell comments: "We bought our board printer in 2008 and with the downturn, further investment was halted. However, the continued increase in business over the last 2-3 years coupled with an increasing demand for board printing has created a necessity for a large bed machine for accurately cutting the boards."

"We reviewed the marketplace and also visited the SIGN UK 2012 exhibition to investigate the available options. Visiting the AG/CAD stand, we were immediately impressed by how attentive they were to our needs. Furthermore they could supply a bespoke 3.2m wide conveyorised bed that was 2m long and the perfect partner for our 3.2m wide printer."

Because they had little experience of cutting tables, Digital Sign Services invited AG/CAD to review the company's needs in more detail. This soon saw the Guildford company taking delivery of a DYSS X7-3220C machine that was configured to their exact requirements in October 2012.

As Mr Howell continues: "We previously cut all our boards by hand. Now, on occasion we will still manually trim some one-off straight edge jobs but we primarily use the cutting table for almost all cutting tasks and particularly for more complex shapes. The benefits have been remarkable."

With three cutting heads that can be automatically changed by the KASEMAKE software installed with the machine, the DYSS accommodates a powerful router for thick board cutting whilst the two additional tool slots offer a realm of opportunities. At Digital Sign Services, the additional tool slots house drag knives for cutting up to 5mm Foamex, display-boards and self adhesive jobs, rotating knives for cutting polyester fabrics whilst eliminating fraying, reciprocating knives for processing foam cards and even a pen tool for job marking. Despite this diversity for cutting and marking thin materials, the DYSS X7 also has the rigidity and power to cut up to 25mm thick on materials such as PVC, Di-Bond and Acrylic with a powerful vacuum table holding the components in place.

As Mr Howell states: "The DYSS machine has made our products more 'saleable'. We have improved our accuracy and edge finishes with the new cutting table. Furthermore, we can cut all shapes and forms, credit to the easy-to-use KaseMake software that links to the K-Cut Vision camera that locates the position of each job to guarantee exceptional accuracy levels."

"In the short period since acquiring the DYSS, we have dramatically increased our capabilities. This has seen existing customers give us more work that was previously beyond our remit. It has also noted customers moving work from competitors, as we can provide a full service for board print and cutting - putting us in a niche market."

"From a productivity standpoint, the 23 employee company is more focused upon quality, as Mr Howell states: "We are not in the high volume business, so quality is more important to us than productivity. However, with one batch of self adhesive stickers for inside refrigerators, we were previously allocating 6 staff for 2-3 days to cut the 3000 stickers that we produce 3-4 times a year. This labour intensive job is now a thing of the past with the DYSS cutting table doing the complete job in just a few hours."

In conclusion, Mr Howell believes: "The DYSS X7 is going to be a fantastic investment for our business. It will undoubtedly increase our customer base and turnover and we are delighted with our purchase and the service from AG CAD. In the longer term, it will give us a massive increase productivity equivalent to an additional member of staff."