Images_December_2019_Digital Edition

www.images-magazine.com DECEMBER 2019 images 49 IS BRAND PROFILE Adelco launched the innovative Dual Dryer in 2017 ago, establishing a factory in Kunshan to the west of Shanghai. With Leigh and Daniel spending much of their time in China, this is very much a core part of the business rather than a third- party arrangement. “We manufacture all our products in China. Everything is done in-house. Almost everything is 100% vertical. It is very important for us to keep it in-house as we are always looking to keep control of quality. It’s really the only way to do it,” Luke explains. Since opening, the factory has undergone expansion in 2011 and again in 2014, doubling its capacity. “China is growing really fast,” Luke adds. “It is the best place for us to manufacture in the world.” He continues: “I like to think we are very innovative because of what we have at our fingertips in China. We have designers over there and can turn things around unbelievably fast.” Recent innovations have included the Dual Dryer, launched in 2017, which combines the benefits of two dryers within the footprint of a single unit. “We came up with the idea and designed it, providing a smaller-footprint dryer that has two individual belts and two individual burners. We are the only company in the world to produce a dual dryer.” Digital future Sales in the UK have been diversifying over the past 10 years, Luke points out. “In the UK, we were primarily known as dryer manufacturers, but we have been branching into screen print as well. In that way, you could say we have done it a bit back to front but it made sense for us. We started with ovals and then, more recently, we have started producing our own carousels.” Carousels are the most popular Adelco presses in the UK, but ovals remain in demand overseas, especially in Asia Pacific because garment printers use more special colours and discharges, Luke reports. In spite of broadening its screen printing machinery offering, Luke is adamant that “the future is digital”. As well as distributing Kornit’s digital printers, Adelco has also launched the AD Hybrid Digital – a high-speed digital station designed as an add- on for its automatic screen printing presses. It means that digital print, spot- colour, glitter and other special effects can all be carried out on one machine. However, Luke concedes that the appeal of this add-on will not exist forever. “We recognise the fact that this has a window of opportunity because the cost per print is coming down with fully digital machines. We are seeing it closing the gap on screen printing.” Nevertheless, he says there is still a place for screen printing in the market. “With conventional print, it’s currently the only way to do special colours, glitter metallics... You can’t do that with full digital yet. The market will continue to change: it’s slowly going digital. It is leaning more towards ecommerce rather than bricks-and-mortar stores, and that is changing how you handle the order from web to print to dispatch.” Sustainability is high on the agenda at Adelco, where its designers are looking at ways to meet demand for more eco- friendly processes – from supplying environmentally friendly inks to reducing water wastage. “Where people weren’t that bothered about it before, more and more people are becoming aware of it,” Luke says. “The big retail outlets are insistent on greener suppliers and going greener, and that’s coming down the line. For us, the angle we take is that we have to produce eco-friendly machines based on how efficiently they can run.” In terms of alternative fuel, there are no options for powering dryers other than electricity or gas at present. For Adelco, about 90% of the dryers sold in the UK run on gas because this works out cheaper. However, Luke notes that electric dryers do give companies the option of turning to environmentally friendly energy sources, such as solar-powered electricity. “This is more expensive but you can get various grants to run on greener energy,” he points out. Massive focus Sustainability is also on the agenda at Thermotron, especially as its machines are currently designed to bag garments into polyethylene bags. “It is something that Thermotron is working on,” Luke says. He notes how the amount of plastic being used is a “massive focus” for garment companies and retailers. However, Thermotron does offer a means to for at least reducing plastic packaging already, with its modular system allowing decorators to put more than one garment in a bag. “We have customers who are folding garments and then they go to stacking where they can be bagged afterwards with multiple garments so they can save on plastic,” Luke explains. With a worldwide distribution network, Adelco can now claim to serve customers across six continents. Luke says the company plans further innovation for 2020 and beyond, with in-house manufacturing forecast to continue expanding. Along with partners such as Thermotron, it is poised to capitalise on current and emerging market trends. “Within the UK, we plan to align ourselves with the most innovative manufacturers to provide the best customer service, print costs and speeds,” Luke concludes. www.adelco.co.uk The Thermotron FX23 automatic folding machine is aimed at smaller shops