Andover, Mass. – Standard Finishing Systems today announced that King Printing Co., Inc. has signed an order for the new Standard Hunkeler Book Block Solution, featuring the new PF7 Double Plow Folder to process 30"-wide rolls that will be printed on King's new HP T300 Color Inkjet Web Press. The PF7 premiered last month at the IPEX graphic arts tradeshow in Birmingham, England, and has been installed at King's production facility in Lowell, MA.

King Printing Co., Inc., a short-run book printer and manufacturer founded in 1978, continually explores new technology that will enhance its production capacity and printing capabilities.

"Part of our success formula has been to make steady investments in digital technology," stated Adi Chinai, managing director of King Printing. "This new system keeps us at the forefront, and continues our legacy as an innovator in the book publishing space."

The recent addition complements King Printing's already robust portfolio of Standard feeding and finishing products, including a Hunkeler roll-to-stack line on the Screen Truepress Jet520, plus Horizon BQ-470, BQ-440 Perfect Binders, collators, and gathers.

The new 30"-wide Hunkeler Book Block Solution includes the UW7 unwinder and PF7 Double Plow Folder to process webs up to 650 feet/minute, and can be used offline or inline with the newest inkjet printers. The double folding unit enables paper webs up to 30"-wide to be converted into four- or six-page signatures for smooth downstream processing. The system can also produce loose leaf stacks by opening the fold with an edge trim in the cutting module. The configuration for King Printing includes the Hunkeler CS6-I rotary cutter, as well as the SE6 separator/offset stacker and the LS6 non-stop stacker for continuous production.

"The new Standard Hunkeler/HP solution will bring substantial productivity gains to King Printing", asserts Standard Hunkeler Business Manager Johan Laurent.  "In addition to key features such as automated changeovers and job memory, the system offers application flexibility, which is important given the high monthly duty cycles of the latest high-speed digital inkjet systems."

The integrated line is a result of the long-standing relationship between Hunkeler and HP. The two companies have a history of bringing tremendous value to their mutual customers through the combination of HP digital press technology and Hunkeler finishing solutions in end-to-end production environments.

"This advanced paper-handling configuration provides King Printing with outstanding flexibility to produce the extensive range of book applications that can be run on the HP T300," said Aurelio Maruggi, vice president and general manager, Inkjet High-speed Production Solutions, HP. "As a fully integrated end-to-end solution, the complete system will allow King Printing to provide the uncompromising book quality their customers have long enjoyed with faster turnaround times and lower costs."

King Printing's manufacturing plant operates three shifts a day, five days a week, producing hard cover, soft cover and mechanically bound titles. The company prides itself on delivering higher quality products faster than the competition. "Our turnaround times are much shorter than the industry standard which can be attributed in part to our technology purchase decisions", Chinai said. "Our newest acquisition is no exception and will allow us to offer ever-shorter time-to-market for our customers while maintaining the high quality standards they have come to expect."