St Albans - Packaging and POS specialist Garthwest has upgraded its sampling department to include a Zünd G3 L2500, which 'gets it right first time every time'.

Based in Hull, family-run Garthwest had been using a table from another company for at least twelve years in its sampling department but found the quality of output on corrugated materials had deteriorated. After spending some time researching the best upgrade on the market, the team went to Drupa in Düsseldorf, Germany last spring where they saw the Zünd G3 in action. 

The Zünd G3 can be tailored to meet every user's unique needs thanks to its modular tool and material-handling systems, both at the time of installation and at a later date, to ensure it can offer the latest upgrades and perfect set-up for a business as it evolves. Zünd systems are also built for reliability and longevity to retain their value and quality.

Garthwest opted for a Zünd G3 L2500 (1,800 x 2,500mm) with a camera system that reads registration dots printed outside the main printing area and cuts accordingly. It has been installed alongside a Fujifilm Acuity four-colour printer.

Paul Dixon, Design Studio Manager at Garthwest, comments: "I admit I was sceptical at first about how much of a difference the camera would make but it really has. We're no longer creating a manual jig for each new job which has resulted in time and cost savings. The Zünd gets it right first time every time."

The modular configuration has also allowed Garthwest to add new knife tools and to change a module to provide greater pressure for improved sample quality. 

The company works mainly with corrugated cardboard but also some plastic and Foamex, all of which the Zünd G3 flatbed cutter can handle up to a thickness of 50mm. Garthwest intends to use the new G3 for shorter, customisable packaging runs for clients at a lower cost and quicker turnaround time than if it were to make new forms for each job manually. 

In addition, as part of Garthwest's continual upgrade of equipment, Paul Dixon says the team may visit Zünd UK's dedicated demonstration centre in St Albans in 2017 to research Zünd's automated systems for use in its POS department. The business produces POS displays for film and TV, which Dixon says is 'absolutely fantastic work' that is always in demand. 

"We'd be delighted to welcome Paul and the team from Garthwest to our St Albans HQ to see the rest of our range and to investigate even more of the Zünd G3 L2500's applications," says Peter Giddings, Sales Director, Zünd Plotting Systems (UK) Ltd. 

"The beauty of Zünd equipment lies in its versatility – many of our customers discover the potential to diversify into more markets thanks to their existing machine's ability to adapt with a simple change of tooling or upgrade to a new material handling system. The machines are also robust enough to handle these modifications and retain their value over time. We wish Garthwest the best of luck in 2017."