Accord Carton will become the second packaging printer in the world to install a seven-color ROLAND 900 in format 6 with coater. The installation is scheduled for completion in late February 2012.

For over 70 years, Accord Carton has been a family-owned packaging company in the USA dedicated to helping customers bring their products to life through unique and attractive packaging. The company operates plants in Alsip, Illinois and in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Robert Codo, President of Accord Carton, says: “In the last five years we've gone from seven million dollar to nearly 40 million dollar in sales. There are still plenty of opportunities out there for us and we need this new machine to take us to the next level.” The installation of the new ROLAND 900 will be coupled with a plant expansion to accommodate the press as well as provide ample space for staging materials to efficiently keep pace with the new printing system.

Accord Carton’s new press is prepared for UV printing and includes a TelePresence remote diagnostics module, okBalance, and ColorPilot. This new generation of the ROLAND 900 series also incorporates many engineering changes to further improve the performance and reliability of this large format press. It can operate at up to 15,000 sheets per hour.

Accord Carton already works with a manroland press, which was installed in 2006. It operates at 14,000 sheets per hour. Codo anticipates that the doubling of its capacity will allow his company to capitalize on existing new business opportunities. “Today we are positioned very well in the markets that we serve. That was not the case nine years ago when we lost a very large customer to China. At that time we made a decision for the food, consumer care and products markets where we could defend ourselves from offshore competition. Over the years we found that the decision to slot ourselves into those markets has had a good effect on our ability to write new business.”