Clevedon, UK – Peter Black was established in 1947 but is always looking ahead, with an investment in the most cutting-edge UV-LED printing technology from Roland DG helping to support its continued success into 2019 and beyond.

Part of the global Li & Fung Group and based in Salford, UK, Peter Black is a full-service vendor, primarily in the gift industry. From design and development to manufacture and delivery, the company produces both gift products and packaging, for customers across markets including gardening, children's toys and beauty. Christmas is therefore a major date on the calendar, so Peter Black works months ahead;
products destined for high street shops and supermarkets in time for Christmas 2019 have been in
development since May 2018.

The company has been using a Roland VersaCAMM SP-300 printer/cutter for some years, typically to make labels for bottles and wraps for complicated 3D products. However, in order to boost productivity and service flexibility, in 2018 Peter Black decided to invest in new printing equipment and attended Sign and Digital UK in April to see the new Roland DG VersaUV S-Series LEC 330S-F200 flatbed in action on supplier Grafityp's stand.

Matt Childs, Peter Black's Vice-President, explains: "We had already seen the belt model of the VersaUV S-Series and knew what our old VersaCAMM could do, so were keen to see the flatbed model at the Sign and Digital UK show.

"We had looked at flatbed printers from other manufacturers but chose the Roland S-Series for two reasons. Firstly, we were able to get it into our first-floor print room thanks to its more compact size and, secondly, it has a bed that can be raised to print objects to 200mm high."

Matt Childs adds that features of the S-Series – installed at the UK HQ in August 2018 – include direct-to-substrate printing with white ink and spot UV varnish, enabling Peter Black to produce mock-ups that are as 'near as possible to production quality'.

"Some customers find it difficult to visualise what the finished product will look like, so being able to print white and gloss onto the prototype products and packaging means we can present an accurate visual representation from the beginning," he says.

This includes printing with white ink onto the clear plastic windows common in many gift packaging designs and directly onto corrugated cartons, which are not typically compatible with other types of ink. The Peter Black team has also been experimenting with printing onto prototypes of fabric wash bags, plates, notebooks, mobile phone covers, keyrings and other gift products, and is considering an investment in a specially designed attachment for the S-Series which enables direct printing onto cylindrical objects – ideal for toiletries and beauty product bottles.

"The new VersaUV is really useful, it adds a new dimension to what we can do," says Matt.

The Roland VersaUV S-Series is a powerful UV-LED printer, available in flatbed and belt configurations to offer maximum versatility. It can print onto virtually any substrate or object, rigid or flexible, up to 200mm in height and 100kg/sqm in weight in vibrant colours, sharp monochromes and even textured and embossed effects.

For further details, please visit www.rolanddg.co.uk. For more information on Peter Black, please visit www.peterblack1947.com.