Signage and display specialist Signs & Labels Hereford has invested in a new VeloBlade Nexus 2516 from Soyang Hardware Ltd., revealing how it plans to use the machine to expand its business into new and profitable markets.
Based just outside Hereford town centre, Signs & Labels Hereford is a family-run business that has been serving the market for more than 23 years. Offering signage, print and vehicle graphics, the company is led by Director Ross Hughes, whose father and sister also work within the business.
With the company having experienced an increase in demand for its services, it opted to upgrade its cutting equipment. Signs & Labels Hereford had been running the same cutter for 16 years, but as this required manual operation, the company sought out a machine with faster running speeds and automation features.
After researching the market, Signs & Labels Hereford quickly identified Vivid Laminating Technologies’ VeloBlade Nexus 2516 as the ideal solution. Distributed by Soyang Hardware Ltd in the UK and Ireland, the VeloBlade Nexus 2516 is a wide-format digital die cutter with a bed size of 2,500mm x 1,600mm.
“I had seen the machine a lot on LinkedIn and always thought it looked like the ideal piece of kit for our business,” Ross Hughes said. “Once I started looking and spoke to Vivid’s Lewis Evans, the price point for the specification stood out from other machines and further solidified my interest in the machine.
“After speaking to Lewis during an online demo and at the showroom, I was really impressed by the customer service and attention to detail in making everything as straightforward as possible for their customers. We placed the order within days of seeing the machine at the showroom.”
Signs & Labels Hereford purchased the machine in December, and it was installed at the company’s Hereford site in early January. Ross Hughes said despite the cutter having only been in place a short time, the business has already seen a significant improvement in production.
“The VeloBlade is already making production faster,” Ross Hughes said. “The automation of barcode reading means there are fewer touch points. Also, as it is so simple to use, we have been able to train up numerous members of staff on the machine; we don’t have to wait for specific team members to become available to operate it.”
Looking ahead, Ross Hughes is confident that the new VeloBlade will allow Signs & Labels Hereford to expand its offering and move into new markets, picking out bespoke packaging as one area of interest.
“I think the machine will impact us immensely,” Ross Hughes said. “It will allow us to keep up with and surpass the ever-demanding issue of lead times and take us onto the next level regarding speed and quality.
“It gives us more scope to take on more of our current work as well as looking at expanding into other markets.”
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