Colwick-based packaging and printing giant The Wilkins Group has ambitious plans to increase capacity following a major £1m investment in new state-of-the art cutting equipment.
The firm recently bought a new cutting and creasing machine which will help maximise productivity and lower production costs.
The new BOBST Expertcut Per 106 die-cutting machine runs more consistently and also cuts down on process waste and extra tooling costs – production will increase by up to 30 percent on that machine.
The move by The Wilkins Group – which produces packaging for household brands including Cadbury’s, Ginsters and Pizza Express – is seen as a bold one after they choose to plough funds into the project despite an unstable economy
Justin Wilkins, a third-generation of the family business, who is sales and marketing director, said: “Most people might have thought it probably wouldn’t be the right time to invest, in terms of the current economic climate, but our view is, we don’t hold back and we have done the right thing as a business. We can’t let events outside of our control effect the strategic development of the company.”
He added that the risk is worth taking as the Expertcut will help boost production.
“We need the machine to increase capacity, to take us forward to the next phase of our development.
“We need it to take us into 2019 to grow the business as we are looking to expand our UK operation by more than 10 percent, with new business confirmed, which will set us on a great course for our factory extension.”
In a printing and packaging industry that has had its fair share of struggles, Wilkins has bucked the trend by growing – to the extent that it recently bought more land to expand its base, and has enjoyed a £36m turnover this year.
Its BOBST Autoplaten system needs less patch-up and remains more stable during the run than any other, which means quicker setups, better quality and fewer stops in production.
It will be delivered to the Colwick factory in the middle of March 2019 and will be built on-site.
It is the latest in a string of purchases for the firm, including a £150,000 board tray forming machine in 2018, a £300,000 Rotary Window Patching and Lining Machine in June 2016, a £600,000 digital foiling and varnishing machine, and a £2m investment in a new latest-technology printing press prior to that.