Augusta printer purchases even faster press
Courtesy / J.S. McCarthy
From left, J.S. McCarthy President and CEO Jon Tardiff and press workers Randy Robbins, Scott Libby, Greg Giasson, Jordan Woolridge, Nick Tavernier and Jason Baird.
J.S. McCarthy Printers in Augusta recently purchased an offset press that it said is the fastest machinery of its type in the world and the first of its kind to be installed in the U.S.
The company, founded as a commercial printer in 1947, has been focused of late on continuous investment to add high-tech machinery to serve the growing paperboard packaging sector. The press was installed to accommodate unprecedented growth in its folding carton business, with an emphasis on the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.
The new Speedmaster XL 106, debuted by Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG in Heidelberg, Germany, in late October, is its latest investment.
The sheetfed machine runs at 21,000 sheets per hour. The new machine is projected to produce upwards of 100 million impressions annually with higher net output than the previous 18,000-sheets-per-hour model.
J.S. McCarthy, a 100% employee-owned company, is one of the oldest and largest sheet-fed printers in the state. The company was established in the commercial print and finishing market and today operates from a 150,000-square-foot facility, employing 160 individuals and operating 24/7.
The company has seen “extreme growth” in its folding carton business since deciding to go all-in with packaging five years ago through $20 million in infrastructure and equipment investments.
CEO and President Jon Tardiff said the company is expecting a 50% revenue increase from folding cartons during the next two to three years.
The plan is to install the machine in late 2023 to replace an older press, which is no longer a viable back-up for the 2018 Speedmaster XL 106, which runs 24/7, producing all the company’s folding cartons, said Tardiff.
“We’re in a position where we basically have one press driving the entire plant,” he said. “The new XL 106 is going to help us digest all this new growth.”
The new machine has record-breaking speeds and better reliability that’s expected to significantly increase J.S. McCarthy’s throughput, considered essential due to the plant’s space limitations.
The company recently added onto its plant and is planning another addition for 2023. The new XL 106 will help “get large jobs through the plant as quickly and as productively as possible,” said Tardiff.
J.S. McCarthy anticipates ramping up production to 50-70 million impressions, based on its current average run length within the first year, with a goal of reaching the press’s maximum output in the future.
To achieve higher speeds and net output, Heidelberger has optimized over 200 components throughout the system from feeder to delivery. The improved components and advanced Speedmaster technology are designed to significantly cut down on waste and “makeready” – the process of making a press ready to print.
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