Two Prinovas Digital Take Route 1 Print to a New Level

With the investment in two Muller Martini Prinovas Digital, Route 1 Print, a trade printer based in Rotherham, England, has doubled its productivity for saddle-stitched books.
 
Their journey began in 2009, when CEO’s Adam Carnell and James Kinsella realized there was a better way to support businesses with their print needs. This vision led to the creation of two eCommerce platforms: instantprint, launched in 2009, to simplify the print-buying process for small businesses, and Route 1 Print, introduced in 2012 to provide tailored print solutions for resellers.
 
Route 1 Print was launched to cater specifically to businesses that resell print, including graphic designers, copy shops, sign makers, and marketing agencies. Servicing these knowledgeable print buyers, Route 1 Print is committed to making outsourcing print as straightforward as possible.
 
Now employing over 400 staff and operating 24/7, Route 1 Print is proud to be the largest online printing company in the UK, with digital print accounting for 60 to 65% of its business and growing. "It quickly became clear to us that eCommerce and selling print online was a growth market and the easiest way for customers to buy print," say the joint CEOs, reflecting on their pioneering decision to embrace eCommerce early on.
 
Standardised processes: the key to success
Route 1 Print has grown rapidly to become a leading trade printer, dispatching over 4,000 jobs daily from its 147,000-square-foot production hub. Its extensive portfolio includes everything from business cards to perfect-bound and saddle-stitched products. The secret behind Route 1 Print’s success lies in four key pillars: A fast and seamless ordering and proofing process, exceptional quality printing and finishing, competitive pricing and a carefully curated product range.
 
Another critical factor is Route 1 Print’s standardized processes across printing, finishing, and warehousing operations. The company offers nearly one billion product combinations across its range, representing the various specifications and finishing options available for customers to order. This enables made-to-order print runs to be seamlessly produced and tracked throughout their production process, ensuring clients receive exactly what they ordered online. "These processes enable us to offer the highly competitive prices and quick turnaround times our customers rely on," say Adam Carnell and James Kinsella.

 

Watch the video to find out how Route 1 Print benefits from the two Prinova Digital saddle stitchers in its day-to-day work.

Saddle stitching at the core of their business
While perfect binding accounts for 5 to 10% of Route 1 Print’s sales, saddle stitching contributes 20 to 30% of total sales. Print runs for saddle-stitched products range from as few as 25 copies to over 10,000, with the average job size falling between 200 and 500.
 
Automated processes with minimal manual intervention are crucial for handling short runs efficiently. As an eCommerce business, it’s integral that data from their transactions flow directly from their web and proofing platform to their internal systems. To ensure standardization across data handling, printing, and finishing Route 1 Print has recently invested in two Prinova Digital saddle stitchers from Muller Martini.
 
"We have invested heavily in our printing presses over the past five to seven years. The two Prinovas Digital are taking us to a new level, and we are now reaping the benefits of a seamless workflow in the saddle stitching process," Adam Carnell and James Kinsella emphasize. "Our goal was to become twice as productive. We have achieved that so far – and we think we can increase our productivity even further."
 
Lucrative express jobs
This is especially critical for Route 1 Print, which positions itself as a same-day express specialist with an industry-leading cutoff time of 5pm. Orders are proofed, printed, and delivered within 24 hours, ensuring unparalleled speed and efficiency. According to the two CEOs, Route 1 Print in turn requires a robust arsenal to meet these demands: "To guarantee not only high-quality print products but also fast turnarounds, a perfect workflow is essential – and Prinova Digital, with its high level of automation and production speed, is the ideal solution for this."
 
Because a digital saddle stitcher requires more specialized skills compared to a conventional model, Route 1 Print prioritized comprehensive training. "We assign our best machine operators to the Prinovas Digital, and the training provided by Muller Martini's experts has been truly outstanding," share Adam Carnell and James Kinsella.