Shuttleworth MIS appeals to Leicester label manufacturer

Label Apeel, based in Leicester, UK, has installed a Shuttleworth MIS as part of a 750,000 investment program that has included an Aqualflex 5-color and an 8-color MPS EF300 labels press.

The company came down in favor of the Shuttleworth MIS because managing director Stuart Kellock felt that Shuttleworth’s system and its levels of customer support had more than exceeded his expectations.

‘Shuttleworth was able to demonstrate that it really understood our business and our core values,’ he said. ‘During the evaluation process Shuttleworth provided satisfactory answers to our questions and delivered practical solutions to our needs, wants and aspirations. When it came time to install the system we had two of Shuttleworth’s application and support people with us on site during the entire process. This was very valuable as they helped to guide us through the system every step of the way.’

Mr Kellock believes that it was Shuttleworth’s engagement of the company’s staff during the MIS implementation process that was responsible for bringing about a more flexible approach to later problem solving and subsequently helped the company to change the way in which it thinks about its business.

‘This really paid off for us because the process helped our staff to engage with the MIS and they were able to specify just exactly what they wanted the MIS to do for them. Since installing the system we have been able to evaluate our business model and strategies much more, and this has resulted in making specific areas of our business more profitable. We are also working more efficiently as a team and have identified and increased business from several product lines that were underperforming but have now become more profitable. It really is helping us to monitor and make inroads into improving the overall business as well as our cash flow - which for me is the tangible proof that the MIS is working for us,’ he said.

The 3m turnover business offers a consultative approach to its customers’ labeling needs and provides a comprehensive service from artwork to completion. The company manufactures both plain and printed self-adhesive labels and swing tickets for a broad client base and a wide range of applications. It is currently looking to expand further into the food sector and a project aimed at gaining the BRCIOP (British Retail Consortium Institute of Packaging) food hygiene accreditation and standards is already underway, necessitating the move towards new labels presses.

‘These MPS EF300 label presses are giving Nilpeter a real run for its money thanks to automatic registration and servo driven print heads. The quality is second to none and it provides clear savings just from make ready times alone,’ he said.

Until recently the company had only found ways of reducing make ready times by minutes if not seconds, the purchasing of the MPS has allowed the company to slash these times.

‘We are now making ready in 25 minutes instead of a couple of hours. Press set up is vitally important too. We currently get through as much as 100m of material in set up and this will be greatly reduced. I anticipate further material cost savings to be in the region of between 10-20,000 pa,’ said Mr Kellock.