NORTHERN IRELAND

Excellence in

Nuprint Technologies Ltd

Nuprint for Success

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Nuprint for Success

Over the last 30 years, Nuprint might have made their mark as specialists in intelligent label printing, but it’s their dedication to, and investment in innovation that positions

them at the head of the Irish design and print industry.

Design firms, manufacturers, international organisations, whoever Nuprint is talking to, you can be sure they’re not just printing a label, they’re working out how to have a positive impact on their business. Nuprint currently operates across a range of sectors including the food, drink, clothing and pharmaceutical industries. They work with customers across the world, offering new concepts and ideas in image creation, design and brand enhancement. But, thanks to an impressive investment programme of around £1.4million, the company is on the verge of doubling its business thanks to an enhanced capability that at last matches the company’s ambitions. With the capacity to print new forms of packaging including laminations, pouches and the most technically advanced shrink sleeves in the market today, Nuprint is about to become one of the most diverse and determined companies in Ireland.

Underpinning the company’s reputation as an innovator is a determination to get things right for its many clients and their various requirements. High standards are the order

of the day and over the years the company has printed millions of labels, working in close collaboration with each and every customer to achieve a best-fit solution. The experience and insight of the NuPrint team, combined with the latest technologies, helps clients develop smarter labels that not only work harder visually, but also make their businesses better.

NuPrint was formed in 1984 by Alan and Helen McClure, and was originally set up as a niche operation, supplying printed fabric labels for the clothing industry, at the time when this industry was thriving in Northern Ireland (and specifically in the North West of the Province), with the likes of Desmonds, Fruit of the Loom, Coates Viyella, DaintiFit, Dewhirst, and a number of other suppliers.

During the late 1980s and throughout the next decade, NuPrint enjoyed significant growth and became a recognised supplier of labels for the clothing industry in UK and Ireland, with major blue chip customers such as Marks & Spencer and Dunnes Stores. The company was

Nuprint Technologies Ltd

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subsequently sold to International Trimmings PLC in July 2000, which re-launched it as NuPrint Trimmings Ltd.

Gavin Killeen had joined NuPrint as General Manager in 1997 and, by 2001, he had grown the business and transformed it into a global player through the implementation of a Management Information System, developed under a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with the University of Ulster, Magee, which won a national award in 2002. However, Gavin recognised a growing threat presented by low-cost competition based in markets such as China and Bangladesh, and in 2004, he and Alan McClure, the original founder of NuPrint, decided to purchase the company, with a view to taking it in a completely new direction, focusing on self-adhesive labelling for the food, drink and beverage sectors. In order to break into these sectors, major investment was made in both people and equipment and the business moved to its current location at Springtown Industrial Estate.

The challenge of changing markets

‘We took the business over in 2004 with a fairly small order book, and one that was only going to decline as the clothing industry continued to move offshore,’ explained Gavin, who is now Managing Director of the company. ‘Our challenge was to establish ourselves as a supplier to the food and drinks sector, but, with no previous track record within either of those two sectors, it was a fairly daunting task. We knew there was a need for substantial investment and continued training, so the next couple of years were really a case of re-training and developing our staff and raising the profile of NuPrint. In 2006 we decided the time was right for us to make a major investment and we purchased our first eight-colour press. We spent roughly around £400,000 on that, and by the end of 2006/7 our investment was around £1.2 million.”

NuPrint reached another important milestone in 2006 when it secured BRC Global Standard for High Hygiene Risk Packaging and Packaging Materials accreditation, effectively removing one of the central obstacles that had previously prevented the company from successfully targeting the multiples, supermarket chains and major food processing companies.

‘After that we quickly began to develop relationships with some of the major players within the market and started to get some really good traction within the drinks sector,’ said Gavin. ‘In 2007 we gained accreditation from C&C, and produced about 96 million labels for Magner’s during a massive growth in the cider sector.

We also became approved by Diageo, producing labels for big brands such as Guinness, Caliber and Harp, and by Molson Coors, the fifth biggest brewer in the world. As a result of all this, we now had credibility, and within a five-year period between 2008 and 2013, we doubled our turnover again, establishing ourselves firmly in the Northern Ireland market with many major food and drink producers. We also started to penetrate into the Republic of Ireland.’

The company developed further in 2013 with the launch of Soapbox, a graphic design and print unit which provides the facility to do large format printing for the production of banners, pop-up stands, backdrops, building wraps and vehicle liveries etc.

Adding value

‘A key thing about NuPrint is that we’ve never wanted to see ourselves as a “me too” company - we don’t just do the same as the guy down the road,’ explained Gavin. ‘Also, a product on the shelf may be fantastic but if it is not packaged and presented to best advantage, then it won’t sell. We try to educate our customers on this, and because we work with some major organisations, both locally and internationally, we can bring the knowledge and understanding that we have from working with them to smaller organisations.

‘I like to think that any company that does business with NuPrint will be able to grow their own business, because we add value. The companies that we have engaged with have seen growth of between 25 and 40% in their turnover as a result of packaging. At NuPrint we work together with our customers and have developed close relationships with some of the top design agencies in Belfast, Dublin and London. They tend to come to us if they’ve got opportunities with new customers of their own because they know we bring fresh ideas and fresh thinking, and we’re able to show them the latest technology with regard to printing or materials.’

People power

Believing that every individual has capabilities and talents, NuPrint puts a strong emphasis on job training and personal development. ‘Our success is down to the people that we employ - and we employ really good people, many of whom have grown and developed along with the company,” said Gavin. ‘When measured against the European Model of Excellence EFQM, NuPrint scored 450 points on our first assessment and we were awarded a Mark of Excellence at the 2006 NI Quality Awards.

“Underpinning the company’s reputation as an innovator is a determination to get things right.”

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Only the top 20% of all European companies assessed score 400+ points in a first assessment!

‘I believe it’s our responsibility to ensure that we get the best out of all our staff, and that concerns our future employees too. A few years ago I made the decision to open our doors to schools, inviting them to come in for tours. At the start I gave those tours, but nowadays they are taken by the members of staff - not only the managers and team leaders, but also the guy who’s working on the factory floor. We also go out and help with interview days and careers days. We worked out that, in 2011, NuPrint presented to several thousand students – that was quite a number of kids who heard the Nuprint story.’

In recognition of this work, NuPrint won Business In The Community’s Regional Impact Award for “Most Responsible Small Business”.

A vision for the future

‘When I joined the business in 1997 we had about 16 or 17 employees. We currently employ 34 people, and over the next three or four years we hope to create enough positions to bring our workforce up to 50 people. We will continue to work with our material suppliers and our machine manufacturers, looking at how we can bring new products to market, and we are constantly

challenging what we do. We have a programme with the University of Ulster and the North West Regional College to develop management and leadership skills, along with technical capabilities, and we recently employed a specialist to develop new products and processes. Over the next few years we will be advancing a new concept, the NuPrint Academy, in which employees will progress through the business in all the different areas, so that in two or three years’ time we’ll have people who will be multi-skilled. We also see the importance of an apprenticeship programme, and are involved in work to expand this in Northern Ireland.

‘NuPrint is a very progressive and ambitious company,’ continued Gavin. ‘We work very hard to nurture the skills and talents of our workforce, and that allows us to provide excellent service and top quality work to our customers. Our aim is to continue to grow new product development, innovation and R&D, building on our relationships with customers in Northern Ireland as well as our export market into the Republic of Ireland, the UK and further afield. Fostering the talents of the people that we already have and giving young people an opportunity to shine is something that we’ve been proud to do over the years and we have some really good staff. Our intention is to continue to let them come to the fore, to help develop the business and take it forward into the future.’

“I like to think that any company that does business with NuPrint will be able to grow their own business, because we add value.”

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Over the last 30 years, Nuprint might have made their mark as specialists in intelligent label printing, but it’s their dedication to, and investment in innovation that positions them at the head of the Irish design and print industry.