Ultimate Packaging buys UK’s first SomaFlex Imperia press

A £1m loan secured from Barclays Commercial in September helped the flexographic print suppliers for the food industry to buy the new kit and is the last part of the company’s £18m investment programme that started in 2000.

The SomaFlex Imperia is the first of its kind in the UK and has enabled Ultimate to create an extra 10 jobs.

It will increase the Grimsby-based firm’s production output by 20%. Ultimate’s print capacity will rise by five to six million linear metres each month. The machine will also drive efficiencies from Ultimate’s four existing eight-colour presses.

Ultimate’s sales and marketing director Chris Tonge praised the SomaFlex Imperia’s extensive features and said it was an excellent investment for the firm.

“Its ability to deliver the highest quality flexographic print at speeds of around 450 metres a minute and a flying sleeve design allowing spare print stations to be prepared while running, are just two examples of its huge benefits.”

Engelmann and Buckham spokesman Hugh Morris said the firm was delighted to have supplied the first SomaFlex Imperia in the UK.

“Our competitors are very strong in this market and already well established, so this order in the current economic climate is hugely significant,” he said.

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