Record Attendance at Finishing Open House

Standard Finishing Systems recently held its annual Finishing 360 event, an open house showcasing the company’s latest finishing technology for digital, inkjet, and offset applications. Taking place June 21-22 at the company’s Andover, Massachusetts-based headquarters, the two-day event welcomed more than 150 customers from across the U.S. to tour Standard’s lineup of automated Horizon and Hunkeler solutions, get a close-up look at the technology, and talk shop one-on-one with the Standard team.

The open house boasted its largest attendance since its inaugural event in 2018, and customers were enthusiastic to take part.

The production floor was buzzing with live demonstrations and running presses.

Pete Larson, president, CEO, and owner of Bloomington, Minnesota-based Bethany Press International, said that some of the best takeaways from the event were the opportunities to get up-close and be hands-on with the equipment.

"I'm two inches away looking at [the equipment], whereas you can't really do that [at expos]," he said. "Getting down to some really granular questions has been huge."

For Larson, who was aiming to catch a glimpse of binding and finishing equipment, the open house provided a means to assess which applications would work for his facility, both efficiently and economically.

“I think in today’s society, there’s a big emphasis on sustainability — efficient printing and binding is huge,” he noted.

For many customers, the most prudent challenge discussed was labor and the need for efficiency. Ready to address these concerns, the production floor was abuzz with demonstrations and an enthusiastic team. The Horizon AFV-566FKT folder drew a crowd as the operator showcased its 44 fully-automated settings, quick changeover capabilities, and immediate adjustments at the touch of a screen. Customers couldn’t seem to get enough of it.

The pressman demonstrated various folds on the Horizon AFV-566FKT folder.

Similarly, the Horizon BQ-270V perfect binder with robot-arm also garnered a great deal of attention. The device exhibited an automated setup system that consistently measures book block thickness, single-person production of up to 500 books per hour, overall compact configuration, and myriad other features for print-on-demand.

“You have to stay on top of technology. Right now, I’m seeing some really cool stuff that I’m liking,” said Michelle Brown, production director at Xpressdocs. The Fort Worth, Texas-based direct marketing solutions provider already houses a variety of Standard equipment and, according to Brown, is looking to expand its fleet with equipment that she knows provide the necessary speed.

While Brown attended the event with sights set on one particular device, she was able to see other options and ultimately refine her initial expectations. “It’s really invaluable — that we can capture everything that’s happening, be able to talk to some subject matter experts on each piece of equipment,” she said.

Determined to find the solution that fits Xpressdocs’ needs, Brown noted that she will now be able to move forward with a device that delivers exactly what she is looking for, and budget accordingly — an opportunity that may not have been afforded if she had not attended.

Overall, the Finishing 360 open house was brimming with excitement and information for customers ready to gear up for growth and efficiency. It is evident that printers are ready to be back in front of the equipment, and Standard was happy to have them there.