2020 Update
Sharon Keevins • July 14, 2020
2020 Update
Firstly, we hope that you and yours are well and that and the last Months have not been too testing.
Like most people we guess, we found April and May somewhat strange, unsure of what each day would hold, traveling to work on empty roads, getting to grips with the concept of Furlough, daily cleaning, "sneeze screens", the battle to find hand wash, oh, and toilet roll!, while recently sourcing masks and face coverings. For us social distancing was / is not to much of an issue, we are blessed with room, staggering lunch times and coffee making breaks was also easy. Like many peoples holidays and events, our training / team building days have been cancelled, along with many exhibitions we had planned to attend. We also missed welcoming the cyclists on the Ride Lichfield Sportive, as in previous years we had been set to provide the half way feed station.
As each day, week passed we where lucky to have a good flow of orders. In the first weeks, many for medical and pharmaceutical use. Food labeling and labels for hand sanitiser kept us busy for a while, and the boom in on-line shopping and home delivery meant that sales to our logistics and delivery customers kept the presses running in May. June we saw a more normal Sales profile as our retail customers prepared to re-open their doors. Into July and to be honest, we are as busy as ever, and for this we thank you!
Going forward, busy as we are now, it is hard to say how long this will last, "local lock-downs" could have effect, we are seeing that the situation in Leicester currently is causing some delay in promised orders, but, as ever we remain positive that things will improve.
It is great to see many returning from Furlough and hearing the stories connected, for many it does seem to have been a mainly positive experience. Those working from home, have it seems enjoyed this but also been frustrated, both by the isolation and the fact "that file I need is in the office!"
It is true that we are having to convert some urgent orders, as Companies returning from closures have found that stock is low, or last deliveries cannot be found, we will do our best to help in these situations.
So, we are here, we are busy producing labels and would love to hear from you, either to place an order, get a quote, or if you need, just for a catch up!
Stay Positive and Stay Safe
Exciting news
Celebrating International Print Day 2025
New ERP system loading...
Richard Phillips’ 25 Years Service – 28 August 2025
Simon Miller’s Retirement – 8 th August 2025
Secura Labels awarded EcoVadis Silver Medal for Sustainability
2024 A little look back at 2024 and into 2025 - Further press investment, as a further Focus Label Machinery Limited Proflex arrived in February, this 4 colour machine, our first fitted with LED curing, will have automated finishing through one of our turret rewinders. Investment continues in 2025 as we are currently installing a new MIS system, which will allow shop floor data collection, improved stock control etc... We also look forward to celebrating some long service awards during the Year. With much achieved in 2024, we are looking forward to a further successful 12 Months!
Cutters / dies, we carry a vast library of cutters, 1,000`s in fact. Most of these are magnetic, thin metal sheets, attached to magnetic bases, which means that many are interchangeable across our machines. We do still use and order "solid" cutters, this can be for a range of reasons, one of our cutter suppliers, Kocher & Beck, offer a view on the Pros and Cons between Flexible and Solid cutters here . Once a cutter / die is made it is not possible to alter, a new one would be needed to change any aspect, corner radius, gap between labels etc..... It should also be noted that cutters made to cut certain materials, say direct thermal paper, may not be able to cut a PP. This is much like your kitchen knives, a butter knife would not be used for slicing bread for instance, like our cutters, cutting angles, even material, could be different. We do always try and order a cutter to cover as wide a range of material as possible, but sometimes this is not possible. Cutter setting is one of the most critical aspects of our production, getting the die "strike" just right can be the difference between a job running well and not. Too heavy a "strike", and we risk cutting through the backing paper, giving you, the user, issues. Not heavy enough and we will have issues with stripping the waste matrix and not be able to run at an acceptable press speed. Cutter care also plays a part here and we expect our operators to maintain a high standard of care. All of our operators, indeed all of our staff, have been through the Kocker & Beck Training Academy where they learned various aspects of cutter setting, care of cutters, alongside seeing how a cutter is made. We are always open to visitors, so if you wanted to find out more about cutters, give us a call and arrange to drop in. Common Questions - "I want to change the gap between the labels, I wont need a new cutter will I?" Once cutter is made, it is not possible to change any aspects, so to change a gap or corner radius would mean a new cutter. "I have just order some labels on semi gloss paper, but you are quoting a new cutter for a PP job of the same size, why? " Much like your kitchen knives, a butter knife would not be used for cutting bread, a cheese knife not used for preparing vegetables. Cutting angles and even material could be different for best cutting a PP compared to a paper. "Can I have any size label, any shape?" Within reason yes, our current smallest cutter is 5mm dia, our largest 312 x 416mm (this the largest we could produce), but you can have any size. As for shapes, we can, or at least the cutter makers can, make quite complex shapes, the biggest factor we need to consider, is can we strip the waste from a very complex shape? "How much time does a new cutter add to my order?" Usually, a new cutter would be with us in around 48 hours, so there should be no major impact on delivery times. "Why can I never get a simple gap of say 3mm, why is it 3.4mm?" Our machines, and so cutters, work based on imperial measurement, 1/8" gearing. This does mean that cutters / print cylinders need to fit into increments of 1/8", which results in the gaps it does. "How heavy are the cutters?" They can be very heavy, 25kg +, but all of our machines are equipped with lifting equipment to lift the cutters in and out.
Our MD, Simon, turns 60 in August, and to mark the occasion, he is on a fundraising effort. He aims to raise funds for the Charity " Children with Cancer ", via the Le Jog Sisters Spin on the Square event, but with other "challenges" throughout 2024. "My five Grandchildren are, luckily, fit and healthy and so I wanted to do something to help those not as fortunate as we are." As many of you will be aware, Simon is no stranger to charity fundraising, his previous "challenges" include - Trekking in Nepal, Trekking to Machu Picchu in Peru, Climbing the High Atlas in Morocco, Cycling across the Sinai Desert and around Europe on the Three Cities Ride, to highlight just a few! Please, if you are able, consider donating to this great cause - https://www.justgiving.com/page/spin-on-the-square-2024 - any amount, large or small, will be gratefully received! Simon`s list of "challenges" 9th March - Loggerheads 10k - Off road trail run - "A tough run, big "climbs", "technical" downhills, but fun, especially the second lap when the route was familiar " 17th March - Fradley 10k Road Race - "My aim was sub 60mins, its four years plus since I ran 10k, so at sub 55mins, just, a success! A busy run with many more people than I had guessed, the sunshine a welcome addition!" 7th April - Cathedral to Castle - 10 mile run - "A much longer distance than I have run for many years, the challenging multi terrain route, not made any easier by storm Kathleen, with the gusting wind making going hard. I didn't know what to expect time wise, but thought 1 hour 45 minutes a good target, with a harder route than I had guessed, my 1 hour 38 minutes felt a good time, finishing 458 out of 1027 runners" 20th April - Dirty Reiver - 130km / 2100mts Climbing - Off road / gravel cycle around Kielder Forest - "Picking up a cough & cold where not part of the Reiver plan, nor was a very frosty start after a night camping, but wow, what an event. Described by some as the UK`s toughest gravel ride, it did not disappoint. Despite the cough, I did manage to finish in 6 hours 57 minutes, so under my 7 hours target, coming home in around 400th place out of some 800 finishers (130k route). Some fast downhill on gravel forest tracks, topping out at 33mph, had the heart racing, as did the 7,000+ ft of climbing..... a great day in the saddle" To get a feel of the event you can watch one of the many YouTube videos Here . 1st May - Spin on the Square May - The Hodge - 100 mile "reliability trial" 25th / 26th May - Headstock 200 - 200km / 4500mts Climbing - 2 Day "bike packing" " adventure " 7th - 8th June - ? 14th June - Brooksie"s Bash - 10 mile trial run 6th October - Dovedale Dash - Trail run + Keep an eye on our "Social Media" for updates on Simon`s progress! (Links in bold)
Further investment as 4th Focus Proflex arrives at Secura Labels. This 4 colour, 13", LED curing equipped printing press joins the other 3 Proflex machines in use. Richard Phillips, Secura`s Production Manager stated "The need for a further press has been driven by an increase in longer running multi colour label work, seeing our existing 6 colour Proflex often over capacity. This new machine will relieve this problem while also allowing us to run our current 4 colour Proflex as a dedicated machine for our fanfolded and sheeted label production" Simon Miller, Secura MD, added "While we looked at other press manufacturers for this latest investment round, our long standing relationship with the Focus management team, technicians and staff, made the final decision an easy one. The press will be a welcome addition and will help ease production bottle necks while adding some welcome capacity" The new press will be predominately running 2 - 4 colour work, with direct finishing through an A B Graphic turret rewind unit. Read what Focus said here
