From left: Yves Rogivue (Muller Martini corporate management), Bo Sörelid (Managing Director, Muller Martini Netherlands), Arie Piet (CEO Royal Joh. Enschedé), Rob Stierman (Managing Director, Joh. Enschedé Stamps) and Gerard van den Hoven (Product Manager, Muller Martini Netherlands)with the new ten-color Alprinta 52V at Royal Joh. Enschedé in Haarlem (The Netherlands).

Royal Joh. Enschedé was founded an impressive 305 years ago by Izaak Enschedé. This traditional Dutch company has recently purchased a 41.5-meter long Alprinta 52V, its first printing press from Muller Martini. CEO Arie Piet tells us that the main reasons behind this selection were threefold: “The good price/performance ratio, various technical aspects such as the quick changeover, and the outstanding customer service provided by Muller Martini Netherlands.”

Royal Joh. Enschedé predominantly uses the new Alprinta 52V to print postage stamps, a product for which the company is Europe's leading manufacturer. One of the first jobs to be carried out on the machine was the production of a stamp with in-line hot foil stamping for Österreichische Post AG (the Austrian post office) featuring a silver foil – just one of the new production options made possible with the Alprinta 52V.

The Alprinta 52V in use at Joh. Enschedé offers infinitely variable sizes and has ten press units and four bump turns for front and back printing in a single run. It also has several special in-line features:

• Hot foil stamping unit for finishing (e.g. gold leaf and holograms)
• Postage-stamp perforator for the manufacture of perforated postage stamps
• Label stamper for the manufacture of self-adhesive postage stamps
• Q74 sheeter with stacker for the signature placement of self-adhesive materials; with escape gate for quality control.

The Alprinta 52V features a "flexo-cassette," which can be used to convert one of the offset press units into a flexo printing unit. It also has a complete automation package including IDM 4000 in-line ink control, automatic AR 4000 register control with several measuring cameras offering short response times, video web monitoring, printing image inspection and rubber-blanket wash-up system. Finally, an eight-lamp system from IST Metz supplies UV drying.