Malindi Press Modernizes Its Machinery
19.09.2018
With the investment in several new machines, including three Muller Martini print finishing systems, state-owned Malindi, which is located in the nation’s capital Dar-es-Salaam, is Tanzania’s most modern graphic arts company.
Because the government of this East African country, which has a population of 57 million, wants to increasingly produce print products domestically, Malindi Press will be ramping up substantially over the coming months. “The aim of the investments we have made,” says CEO Edith Mackenzie, “is to shorten the timeframe for production and improve the quality of the end products.”
From left: Jules Dietz (Head of Sales at Muller Martini), Edith Mackenzie, Optatus Semindu Martin and Gordon C. Weston (local representatives for Muller Martini Spicers Eastern Africa) at Muller Martini’s Print Finishing Center in Zofingen.
In addition to printing and folding machines, the update to the company’s old machinery, which makes Malindi Press the top address in the graphic arts industry in Tanzania, also includes a Presto II saddle stitcher, a Vareo perfect binder and a Ventura MC 160 thread sewing machine. “We haven’t used Muller Martini systems before,” says Production Director Optatus Semindu Martin. “But the Muller Martini name stands for extensive experience in print finishing, the latest technology and efficient production.”
Edith Mackenzie and Optatus Semindu Martin visited several bookbinderies before they decided on the three Muller Martini systems, which will commence operations next May. “We want to be seen as an expert company,” say the two managers, “and to achieve this we need the best machines.”
Half the orders produced by Malindi Press, which was founded in 1982 and has 61 employees, are still for government and government-affiliated institutions and half for the open market – books as well as brochures, magazines and flyers. However, Edith Mackenzie believes that the share of government orders will rise in the near future, especially as confidential documents will no longer be produced abroad.