Acanthus Press is your single-source provider for all of your printed communication needs. We are a locally owned and operated Somerset company, in business since 1967. Our in-house services do it all.

We know print

At Acanthus Press, we understand that all jobs are different. We understand budgets. We understand you want to stand out from the crowd. We can help you.

With so many ways to communicate in this 21st Century world, how can you be sure your message is effective? It might look like a minefield, but we will guide you through the process from start to finish to help you decide on the best way to get your message across.

When ‘seeing’ just isn’t enough, we help you create a message customers can touch, feel and appreciate. Receiving a printed item never gets old — it is certainly more personal than an email or blog. It helps build trust. It makes you relatable. Social media and the Internet have their place, but lack the impact of print. It’s extremely important to us that our clients know who they’re doing business with; it’s our goal to meet your printing needs. Once you take the time to find out what we’re all about, we’re confident you’ll like what you see.

Our equipment

Lithographic Print
Heidelberg SM74-5P-H (15,000) B2
  • Minimum sheet size (straight printing) 210×280mm
  • Minimum sheet size (perfecting mode) 300×280mm
  • Maximum sheet size 530×720mm
  • Maximum print format 510×710mm
  • Thickness 0.03-0.6mm
  • Gripper margin 8-10mm
Heidelberg XL75-5LX (18,000) B2
  • Minimum sheet size (straight printing) 210×350mm
  • Maximum sheet size 530×720mm
  • Maximum print format 510×710mm
  • Thickness 0.03-0.8mm
  • Gripper margin 8-10mm
Digital Print
Heidelberg Versafire
  • Fifth colour option – White or clear varnish effect to be printed inline
  • Speed: 90 A4 pages per minute
  • Stock range: 52gsm – 360gsm
  • Long sheet printing: 330mm x 700mm (six page A4)
  • Laser resolution: 4800dpi x 1200dpi VCSEL technology
  • Paper feed: All vacuum feeders, giving better substrate handling
HP Indigo press 7k six colour
  • Image size 317 x 464mm max
  • Paper size 330 x 482mm max
  • Paper weight 80-400gsm coated, 65-400gsm uncoated
  • Smartstream variable data software
  • Speciality inks including premium white, metallic and transparent
Prepress
Heidelberg Printready System
  • 16TB RAID for quick, simple back-ups
    and retrievals
  • Heidelberg Signa Station imposition
    software
  • Powered by Adobe PDF Print Engine 2
    for efficient, reliable reproduction
  • Heidelberg Suprasetter A75 at 2540dpi
Printready Image Control
  • Fast and reliable make-ready of the print job
  • Quality analysis of the pass sheet & ongoing process control
  • Direct image control for stabilising the print run
  • Comprehensive proof of print quality (ISO standard) and reporting as a basis for internal quality analysis
  • Effective colour management
Finishing
  • Heidelberg ST300 – Six station plus cover feed,
    stitch trimming line with loop stitching attachment
  • Duplo 600i booklet maker – fully automated setup
  • MBO T530-C – combination folder
  • Stahl TP66 – continuous feed folder
  • Two Polar programmatic guillotines with stack lifts

Heidelberg Cylinder
Cutting, creasing, perforating

• Maximum sheet size 560 x 770mm

• Minimum sheet size 160 x 230mm

Komfi Amiga 52 Thermal Laminator

Mailing Fulfilment
Buhrs BB300 envelope inserter
  • With 6 x rotary feeders, 1 x friction feeder
  • Databases sorted and output into envelopes or poly-wrap
AMS M1 Envelope Printer

Capable of printing full colour at the rate of 7,500 envelopes per hour. Envelopes can be printed edge-to-edge on paper stocks from 0.1mm to 0.5mm thick and a fixed head that prints 215mm wide C4 9 Station Kalmar.

Proofing

Acanthus print quality brochures and leaflets, but that’s not all. We are experienced in all things print related and will help you through the whole process from design to stock control and mailing. And since we control the process, we can guarantee the quality of our services.

We either design for you or you supply a pdf via FTP or the cloud. Acanthus can keep your files for years so we can often retrieve it if it’s a straight reprint. Additionally, we can hold stock for you to call off online if your storage space is limited; and we can create a proof often matching the paper of the finished job so you can see exactly what it will look like before production.

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Quality control

We use Printready Image Control to provide a fast and reliable make-ready of the print job. This gives us a quality analysis of the pass sheet and ongoing process control. Using direct Image Control to stabilise the print run, we manage comprehensive reporting as a basis for internal quality analysis and extensive proofing of print quality (ISO standard), along with effective colour management.

After proofing and packing, Acanthus will happily mail your final product. We pride ourselves on quality, service, pricing and reliability.

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Waste management

Our production facility is solar powered and uses efficient methods to minimise waste and reduce carbon. The paper used is largely produced from sustainable sources and the majority of waste is recycled.

Discover more about our eco-friendly equipment

Printing Services

Acanthus Press is the country’s local printer. We offer a wide range of bulk and individual printing services including leaflets, brochures, stationery, greetings cards and newsletters to name but a few. With unlimited options, let us look after your print requirements. We promise to handle all your printing needs to your utmost satisfaction. Simply complete the contact form and we’ll get back to you with your bespoke print pricing. However many items you need printing — a few or a few thousand — we have the means to do it, on time and on a budget.

Request a quote today

If you would like to order print online or set up a stock call off-site, then please contact us for more details.

Print Finishes

Since 1967, we’ve supplied specialist print finishing services catering to clients who demand quality craftsmanship, speedy production and attention to detail. Acanthus fold, stitch and trim on various machines along with cutting, creasing and perforating on the Heidelberg Cylinder. Other finishes include coatings like lamination and foiling; binding like PUR binding and section sewing with either a hard or soft case.

Our knowledge and expertise using the latest print technology and materials mean we can manage your print projects through to completion, and our machines are capable of producing a variety of print finishing techniques including but not limited to.

Binding
  • Fold, stitch and trim
  • PUR binding and Wiro binding
  • Section sewing (hard or soft case)
Coating
  • Lamination
  • Foiling
  • Encapsulation
  • Spot UV
Forme work
  • Shape-cut
  • Crease and perforate
  • Embossing

Acanthus achieves the highest quality print finishing solutions using the Heidelberg ST300, MBO T530-C, Stahl TP66, and the Heidelberg Cylinder. For a more detailed overview of each machine, please contact us here.