Machinery & supplies
Machinery and supplies, imported
Alongside the print house we import printing machinery and printing supplies. The two sides are not separate accidents of the same business — we sell the kind of machines we run every day, which is the only reason we are worth asking.
Machinery
- Cylinder presses, including Heidelberg cylinders, used for die cutting and foil stamping
- Printing machines
- Paper cutting machines and guillotines
- Die cutting machines
- Foiling machines
Supplies
- Paper and board
- Printing consumables
We run the machines we sell
Most machinery is sold by traders. A trader can tell you a machine's specification and its asking price. What they generally cannot tell you is what fails on it after two years in this climate, how long a make-ready actually takes on it, or whether the operator you already employ will get on with it.
We can, because the same classes of machine run in our own workshop. Cylinder presses do our die cutting and foiling; guillotines cut our stock. When we say a machine is a sensible buy for the work you have described, it is because we have done that work on one.
Reconditioned, and what that means
We import used machines, not new ones. That is not a compromise position — most of the cylinder and finishing equipment earning a living in Sri Lanka today is second-hand, and a well-chosen reconditioned machine from a good maker will outlast a cheap new one comfortably.
It does mean the machine matters more than the model number. Two presses of the same age and specification can be in entirely different condition depending on who ran them and how. Year of manufacture is the least useful figure on the listing.
Where they come from
Machinery comes from China and Australia; paper and consumables come from China. Which route a particular machine arrives by depends on what is available when you are buying and where the budget sits, so it is not a decision worth making before the machine is.
Tell us the work you want the machine to do rather than the machine you think you want. It is common for an enquiry to arrive naming a specific press when a different one — or a smaller one, or a different process altogether — is the better answer for the jobs described.
Paper and consumables
Paper and board are imported for our own printing and sold on. That has one practical consequence worth knowing: we are buying these stocks to run them ourselves, so what we carry is what has behaved acceptably on a press rather than whatever was cheapest to bring in. If you want to know how a stock takes ink, folds or laminates, we have usually already found out.
More on how stock choice affects a printed job is on the offset printing page.
What to tell us before you buy
- The work the machine has to do, and the volume you expect from it
- Maximum sheet size you need to run
- The floor space available, and the power supply at the site
- Whether you have an operator for it already
- Your budget, and whether it has to cover installation and moving the machine in
- For supplies: the stock, the weight and the quantity you go through
Common questions
Are the machines new or reconditioned?
Reconditioned. We import used machines rather than new ones, which is what most of the cylinder and finishing equipment working in Sri Lanka is. Condition and how a machine has been maintained matter far more than its year of manufacture.
Are you an authorised Heidelberg dealer?
No. We are an independent importer. We buy, import and sell Heidelberg cylinder presses on the used market, and we are not appointed by or affiliated with Heidelberg. If you need warranty work or parts through the official channel, that is a separate route.
Where do the machines come from?
China and Australia. Which route suits a particular machine depends on what is available at the time and what the budget is. Paper and consumables come from China.
Do you sell supplies on their own, without a machine?
Yes. Paper and consumables are imported and sold separately from machinery, and a good part of it is stock we use in our own printing.
Planning a print job?
Send the product, quantity, size and finish you have in mind and we will price it. If the specification is not settled yet, describe what you are producing and we will work back to the stock, print method and finishing that suit it.
- Call
- +94 76 620 0995
- Not sure what to specify?
- Use the specification helper