A3 Design and Print has recently celebrated more than 40 years in the business. Whilst keeping ahead of developments in the printing world, the company has never lost sight of the rich printing heritage which laid the foundations for the advanced printing techniques we see today.

Tony Pooles, Managing Director of A3 explains: “Technology is constantly pushing our business forwards. But none of these advances would have been possible without the efforts of the early pioneers of printing. We wanted to find a way to celebrate our present success, without forgetting the past.” And so began a search for a rare and highly sought after Victorian hand printing press that could be used to demonstrate the traditional craftsmanship of printing alongside the company’s latest and most modern print technology.

A leap back in time
Take a leap 150 years in time : Wealthy men dressed in top hats and long coats riding in horse drawn coaches, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert at the head of the country, Florence Nightingale saving lives in the Crimean War, poor houses and orphanages, the Penny Black stamp, airships, steamships and industrial advances. This was also time of fundamental change in the world of printing, when the old hand operated presses were soon to give way to bigger, faster, steam powered printing machines.

Repair and restoration
It was a lengthy and challenging search, but after many years an original Albion Iron Handpress finally arrived at A3’s headquarters in Farnham, Surrey in 2011. Nothing is known of the history of the press except that it was manufactured around 1869 and was in need of major restoration. The whole team at A3 are currently involved, helping to source replacement parts, and trying to locate people who have the knowledge and experience to help with the project.

The Albion in action
Once the restoration process is complete, the plan is to hold monthly open days, where the Albion will be used to demonstrate traditional printing methods using traditional woodblock carving alongside new printing techniques on A3s advanced Digital and Lithographic presses.
Those who are unable to witness the demonstration first-hand will be able to see video clips of the Victorian press in action on the company’s website.

The restoration of the beautiful old press is now well on target, but it is meticulous work and there is still more to do. A3 would be pleased to hear from anyone who has an interest and understanding of the Albion Handpress and who might have information that might assist the ongoing restoration process. You can contact A3 on our contact us page!

To see a demonstration of how the how the Albion press works click on the following YouTube links: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF8U69AzowE and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxtPFxwdzEg. The First shows the traditional woodblock carvings that we intend to use once our press is working, and the second shows a different method using letterpress printing with hand set type.

Editor’s Notes
A3 Design & Print have been producing print for a wide range of clients in and around the London area for over forty years. They provide a comprehensive range of design and print solutions and have consistently invested in the most advanced printing technology in order to offer a flexible service which delivers the best and most cost effective results for clients.

A3 Design & Print Ltd
Bourne Mill Business Park
Guildford Road
Farnham
Surrey GU9 9PS

Tel: 01252 737222
Fax: 01252 72417

Tony Pooles (managing director) was delighted with this installation and went on to say, “We now have all the latest digital equipment and are therefore capable to quickly and efficiently produce our digital projects including targeted mailings, to the highest quality and with the expertise and experience of our digital print manager Ian Westbrook in charge of this department, I am confident we can now cope with everything our customers throw at us, however impossible the challenge may seem to be.”

Having just fully re-equipped the design studio with the latest technology, A3 has increased its design services capability with 2 new employees in the last 3 months and is taking on more work.