Web Exclusive: Executive Q&A with Bryan Palphreyman, CEO, Nipson

QP: Tell us about Nipson, the segment of the market it serves, and who you consider to be your core users.

Palphreyman: Nipson develops, produces, and markets the world’s fastest and most versatile digital printing solutions for specialty and high-volume applications. Our unique technology – Magnetography, has a recognised value by its customers in the high-volume (150+ pages per minute), continuous feed, mono market in which it operates, and has been so for many years. In fact Nipson customers have been some of the earliest pioneers in digital print, we have presses in daily use over 15 years old printing billions of feet of paper. As Nipson prints ‘MICR’ as standard, we are probably best known in the transactional, direct mail and security markets. A couple of interesting applications worth mentioning within the security market are checks and gaming cards. The printed check whilst in demise in Europe, remains strong in other geographic areas – indeed the USA continues to be a buoyant market for MICR check printing, and in the gaming sector, the volume of ‘bingo’ cards being printed either side of the Atlantic never ceases to surprise me. These applications illustrate just two of the many niche applications that Nipson serves well. The ability to work in-line with offset or flexo press technology in these sectors often gives us an edge over many of our competitors. That said, again due to our unique magnetography technology, we print on anything from 30gms ‘pharma’ and ‘bible’ papers right through to 300gms kraft and coated card for tickets. Within this flexibility to print on multiple substrates is our ability to do so without distortion or damage – even unsupported thin films and thermal papers can be printed at speed.

QP: What is your background and how did you get involved with Nipson?

Palphreyman: I come primarily from an inkjet background, and have been in digital print for over 20 years, focussing most recently on technology and new applications – what some say as working at the ‘bleeding edge’! I knew of the company from the past, and when a colleague from Nipson invited me over for a chat, we discussed where Nipson was and where it wanted to go. I saw an opportunity developing from within an existing business. The one thing that made the difference for me was, having investigated Nipson, how loyal and dedicated its customer base is. I saw that even when customers had switched work from their Nipson’s for another digital technology – those same customers never turned their Nipson’s off because only Nipson could print the ‘hard stuff’ the competitors couldn’t – that told me Nipson had something.

QP: What do you consider to be your greatest achievement in this market?

Palphreyman: I think there are two distinct and very different things I have achieved. The first is easy – I have just closed the largest single order the business has ever had globally, for a multi-million dollar multiple press installation in North America. Secondly – and I think as important, is the building of a new Nipson team within the two subsidiary operations I am involved with. Business is about people, internally and externally, home and at work, sometimes it is easy to lose track of the interpersonal dynamic in any organization. I think we have already achieved great things in the ‘new’ Nipson, with more I hope to come.

QP: If you could change anything, either about your career, your company, or the market as a whole, what would it be and why?

Palphreyman: Again, easy answer – I wish I had been here earlier. It frustrates me to no end that we had not penetrated the market deeper. In our particular sector we probably have around 10% market share – which for our size, we certainly punch above our weight, but with our unique technology I would have expected us to be a little stronger. My task now is to make up that lost ground, and with the new team, new investments in our technology and our road plan for the future, I think we have a great opportunity to do that.