The Polestar Group is Europe's leading independent printing company. It is a new business, with new ideas, based on long held traditions of quality and service, traditions we are committed to uphold. It is focused on several related print markets in which we offer our customers an unrivalled range of printing and related services. In this world of rapidly changing technology, the management of change and the realignment of working practices are key factors in ensuring our continuing competitiveness. Our business environment is increasingly international and this will accelerate as Europe moves towards a single market. Our horizons are widening. Polestar is a growing business, servicing growing markets. Such growth provides the platform for the pursuit of excellence. To be Europe's most customer focused, innovative, and profitable printing company. The Polestar Group was formed in 1998 by Investcorp, a merger of Watmoughs Holdings, established in the 1880's, and The British Printing Company, established 1936. BPC served the time-sensitive weekly market. Watmough served the quality monthly market, hence natural partners, so between the two companies covering a broad spectrum of services. Today Polestar has 20 operating sites across the UK, Spain and Hungary, and 2 imaging companies pioneering computer to plate (CTP) technology throughout the group. To complement its vast printing techniques, 'ink on board or paper', Polestar can also offer the latest range of software services. Polestar's various sales offices can be located throughout the UK. The group's European head office is based in the new city of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire and across its business sectors has 5, 300 employees. Web Offset Presses  30 Gravure Presses  17 Sheetfed Presses 5 Perfect Binding Lines  22 Saddle Stitching Lines  58 Mailing Lines  26 Digital Presses  2 CTP Studios  2 Our group wide quality procedures reflect our aim to produce the highest achievable standard of finished product to our customers' specifications and maintain constant standards across all our services. Continuous developments to improve working practices and optimisation of quality procedures enable us to remain ahead of our competitors. All procedures exceed the requirement of ISO 9002. Polestar is committed to developing and maintaining procedures that minimise the environmental impact of our activities. Our environmental performance is monitored regularly by an internal committee, charged with responsibility for legislative compliance. The Directors of the Group continue to encourage the maintenance and improvement of its good record in the field of health and safety. This is achieved through regular consultation between management and representatives of employees. Every endeavour is made to meet all statutory requirements, health and safety regulations, codes of practice and other relevant recommendations relating to the activities of companies operating within the Group. Polestar was the first company to insert Post-It Notes into magazines We can print with metallic or fluorescent inks Polestar has been printing the Radio Times for 75 years Polestar was the first printer to turn 5 weekly titles to digital gravure at Polestar Purnell Took U.K. digital format of Women’s Weekly for gravure printing. The title was resized, and re-purposed for web offset printing to Sydney, Australia and was on sale that day. Polestar converts 400,000 tonnes of gravure paper / year - weight range 38gsm to 90gsm Polestar converts 250,000 tonnes of web offset paper / year - weight range 38gsm to 250 gsm Polestar consumes 32,000 tonnes of ink each year - over 4 tonnes consumed on average every hour Each week 33 million magazines and supplements are produced - each year over 1.7 billion weekly copies generated. 32 page sections (or equivalent) printed annually in retail markets - travel 270 million, high street 1,165 million, home shopping 305 million Of the 5.75 billion, 32pp sections (or equivalent) produced for the industry each year, Polestar produces 3.4 billion or 60% of the total market 16 supplements printed weekly for major newspaper publishers NewsPac is believed to be the highest volume single source polywrapping plant in the world - Sitma Newspac produces 60,000 packs per hour, 2.5 million packs in 3 days, 130 million packs processed each year CTP (Computer to Plate) technology is operational now at Polestar sites at: Revai, Chantry, Colchester, Petty, Chromoworks. A must have technology Customer demands Improved customer links Enhanced image For information on CTP, Click Here News in Numbers 8000 the number of magazine titles published in the uk each year according to the PPA £13.7bn the annual worth of the world's direct marketing industry census from the DMA 0% the change to the VAT levy on published material under a future conservative government, promised Michael Howard in November 2004 £36.7bn what the US outsourcing market will be worth by 2008 according to Info Trends/Cap Ventures £796m the increase consumer spending on magazines since 1944 according to the PPA