Focus Press praises govt assistance after tripling turnover

Focus Press has tripled turnover and saved more than $500,000 in energy costs thanks partly to government assistance.

Managing director David Fuller told ProPrint that the company had benefited greatly from Federal program Enterprise Connect and NSW initiative Sustainability Advantage – and couldn't understand why others didn't make use of their expertise and financial support.

"I found that in printing, [Enterprise Connect's] knowledge is quite substantial," he said.

"I think for anybody looking to get started in sustainability or to improve their business that Enterprise Connect is a great place to start."

Focus Press also received a $6.1 million AusIndustry grant to build a "state-of-the-art" printing facility in Wollongong.

The carbon neutral printer has become a much leaner organisation since embracing sustainability, according to Fuller.

"The result of all these energy efficiency projects is to reduce our costs. So far we've saved more than half a million dollars. We continue to save more than $50,000 to $80,000 a year in energy alone," he said.

"Our staff are so on board that our productivity has increased incredibly and because of that we've grown. Our staffing has more than doubled and our turnover has more than trebled in the past few years," he said.

"We have about 120 staff at the moment. We reckon we'll grow another 100% in the next two to three years."

Fuller told ProPrint that Focus Press' green credentials made it easier to steer client conversations away from price.

Prografica Production Agency is another company that has benefited from Enterprise Connect.

Chief executive Kerim El Gabaili also found it surprising more printers didn't use the program.

“Why wouldn’t you use it if it’s available? They’ve got good people doing good work for free and then giving you a chunk of money to improve your business. It’d be good if there were more schemes like that," he said.

Click here to read ProPrint's feature on Prografica.