Gordana Graphics uses HP Latex 700 to set the wheels in motion with eye-catching bus wraps

Edinburgh-based family-owned vehicle livery and branding specialist Gordana Graphics used its new HP Latex 700 printer to produce a series of eye-catching wraps for five local sightseeing double-decker buses.

Founded in 2022, Gordana Graphics launched under the leadership of Tracey Shanks and her partner Scott Macpherson with the aim of delivering high-quality vehicle branding services to a wide range of clients.

Tracey has extensive experience fitting graphics to buses and this expertise was instrumental in Gordana Graphics being awarded its first job as a fully operational business in March of this year by Lothian Buses. Gordana Graphics worked closely with the Lothian in-house graphic design team to produce interior and exterior vinyl for five Edinburgh Bus Tour sightseeing buses.

The project was focused on the new ‘Cobbles’ Tour’, which offers tourists the opportunity to see the sights around Edinburgh from an open top bus. As the tours are targeted at families with younger children, each of the wraps was required to feature a colourful, friendly design, complete with ‘Cobbles’ the Scotty dog mascot.

Gordana Graphics used its HP Latex 700, which was purchased from HP reseller Perfect Colours and installed in March of this year to support the business with its launch and produce all of the graphics for the project, including the large-scale exterior graphics and the smaller prints for the inside of each bus.

Each of the buses required between 60m and 70m of graphics for the exterior wrap, but as Tracey explained, the HP Latex 700 was able to handle this with ease, producing extremely high-quality prints.

“The print quality of the HP Latex 700 is beautiful; there was a lot of yellow on the Cobbles buses but there was zero banding,” said Tracey, who serves as Director of Operations at Gordana Graphics. “It was a lovely solid print that was set at an eight-pass, so we were really pleased with the final results.

“I’ve worked with HP Latex printers for a number of years now and I always find them easy to work with as they are so user-friendly. From changing the ink cartridges or printheads to loading material, HP always has the end user in mind.”

Tracey added that the environmentally friendly nature of the HP Latex printer delivered added value for the team at Lothian Buses. HP Latex printers run on water-based HP Latex inks, which deliver a significantly more eco-conscious print than UV, eco-solvent or solvent inks.

“More businesses are increasingly looking for an eco-friendlier approach, especially in the public transport bus sector, where a large proportion of companies are investing heavily in electric or hydrogen buses,” Tracey continues. “Having water-based inks and the option of PVC-free films shows these companies we are investing and trying to do our bit for the planet.”

Production of the graphics took around one week to print, laminate and cut out on a Kala 1650-65 laminator, Summa 160 S2 Class T Series Opos CAM cutter and RollsRoller Flatbed applicator. A team of four then fitted the wraps over a period of seven days.

“Lothian Buses were absolutely delighted with the finished article and, from what I hear, the public liked them too,” Tracey adds. “The HP Latex 700 played a major role in the success of the project.

“For me, the benefits of the printer – setting aside how great the print quality is – include that it doesn’t take up too much space and that the maintenance is so easy, as the operator can easily replace the printheads without the need of an engineer.

“I would highly recommend the HP Latex 700!”