Hong Kong-based CTPS will use its HP inkjet web and digital capacity to take on a regional print-and-distribute contract for Oxford University Press.

A tender which explored offset and digital print as part of a centralised strategy for the Asia-Pacific has led to the full-service provider appointment. CTPS will provide print, mailing, stock management and distribution of about 60 journals in 27 countries throughout the region from its plant in Dongguan, China.

It has HP Indigo 7500 and T300 equipment, the latter integrated with Muller Martini binding, enabling a four-day production turn round.

OUP's Claire Humphreys says publishers need to partner up and down-stream to further drive the migration of publications to digital printing. "As print runs drop and inkjet printing quality gets better, we will see more use of digital," she says. "We can't just expect the technology to get better - we have to partner with the print service providers... to find the best solutions. That's what we are doing with CTPS."

Under the two-year agreement, CTPS will handle production and distribution of selected journals published at frequencies from two to 26 times a year, in quantities of 70-5000 copies.

Pictured: Claire Humphreys, production and estimating manager at OUP and John Currie, global business director at CTPS