EduCraft launched to make everyone’s life easier

Any casual glance through a school supply catalogue will leave the reader baffled by the array of similar items, many of which seem neither to be identifying the end-user’s needs nor to be making it easier for those needs to be met. 
To address this issue Slater Harrison have launched the Educraft range.  Educraft is an instantly recognisable brand-name that delivers a product that is relevant to both teachers’ and childrens’ needs.  Principally Educraft exists to guide children, teachers and buyers in creative directions in a straightforward manner.
The first initiative for the new Educraft brand is the launch of our new Seasonal packs of paper and card containing the colours most popular for each season.  At Christmas traditionally red, gold and silver are most in demand: all the teacher needs to do is inform his or her buyer that X quantity of Educraft Winter packs are needed.  The fronts of these packs offer illustrated suggestions to make it easier for busy teachers to prepare the lesson.  The buyer in turn will be able to consult the trade catalogues and in an instant will have secured the exact colour combination of paper and card that are needed for, say, Yuletide greetings cards.
Over the course of this year, progressively more of Slater Harrison’s education  products will be marketed under the Educraft name and the basic principles that underpin that name.  We are planning to introduce more Educraft products, such as Easymount (a complete montage kit for older children), for Year 2000 catalogues with accompanying photography that will further help school teachers by suggesting ways in which they can be used to best effect.  This is to be an ongoing theme of the Educraft range.  Educraft will not only make teachers’ lives easier but will give children throughout the age-range even greater scope for their boundless creativity. (Both parents and teachers will have to decide whether to blame or thank Educraft for this!)

Innovation is the key to success

Slater Harrison & Company is now in its 70th year in business and we can safely say the main secret of its success so far has been the willingness of both management and technical staff to experiment and diversify.
One of the reasons that we continue to extend ourselves technically is due to the vision of our current Managing Director, Mike Braddock.  Mike actually started his career in the laboratory when he joined Slater Harrison in 1970.  At the age of 24 he was promoted to Works Chemist and as a result has spent the last 25 years closely involved in technical developments. Even since he became Managing Director in 1994, Mike has spearheaded our development programme, and is still the person to talk to with any difficult requests!
Our facilities are unique, with arguably the most comprehensive range of coating and laminating machines in the UK.  Often we combine machines, allowing the supply of coated, laminated boards. In 1992, we installed No 4 coater (to make Day-Glo copier paper), and development has continued since.  Only last year we acquired a Sulzer 4-ply laminator to make Colourmount and display board.
Minimum orders are relatively small.  For coated products, 5000 square metres are required, but for laminated products, using ex-stock materials, we can produce as little as 1000 boards.  The Colourmount board shown in our photograph was made from a broadsheet newspaper!
Recent, successful innovations include the development of an aqueous white coating for plastic films, to enhance printability.  Similarly, we have produced a fluorescent yellow coating on Tyvek and polyester films for use as Bus Destination Blinds.  We are constantly amazed by the many different applications for our products!
A more common use for innovative products is in the manufacture of every-day items such as envelopes. We have recently produced a special coated paper with either a metallic or a pearlescent surface for envelope manufacture.  Quality Christmas cards from Marks & Spencer are sold with envelopes made from this paper, and our brand new  “Centura” range of coloured pearlescent papers and boards will be introduced especially for the Millennium.
At Slater Harrison, new products are being researched continually, with innovation and development high on our list of priorities. 
Our ability to tailor-make bespoke products to our customers’ own specifications results in a full order book and a very busy technical department!
As Mike Braddock says, “As a company, we thrive on being asked to make specials and generally speaking, the answer will be yes - just don’t make the question too difficult!!”
If you have a requirement for a bespoke product, you can contact Mike Braddock on 01625 573155 for an informal discussion.