Government print deal worth £170m goes to APS

AN EDINBURGH firm has won a significant printing contract with the Scottish Government, which could be worth as much as £170 million over three years.

APS Scotland snatched the contract from global printing heavyweight RR Donnelley. APS says it will undertake a "substantial part" of the work itself, while the rest will be contracted out to other firms.

APS Scotland, which is part of Cheshire-based APS Group, is currently in talks to transfer more than 56 employees from RR Donnelley – a move that will more than treble the size of its current workforce of 20.

Allan Doyle, managing director of APS Scotland, said: "It is excellent news for our Scottish operation. This takes us to another level."

He added: "The good news is it really supports Scottish jobs in many ways. Our bid is based on supporting SME print manufacturers in Scotland working with us to provide the services."

The deal is initially for two years, but could possibly be extended to three, and it is for the supply of all design, print, publishing and associated services for central Scottish Government. It has been valued at between 130m-170m.

As many as 80 other government agencies, such as VisitScotland, have the choice of using APS or sending work directly to small, local printers.

Scottish firms short-listed in the recently announced design, print and publishing framework by the Central Government Centre of Procurement Expertise include 21 Colour, Allander Print, John McCormick and others.

In addition to its two Edinburgh offices, APS Scotland plans to open a third operation, a document management operation in the capital, once the contract starts in April.