Offset Printing
HEI Open Days – once a month, commercial print shops can obtain comprehensive information about Heidelberg solutions at the Print Media Center
Monday 29. April 2013 - Open day provides an overview of the latest prepress, press, and postpress technologies, including service offerings
Next dates: May 16, June 20, and September 19, 2013
Customers can also take a 360-degree virtual tour of the PMC and prepare for their actual visit
On the penultimate Thursday of every month, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) holds an open day at its Print Media Center (PMC) at the company’s Heidelberg site. The main challenges faced by commercial print shops at present are improving production efficiency, ensuring a high level of quality, standing out from competitors, and embracing green print production. The PMC offers a comprehensive range of demonstrations geared to these very trends. HEI Open Days, as these events are known, enable customers to obtain an overview of a fully integrated, cutting-edge full-service print shop. The solutions on show cover prepress operations, digital printing, all offset printing formats – from A3 and half format to long perfectors in the 70 x 100 centimeter (27.56 x 39.37 inch) format – and appropriate postpress equipment for cutting, folding, saddlestitching, and adhesive binding. Coordinated Saphira consumables from Heidelberg are also demonstrated and explained, as are appropriate service offerings.
The next HEI Open Days will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 16, June 20, and September 19 this year. They are intended above all for European customers, who can register via their local contacts. Visitors to the PMC will find all machines manned by Heidelberg specialists who will use practical demonstrations to tell participants everything they need to know about print production and pass on the necessary know-how about the key trend of sustainable production (HEI Eco). “HEI Open Days give customers the opportunity to obtain all the information they need about the latest commercial printing trends – for both offset and digital – in a single day. The Print Media Center in Heidelberg is the print media industry’s most comprehensive demonstration center and aims to provide a broad customer base with targeted information on an ongoing basis,” explains Marcel Kiessling, member of the Heidelberg Management Board responsible for sales and services.
The PMC in Heidelberg was redesigned last fall to incorporate the latest technology and now includes all the innovations showcased at drupa 2012 for the commercial printing sector. Another new feature is the comprehensive postpress portfolio on show – Postpress Commercial – which is fully integrated into the Prinect workflow. On an area totaling more than 5,000 square meters (around 54,000 square feet), customers can see for themselves how prepress, press, and postpress operations can be integrated across all production areas.
360-degree virtual tour of the PMC
The Heidelberg website offers a brand new 360-degree tour of the entire PMC in Heidelberg. Anyone taking this virtual tour can visit 20 different “hotspots” or use conventional navigation aids such as buttons and sliders to move around the PMC at will. They are effectively standing in the PMC and can go anywhere they choose, using their mouse or finger to move in the required direction and zoom in and out on particular items. This is possible with all modern browsers on PCs, Macs, tablets, and smartphones – Windows, Android, and iOS are all supported – for a cutting-edge online experience 24/7.
Customers can use the virtual tour to prepare themselves for their visit and obtain information in advance. They may be interested in the new SX models, such as the Speedmaster SX 52 and SX 74, or the Speedmaster SX 102 and CX 102. A further highlight is the Speedmaster XL 106 ten-color press with a maximum production speed of 18,000 sheets per hour in perfecting mode, which is a response to the trend toward lean production – HEI Productivity. The postpress section includes the new Stitchmaster ST 500 saddlestitcher and the Eurobind Pro adhesive binder, both of which are also designed for maximum throughput. For the key market of short-run printing – HEI Flexibility – Heidelberg demonstrates its Linoprint C 751 and C 901 digital printing systems which, in conjunction with the Speedmaster SX 52 five-color press and the Prinect Digital Print Manager, offer optimum flexibility.
The most important thing for customers is to maximize machine availability while also ensuring stable and environmentally friendly production. For this purpose, all stations at the PMC also demonstrate a wide range of services and software, with everything from service agreements and software solutions to advice on using eco-friendly consumables from the Saphira Eco range.