Business News
New Saddle Stitchers and the SigmaLine Attract Plenty of Interest from the 250 Visitors
Wednesday 29. September 2010 - Two-Day International Open House Event Hosted by Muller Martini in Oftringen
The two-day international open house event hosted by Muller Martini, featuring the slogan “Grow with Efficiency”, has been a resounding success. Some 250 visitors from numerous countries made the trip to the Training Center in Oftringen, Switzerland. Various live demonstrations gave the visitors an insight into the latest saddle stitching technology and the SigmaLine digital book production system.
Ahmet Özçelik, owner and Managing Director of Özçelik Matbaacilik in Istanbul (Turkey) made the long journey from Istanbul to Oftringen especially to see the live demonstrations of the Primera 110, the Tempo 220 (making its world debut in Oftringen), and the Primera 160, which Muller Martini unveiled for the first time at IPEX in May. Özçelik was particularly impressed by the minimal time required to set up the new saddle stitcher: “The changeover from one job to the next is significantly faster, so the machines can be operated much more efficiently, which in turn increases productivity. In Turkey, there is no opportunity for me to see so many machines all in one place, so I was particularly interested in seeing the diverse capabilities offered by this modern technology.”
Even Faster Changeovers
The new Tempo E220 consumes considerably less energy than the predecessor model and was connected with Muller Martini’s Connex Workflow System at the open house event, as was the Primera 160. The Tempo E220 now also features a new setup wizard, meaning it can be changed over much more quickly. The degree of automation featured by the Primera 110 has been enhanced and both C110 and E110 automation levels are available to meet individual customer requirements. Both models benefit from automatic synchronization of the feeder, gathering chain, stitching machine, and three-knife trimmer; this feature significantly speeds up the production process.
Quick Responses to Questions
According to Jules Ilhan, Head of the Finishing Department at Bruhin AG, Print & Crossmedia in Freienbach (Switzerland), the demonstrations of the individual systems were not just a good overview of the latest technology. “We also took away plenty of useful tips for our daily work processes, particularly with regard to faster changeovers.” For Alfons Ahland, Managing Director of finishing specialists Alpa GmbH in Geldern (Germany), one of the main advantages of the open house event was the fact that the experts operating the machines were on hand to answer questions between demonstrations: “We recently purchased a Primera C140 and have had one or two teething problems. The Muller Martini instructors answered my questions by demonstrating directly on the machine.”
Several peripheral systems were on display in addition to the saddle stitchers, which Alfons Ahland believes gave visitors an interesting overview of what can be achieved with printed products outside the ordinary stitching process. “One example I can think of is addressing magazines directly in the feeder or on the chain.” Grzegorz Luczak, owner and President of Zaktad Poligraficzny in Pozna? (Poland), also noted another hugely important aspect of the event: “The open house event showed me a whole host of new ways to make printed products more interesting for the reader.”
Significant Interest in the SigmaLine
In addition to the demonstrations on the saddle stitchers at nearby Rothrist, many of the visitors at the open house event made use of the opportunity to watch live production of a 2011 softcover diary on the SigmaLine digital production system. “It’s fantastic to see what this innovative solution from Muller Martini really offers,” said Enrico and Fabio Baggi, owners of Eurolega in Bareggio (Italy), in amazement.
Allan Grey, Head of Production at Ashford Colour Press in Gosport (UK), first saw the SigmaLine at drupa 2004. “But I have to admit that I hardly recognized it six years later. I’m really impressed at how the system has developed into a sophisticated, complete and compact line. This is exactly what we need for our industry’s digital future.” Ahmet Özçelik is also convinced: “Personalized printed products are going to become hugely important – the SigmaLine is the right response to this development.”