Denny Bros has installed a Heidelberg Speedmaster XL75 Anicolor having considered and walked away from investment in a B2 digital press.
The Bury St Edmunds label printer has long used Xeikon digital printing in the roll fed side of its business alongside flexo presses, but has been litho using Heidelberg presses in its litho side.
Managing director Graham Denny says: “Our sheetfed printing department has been a ‘Heidelberg house’ for many years. However, when we began the search for the right machine to update the department, our thoughts were very much that it was time for sheetfed digital.
“We have had reel-to-reel digital presses for some years and understand the benefits digital offers in terms of reduced set up times and so on. However, we found that the sheetfed digital presses we looked at did not ideally suit our work and we were disappointed with the quality and productivity. I investigated various manufacturers offering toner and inkjet. Unfortunately none fitted our business needs for thin stocks, printing speeds and environmental criteria.”
A visit to Heidelberg resulted in a demonstration of the Anicolor technology which has become a standard platform for many in pharmaceutical printing because of the consistency of the ink and colour that it delivers for customers that are highly sensitive to the accuracy of brand and spot colours.
It has resulted in replacing an old six-colour SM74 with a six-colour, 5/1, perfecting Anicolor. While the press is capable of handling a range of material from 0.03-0.8mm, it is the lower end that Denny is more interested in rather than printing carton work. That would require investment in cutting and creasing machinery which the business does not have.
The simplicity of the keyless inking system will result in less waste, faster set up times and less maintenance adding to the appeal says Denny, “together with the fact that potential output was much higher than we had seen with digital”. As the press beds in, the company will be able to measure improvements to waste and set up times and also to calculate the amount of energy consumed per 1,000 sheets.
The investment of almost £2 million is the largest for a single piece of equipment in the company’s history and the first significant investment since transforming to an Employee Ownership Trust. It comes after a challenging few years with Brexit followed by Covid and inflation and supply chain issues. “But out confidence is still strong and reflected by the level of investment we are now making for the future,” he adds.
“The Heidelberg is a great fit in terms of our environmental purchasing criteria using less energy and arguably being more sustainable than digital with a long potential life span.”
Denny Bros produces labels, including its multipage Fix-a-Form product, for customers in healthcare, agrochemicals, cosmetics, promotional marketing sectors and for pharmaceutical companies will produce patient information leaflets.
