Heidelberg has come out fighting at Drupa with a long perfecting B1 press that is shown running without the intervention of a press operator.
The machine is the latest incarnation of the Push to Stop concept that was first introduced at the last Drupa – eight years ago. Now the 2024 generation of the XL106 can be completely autonomous, loading plates, reach fit and colour and printing the required number with no operator needed, provided the paper remains the same.
Drupa is the first public outing for Heidelberg’s plate to unit technology, where plates are removed from a cassette by a gripper which lowers the plate into the requisite press unit. In demonstration the press runs through three sections with no intervention needed. New versions of existing quality control and colour assessment technology are needed along with CutStar 4, developed in collaboration with Contiweb.
The new generation press will run at 21,000sph even in perfecting mode, some 15% faster than the previous generation machine.This enables Heidelberg to claim it to be the fastest sheetfed press in the world. It had previously shown a press running at this speed for carton printing.
The carton machine is present in a seven-colour configuration along with a unit from the flexo Boardmaster and an online presentation of the machine in action. An Anicolor 75, in the digital print area of the stand, completes the press line up. The Jetfire 50, adorned with Heidelberg marketing messages, is the focus for the digital area. Because of the secrecy around the deal, the machine had to be moved in by night and was hidden under a grey shroud until the official announcement. The section also includes the Versafire based on an OEM deal with Ricoh. There is no change in this arrangement with Heidelberg stressing that it has machines to meet every demand.
The show comes at a time that a new CEO, Jurgen Otto, is due to take over at the end of June. Both outgoing and incoming CEOs were present, the one to look back on success on righting the business financially, the other to look forwards.
Otto compared Heidelberg with the automotive industry where he worked for many years.
“It’s about a combination of mechanical engineering, electrics and electronics with a focus on automation. This is the same set of conditions driving the automotive industry,” he says.
