Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) recently opened its redesigned customer demonstration center, the Print Media Center, at the company's head office in Heidelberg and Wiesloch. In an area covering approximately 3,000 square meters, the Center showcases the company's solutions - from prepress and press to postpress. Over the years, the Print Media Center has played an increasingly important role in supporting global sales activities. Many customers are interested in presses (e.g. long perfectors and hybrid presses) and the associated prepress and postpress units. The highlights of the demonstration center include the Speedmaster CD 74 DUO, a Speedmaster SM 102 ten-color press and two Speedmaster XL 105 six-color presses with coating unit. The Prinect Experience Tour also demonstrates how a print shop can significantly increase efficiency by integrating all its management and production processes. Ongoing innovations mean that products are constantly being replaced. Hardly a single unit remains at the customer demonstration center for longer than twelve months. The Print Media Center has already welcomed an average of five visitors each from around 1,400 print shops all over the world this year. Roughly 95 percent of the visitors came from the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) regions. It was not unusual for them to bring a number of print jobs with them to put the Heidelberg products through their paces and check out their quality. Potential customers who, in the past, rarely or never invested in Heidelberg equipment, have been able to find out about the company's commitment to innovation on special technology tours tailored to their specific business model. There have also been around 450 guided tours over the past year, the majority for visitors from universities and colleges. Customer focus is the maxim for the 165 staff and 14 trainees at the Print Media Center. A special "Customer Care Concept" allows each individual customer to enjoy personal service for the duration of their visit to Heidelberg. Karl Kowalczyk, head of the customer demonstration center, explained the integrated approach as follows: "Each customer is allocated their own customer advisor who is responsible for everything from the demonstrations to the program of events. A visit to the demonstration center is a real experience for most customers. Many are in Heidelberg for the first time to have the opportunity to discover both the company and the city. This also makes the new customer demonstration center a valuable asset when it comes to encouraging customer loyalty." The first thing visitors will see on their arrival is a new reception area with an information desk and a comfortable waiting area. The presentation of the entire portfolio of solutions is based on the concept used at drupa 2004.