Kennesaw, Ga. -- Forty-year-old Milwaukee-based HM Graphics, Inc. recently replaced a 16-year-old UV double-coating machine with a new Heidelberg Speedmaster CD 102 convertible UV press. The company, whose reputation for quality and comprehensive service is well-established, installed the first 40” UV double coating press in the U.S. in 1992, and has been building its UV expertise into a formidable specialty ever since. The company gets an able assist from a powerful pressroom lineup that also includes a pair of Heidelberg 6-color Speedmaster SM 102 single coaters with in-line aqueous, a 2-color Heidelberg TOK and two Heidelberg Printmaster QM 46 2-color presses.
 
“Whenever we replace a press, we look to get our money back within four years,” said company president Jim Sandstrom. He explains that this calculation is based on productivity gains the company achieves with the new press and the fact that “our last two installations have exceeded these expectations.” That said, the new Speedmaster CD 102 “is at least 50 percent more productive as the older machine, enabling us to be more competitive in this soft market. The print quality also is significantly better,” Sandstrom said. He also praises the CD 102’s faster makereadies and ability to change over quickly from conventional to UV operation.
 
Family owned and managed since 1969, and with 200 employees, HM Graphics serves a national client base of Fortune 500 companies, global advertising agencies and other businesses large and small “with a passion for perfection.” The company performs all prepress, printing, postpress/finishing and direct mail, warehousing and fulfillment functions in-house under strict quality control conditions. “With Heidelberg, we know we’re getting an exceptionally reliable machine that prints beautifully and wears well, year in and year out,” Sandstrom said. “Heidelberg sets the industry standard for excellence.”