02/22/2007 -- The 1,000th computer-to-plate (CtP) platesetting system from the Suprasetter family has now rolled off the production line at Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) in Wiesloch. The system in question is a Suprasetter E 105 and is headed for a Brazilian customer specializing in packaging products. "The impressive market success of the Suprasetter shows that throughout the world Heidelberg has the perfect answer for customer needs with its CtP strategy. We are especially pleased with the keen demand for the new entry-level models. Small and midsize print shops in particular are eager to invest because they value the enhanced quality of CtP technology and because Heidelberg offers a cost-effective way of benefiting from this," explains Bernhard Schreier, Chief Executive Officer of Heidelberg. To date, Heidelberg has sold more than 5,000 computer-to-plate units throughout the world. The company began developing technology for direct imaging of printing plates at the start of the 1990s. The takeover of Linotype Hell AG in 1997 saw the launch of CtP platesetters in the form of the Trendsetter and, later on, Topsetter models. In 2001, Heidelberg unveiled the Prosetter series, its first CtP platesetter family developed in house for small, medium, and large formats based on violet technology. At drupa 2004, the company finally presented the Suprasetter family based on thermal technology, a modular design, and a completely new laser head developed in house. The latest launch for the time being was the Suprasetter A52/A74 series in fall 2006. This offers small and midsize print shops in particular a cost-effective gateway to thermal platesetting while maintaining the same imaging quality as with the high-end models in the series.