Last year, Schlaefli & Maurer AG placed a major order worth around CHF 10 million with Heidelberg Schweiz AG for its new production site in Uetendorf near Thun. The Speedmaster XL 145 five-color press with coating unit and the Suprasetter 145 CtP system both made their debut in Switzerland at the start of this year when they were taken into operation by the customer. Also new is the Speedmaster XL 105 five-color press plus coating unit. In postpress, large-format industrial production is provided by a Stahlfolder TD 112 buckle plate folding machine (four buckle plates plus cross-fold unit) and a high-performance cutting line from Polar-Mohr.

The two presses are integrated into an air-conditioning concept and are supplied with heat, air, coolant and conditioned dampening solution via the highly-efficient and economical Star peripherals from Heidelberg.

"This latest investment in cutting-edge production technology from Heidelberg is designed to boost our annual growth by ten percent," says Rolf Hänni, CEO of Schlaefli & Maurer AG. "We intend to use the Speedmaster XL 145 to produce calendars, maps, books, magazines, annual reports, image brochures, posters and card-based products," Hänni continues, listing the new market segments that the company plans to move into. He sees great potential in standard jobs, which, for example, are placed online. These can now be produced even more cost-effectively in mixed forms using format 6.

The Speedmaster XL 145 is also to be used to produce line-free displays. On January 1, 2010, the card specialist Wittwer Offset AG in Heimberg and Schlaefli & Maurer AG merged their print shops. Both partners hope to use the large-format print capacities in Uetendorf for the cost-effective production of high-quality packaging.

Customers use the Speedmaster XL 105 to boost productivity and increase energy efficiency
Swiss Printers AG specializes in sheetfed offset printing in 3B format at three sites in Lausanne (IRL SA), St. Gallen (Zollikofer AG) and Schlieren (NZZ Fretz AG), operating a total of 75 printing and coating units. Its web offset printing takes place at Ringier Print Zofingen AG. With the aim of rationalizing its sheetfed offset printing operations at NZZ Fretz AG, the biggest group in the Swiss graphic arts industry is investing in an adjustable ten-color Speedmaster XL 105 with Autoplate XL, which is controlled using Prinect Inpress Control. The press is scheduled for installation in May 2010 and is designed to combine outstanding productivity with economical energy consumption. Thanks to Systemservice 36 Plus, Swiss Printers AG has secured systematic maintenance services for all the sheetfed offset presses of Heidelberg Schweiz AG for a period of three years.

In terms of the investment decision, one of the key factors that tipped the scales in favor of Heidelberg was the consulting services that the company offers as part of its business consulting strategy and the objective future scenarios that were derived for the Swissprinters Group. The option of digital printing was also investigated, resulting in the conclusion that no technology for the foreseeable future will be able to rival the quality and performance of the sheetfed offset method.

"In opting for the long perfecting press with coating unit, we have set the course for further modernization in the future," explains Marcel Stofer, Production Manager at Zollikofer AG in St. Gallen and project lead. "Thanks to excellent compatibility between the sites, we are able to react flexibly and, if necessary, exchange jobs between the individual locations". Full integration based on JDF is planned with the Group-wide implementation of standardized industry software (MIS). Combined with the Prinect Pressroom Manager, MIS will allow users to query the free capacities of all the Heidelberg presses at any time and at any site in order to achieve optimum capacity utilization at the four production sites.

Business consulting improves competitiveness
The print shop dfmedia has also opted for a long perfecting press in the form of a Speedmaster XL 105 ten-color press. The company has decided to concentrate its sheetfed offset jobs at its Flawil site, with the aim of cutting production time by boosting productivity. The investment decision was supported by a job analysis conducted by the business consulting services of Heidelberg.

According to Managing Director of dfmedia Pascal Schwarz, print tests showed that the adjustable Speedmaster XL 105-10-P delivers a level of quality that can easily keep pace with the company's existing two-pass production. The high-performance machine will be used to produce print runs of between 1,000 and 20,000, including a large number of magazines. In addition to the Speedmaster XL 105-10-P, dfmedia has also invested in the integrated workflow based on the Prinect Integration System. Extensive process automation between prepress and press is designed to minimize costs. At the same time, dfmedia has also secured full process integration with an MIS and all the necessary production technology.

In summer 2010, Rheintaler Druckerei und Verlag AG (RDV) will install a second Speedmaster XL 105 in Berneck. The first press helped to deliver the desired 30 percent increase in productivity. RDV attaches great importance to environmental protection, compensating for the CO2 emissions generated by its presses during production by financing approved climate protection projects. The new press - a Speedmaster XL 105 five-color press with coating unit - is equipped with Prinect Inpress Control for the adjustment of register and ink feed in the inline process. The fast setup operations are designed to cut startup waste and thus save several hundred tons of paper per year. For standardized processes, both Speedmaster XL 105 presses are integrated into the Mini Spot workflow from Heidelberg with a closed loop between prepress, proof and press.

Environmental protection a factor for all formats
In January this year, the print shop E. Schoop AG, which was founded in 1923, started production at its new facility in Arbon. The heating and cooling systems for the rooms and production technology are designed in line with the latest guidelines. The FSC-certified print shop has upgraded its pressroom by installing a Speedmaster SM 74-5-P+L from Heidelberg and the color control system Prinect Axis Control. Its postpress operations have also been modernized with the installation of a Polar 92 X Plus.

On the one hand, the Speedmaster SM 74 is integrated in a cooling circuit for heat recovery and, on the other, it is integrated with the DryStar dryer system and the CombiStar combination unit for dampening solution supply and inking unit temperature control for cooling the press peripherals. The liquid circulation system is used to feed energy from the printing system into a heat storage facility, from where it is used to heat the offices during the colder months. What's more, a recooling system installed outside the building is used to extract waste heat generated by the peripherals, thus keeping the pressroom cool during the warmer months. In addition to buying the new adjustable five-color press with coating unit, the company also relocated an existing Speedmaster SM 52-2 from its old site to the new building. Preparations have already been made to integrate this press into the heat recovery system.