A double B2 press order from Potts Print (UK) for delivery this summer includes a top of the range Speedmaster XL 75 and its latest sister B2 press from Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg), the Speedmaster SX 74 which was on show at drupa in the commercial printing area of Hall 1. This investment adds to the flexibility the company can offer its packaging and commercial customers and enable it to add five more operators to the 162 strong team, as well as offer opportunities to current trainees. 

The Cramlington-based company already offers a B1, B2 and B3 printing facility but with this latest investment it will be able to handle virtually any B2 job it is offered. 

"We have specified the Speedmaster XL 75 with five colours and a dedicated coater," says Shaun Johnson, managing director. "With its double diameter impression cylinders this press will produce the very best quality coated products on stocks of up to 800 microns. The dedicated coater is essential in today's fast turnround market. 
"The Speedmaster SX 74 four-colour will handle uncoated and spot colour work, taking away some of the general commercial work to free up our other B1 and B2 presses to handle the longer runs," says Mr Johnson. 

Production director Brian Watson adds: "Heidelberg presses are built to last and work hard. The CD 74 which we are replacing is eight years old and still producing excellent work. We looked at other options but it is so easy to do business with Heidelberg because they have the right technology and service. The XL 75 is a replacement press; the SX 74 is additional." 

Potts Print cannot envisage running a press without spectrophotometric colour control in future. It gives customers peace of mind that the colour will be reproduced scientifically to the tightest parameters and from a production perspective will minimise start up time and waste. "For the first time we are going for Inpress Control, Heidelberg's most advanced and automated product. We have seen it in action and wanted this for the XL 75. It eliminates offline sheet scanning and means that the colour is measured inside the press on the run, minimising the potential for deviation from the set colour parameters and waste."

Easy Control, the latest addition to Heidelberg's family of colour control devices, has been specified for the SX 74. It has the ability to scan and save Pantone colour data, a great tool for the corporate market where business branding is key. The company has colour measurement on all its presses and is planning to undertake Heidelberg's ISO 12647-2 colour management certification scheme to underline its commitment to the highest quality standards. 

The company is also very environmentally minded and these investment are made only days after Potts announced that it had successfully carbon offset its entire operation, becoming the first carbon balanced publication printing company in the north of England. It is the company's aim to run both presses 24/7. The XL 75 will operate around the clock from day 1 but the SX 74 will initially be used for six 12 hour shifts initially. The presses will be delivered this summer. "This investment is good news for everyone. Operators are buzzing because in difficult times they see Potts continuing to invest and move forward. Our customers know that they will get the quality, colour control, turnaround and value that they want and rightly expect from us," says Mr Johnson.