Offset Printing - Sheet-Fed

Since installing an eight-color Speedmaster XL 105 long perfector with CutStar sheeter, Inpress automated color control, and AutoPlate XL more than six months ago, Modern Litho's (Jefferson City, MO) expectations and early impressions have been confirmed, and the company is well on the way to fulfilling a long-term growth strategy focused on short-run, quick-turn production.

The installation of Lewisburg Printing's new six-color, 73˝ R900 XXL press from manroland inc. is almost complete. The new unit will complement an existing six-color, 73˝ Roland that was purchased in 2008.

Answering customer demand for shorter runs, Houston-based Simon Printing has taken the path toward greater efficiency and higher profits by choosing to install a four-color Speedmaster SM52 Anicolor press. “We’re not into ultra-short runs, and we didn’t need the variable-data capability of a digital color press,” said Brad Simon, owner.

Last month, Printing Impressions and its sister publications, Package Printing and In-plant Graphics, were invited to visit Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG's headquarters to talk with executives and tour the company's massive sheetfed press manufacturing facility in nearby Wiesloch-Walldorf. Among the many highlights of the trip, journalists met with both outgoing CEO Bernhard Schreier and new CEO Dr. Gerold Linzbach.

There were only four offset presses actually running at GRAPH EXPO last month, but the leading vendors still had booths on the show floor. Video presentations, interactive displays, print samples, and standalone press consoles or press units were instead used to showcase new developments, enhanced maintenance offerings and press monitoring services.

The Alphagraphics franchise in Idaho Falls, ID, had been subbing out its four-color work to an out-of-state printer and “hated it,” according to owner Lynn Nelson. The company has now mapped out a clear path to growth with the installation of a Speedmaster SM 52 Anicolor press.

David McGinnis, owner of Think Printing in Richmond, VA, said he wanted to wait for the economy to begin to recover from the recession before purchasing a new press. “The recession made me a better businessman,” he explained. “I learned to evaluate every expenditure in detail. We had a layoff at the peak of the downturn, but I’ve rehired everyone since and even added personnel.”

By January 2012, Excell Color Graphics had reached a point where management felt it was high time for a change. “We felt that technology had passed us by and that we soon would be struggling to keep up with the rest of the industry,” said Tom Parrot, president.

Ferrostaal Equipment Solutions North America is now exclusively marketing the new Ryobi 760E series printing press. The six-up press, available in up to six colors with perfector, has double-diameter impression and transfer cylinders and offers a 13,000 sph maximum speed.

Modern Litho, based in Jefferson City, MO, recently installed a Heidelberg Speedmaster XL 105 eight-color perfector presses, replacing three aging machines. The company is currently on pace to grow at around 12 percent in 2012, with anticipated sales revenue in the $16 million range, attributable in part to the new Speedmaster XL 105 perfector.