Heidelberg Introduces World's First Gapless Newspaper Press
05/17/2000
Mainstream 80 features proven technology, unique
capabilities
Better print quality, increased layout versatility, faster productivity and more economical operation are the press characteristics that can make newspapers of the future more compelling and more competitive. They are also the features that define the Mainstream 80. Heidelberg's newest newspaper press, unveiled for the first time at drupa 2000, incorporates the company's proven gapless blanket technology to open the door to a whole new way of printing newspapers.
The Mainstream 80 is a shaftless, double-width press designed for straight printing at speeds up to 80,000 copies per hour. It features a one-page-around by four-pages-across plate cylinder configuration (1x4) and one-around blanket cylinders (1:1 plate-to-blanket cylinder ratio).
"Modern newspapers are faced with competition from an unprecedented array of alternative media," according to Heidelberg Web Systems president Bob Brown. "The Mainstream provides a combination of speed, high print quality, versatility and economy that can make newspapers more competitive as well as more attractive to both readers and advertisers."
The Mainstream can more than double the output of a single-width, eight-page press running collect and match the output of a conventional two-around 16-page double-width press. The 1x4 configuration requires 50 percent fewer plates when compared with a conventional double-width press, a benefit that reduces plate costs as well as the time necessary to make and mount plates.
Gapless blankets, the defining feature of Heidelberg's Sunday Technology, provide the dynamic stability that enables the Mainstream to achieve high print quality at such high speeds with the double-width, one-around plate and blanket cylinders. The press is available in web widths up to 1,600 millimeters (63 inches).
"Tubular Sunday Press blankets eliminate the gap-related vibration and disturbances that occur when the gaps meet in other presses," Brown explains. "This proven technology allows the Mainstream to print up to 80,000 copies per hour while combining the economy of a 1x4 plate cylinder, the print quality of gapless blankets and a 1:1 plate-to-blanket cylinder ratio, and the layout versatility of two-page jumps and uneven sections."
The gapless blankets eliminate the need for bearers and blanket packing, last longer than conventional blankets and can be changed in as little as 60 seconds with the web still in the press. Heidelberg introduced Sunday Technology in 1992, and to date more than 1,600 Sunday Press printing couples have been sold throughout the world.
In addition to gapless blankets, the Mainstream features two other "industry firsts" designed to speed up makeready and improve folder performance. Omnipage, an automatic page recognition system, uses cameras mounted above the console to instantly identify newspaper pages when they are placed on the console. Omnipage can then automatically direct the control system to the corresponding page within the press. The second innovation, moveable lower folders mounted on transverse rails, allows the folders to be optimally positioned under the formers according to the web configuration for each individual print run.
Independent, synchronized AC motors on the Mainstream facilitate flying edition changes. Rotary and jaw folders accommodate page counts between 8-96 in two-page increments as well as sections with unequal page counts. The folders are streamlined for straight printing, with none of the moving cams necessary to run collect.
The new Heidelberg Contiweb FD paster, designed for the Mainstream, features two motorized split arms, automatic chucking and centering capabilities and an auto web-up system integrated with the press. An integrated infeed with motor-driven pull roll and dancer feedback control is designed to ensure constant web tension.
The Mainstream 80 at Drupa will be installed in a different configuration at publisher Dansk AvisTryk's plant in Copenhagen, Denmark following the show. "The demand for high-quality four-color newspapers continues to grow in Denmark, and we will utilize the new press to meet this demand," according to the company's chairman, Sven Togsverd.
Dansk AvisTryk prints 1.5 million four-color newspapers a day, including some of Denmark's largest domestic dailies. Togsverd, who saw the press print a specially-designed form during testing in Durham, New Hampshire in late 1999, says print quality and speed factored in the purchase decision. He expects the new press to expand domestic and export market opportunities.
"Before developing the Mainstream, we spoke to publishers around the world to determine their production requirements, and they told us they wanted better print quality, more color and more speed to accommodate narrower print windows," Brown explains. "They also emphasized the need for more economical workflows, and they were especially interested in advanced targeting and versioning capabilities. The Mainstream is a press that addresses all of these requirements."
For further information:
Heidelberg Web Systems
Joëlle Curet
Tel.: +33 (0)344 29 40 52
E-mail: joelle.curet@heidelberg.com
Better print quality, increased layout versatility, faster productivity and more economical operation are the press characteristics that can make newspapers of the future more compelling and more competitive. They are also the features that define the Mainstream 80. Heidelberg's newest newspaper press, unveiled for the first time at drupa 2000, incorporates the company's proven gapless blanket technology to open the door to a whole new way of printing newspapers.
The Mainstream 80 is a shaftless, double-width press designed for straight printing at speeds up to 80,000 copies per hour. It features a one-page-around by four-pages-across plate cylinder configuration (1x4) and one-around blanket cylinders (1:1 plate-to-blanket cylinder ratio).
"Modern newspapers are faced with competition from an unprecedented array of alternative media," according to Heidelberg Web Systems president Bob Brown. "The Mainstream provides a combination of speed, high print quality, versatility and economy that can make newspapers more competitive as well as more attractive to both readers and advertisers."
The Mainstream can more than double the output of a single-width, eight-page press running collect and match the output of a conventional two-around 16-page double-width press. The 1x4 configuration requires 50 percent fewer plates when compared with a conventional double-width press, a benefit that reduces plate costs as well as the time necessary to make and mount plates.
Gapless blankets, the defining feature of Heidelberg's Sunday Technology, provide the dynamic stability that enables the Mainstream to achieve high print quality at such high speeds with the double-width, one-around plate and blanket cylinders. The press is available in web widths up to 1,600 millimeters (63 inches).
"Tubular Sunday Press blankets eliminate the gap-related vibration and disturbances that occur when the gaps meet in other presses," Brown explains. "This proven technology allows the Mainstream to print up to 80,000 copies per hour while combining the economy of a 1x4 plate cylinder, the print quality of gapless blankets and a 1:1 plate-to-blanket cylinder ratio, and the layout versatility of two-page jumps and uneven sections."
The gapless blankets eliminate the need for bearers and blanket packing, last longer than conventional blankets and can be changed in as little as 60 seconds with the web still in the press. Heidelberg introduced Sunday Technology in 1992, and to date more than 1,600 Sunday Press printing couples have been sold throughout the world.
In addition to gapless blankets, the Mainstream features two other "industry firsts" designed to speed up makeready and improve folder performance. Omnipage, an automatic page recognition system, uses cameras mounted above the console to instantly identify newspaper pages when they are placed on the console. Omnipage can then automatically direct the control system to the corresponding page within the press. The second innovation, moveable lower folders mounted on transverse rails, allows the folders to be optimally positioned under the formers according to the web configuration for each individual print run.
Independent, synchronized AC motors on the Mainstream facilitate flying edition changes. Rotary and jaw folders accommodate page counts between 8-96 in two-page increments as well as sections with unequal page counts. The folders are streamlined for straight printing, with none of the moving cams necessary to run collect.
The new Heidelberg Contiweb FD paster, designed for the Mainstream, features two motorized split arms, automatic chucking and centering capabilities and an auto web-up system integrated with the press. An integrated infeed with motor-driven pull roll and dancer feedback control is designed to ensure constant web tension.
The Mainstream 80 at Drupa will be installed in a different configuration at publisher Dansk AvisTryk's plant in Copenhagen, Denmark following the show. "The demand for high-quality four-color newspapers continues to grow in Denmark, and we will utilize the new press to meet this demand," according to the company's chairman, Sven Togsverd.
Dansk AvisTryk prints 1.5 million four-color newspapers a day, including some of Denmark's largest domestic dailies. Togsverd, who saw the press print a specially-designed form during testing in Durham, New Hampshire in late 1999, says print quality and speed factored in the purchase decision. He expects the new press to expand domestic and export market opportunities.
"Before developing the Mainstream, we spoke to publishers around the world to determine their production requirements, and they told us they wanted better print quality, more color and more speed to accommodate narrower print windows," Brown explains. "They also emphasized the need for more economical workflows, and they were especially interested in advanced targeting and versioning capabilities. The Mainstream is a press that addresses all of these requirements."
For further information:
Heidelberg Web Systems
Joëlle Curet
Tel.: +33 (0)344 29 40 52
E-mail: joelle.curet@heidelberg.com
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