High-Quality Inline Surface Finishing with the Heidelberg Speedmaster CD 74

Speedmaster CD 74 Duo supports "flexo before offset"; Speedmaster CD 74 with perfecting device now also available as UV press

The Speedmaster CD 74 Duo from Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) is now available for customers to order. The tried-and-tested concept of "flexo before offset", as used in the Speedmaster CD 102 Duo, is now also available for medium format. In a single pass, coatings can be used to create a whole array of different effects, effects which otherwise could only be achieved with expensive materials or several press passes. Examples include inline coatings such as gold, silver and pearl effects for spot or full-area application. Flexographic opaque white, applied as a spot area to metallized or transparent printing stocks, provides highly opaque backgrounds for labels. The range of printing stocks is extensive and includes paper, card and foil in thicknesses from 0.03 to 0.8 millimeter. With the flexibility offered by the combination of flexographic and offset processes, printshops can offer an exciting and varied portfolio that singles them out from the competition. Production in a single pass saves time and money. Typical applications for a Speedmaster CD 74 Duo include high-quality packaging, labels and surface-finished brochures.

In the Speedmaster CD 74 Duo, the flexographic unit, i.e. the coating unit with flexographic plate, chamber doctor blade system and anilox roller, is located upstream from the offset printing units. A possible press configuration would be the flexographic unit with downstream drying station, four to six offset printing units and a double coating unit at the end. "The Speedmaster CD 74 Duo is a good example of our customizing process enabling made-to-measure press construction," says Dr. Jürgen Rautert, Member of the Management Board, responsible for Engineering and Manufacturing at Heidelberg. "The flexibility of the CD 74 with its modular platform makes it ideal for creating configurations precisely taylored to individual customers' needs," he adds. The applications are almost unlimited. The flexible use of infrared, hot-air and UV dryers allows the use of conventional or UV inks and coatings, or a mixture of the two. Concrete customer projects for the Speedmaster CD 74 Duo are in the application-technology clarification phase. Potential users are print shops aiming to produce high-finish short and medium runs.

Since its launch in 2002, the number of companies using the Speedmaster 102 Duo has risen to nine. They are located in Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Yugoslavia, two in North America, Poland, South Africa and Ukraine. The range of applications demonstrates the versatility and flexibility of the press, which is of interest to commercial, label and packaging printers. The press is capable of printing on paper, card and foil.

Speedmaster CD 74 with perfecting device and UV technology
Heidelberg unveiled the Speedmaster CD 74 as a perfecting press at drupa 2004. This press enables high-quality perfecting printing with short changeover times between paper and board and between straight and perfecting modes. Rarely six months later, the perfecting model is also available fully UV equipped. It features the tried-and-tested Heidelberg UV technology which earned the "Optimized UV Printing" certificate for the Speedmaster CD 74 last year. The Speedmaster CD 74 P-UV prints a whole array of materials - paper, card and foil or plastics - in a single pass and in thicknesses up to 0.8 millimeter. Examples include books, magazine covers, high-quality brochures, labels, concert tickets, blister packs and phone cards.

Image: Speedmaster CD 74 Duo
The Speedmaster CD 74 Duo, combining flexographic and offset printing, performs high-quality inline surface finishing in medium format.

For further information:
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
Corporate Communications
Hilde Weisser
Tel: +49 (0)6221 92 50 66
Fax: +49 (0)6221 92 50 46
E-mail: hilde.weisser@heidelberg.com