Customers such as the Swiss printing company Fontana Print SA demonstrate that hybrid production can even open up additional revenue streams. The family-owned business is convinced that offering a full range of printing services is crucial today. The company expanded its existing Speedmaster XL 106-8-P+L offset press with a new Jetfire 50 digital press. This allowed the print shop to enter the market for short and medium runs of magazines, books and catalogs. According to Fontana, this would not have been profitable without hybrid production.
Working with HEIDELBERG Prinect Touch Free in an autonomous production environment offers another step toward optimizing workflows. Here, AI determines the best way for the customer how to produce as costeffectively as possible. The Prinect ecosystem integrates offset presses, digital inkjet systems and other printing technologies into the workflow, and not only controls individual steps – as is typical with traditional automation – but also calculates and manages all processes autonomously. First pilot customers in Germany, Poland and Switzerland are already successfully testing the technology.
To ensure efficient and trouble-free operation throughout the entire lifecycle of our end-to-end solutions, we consistently deliver on our service promise to our global customers. Currently, approximately 2,300 service experts worldwide ensure maximum uptime for our customers – through preventive service notifications and, depending on the task at hand, via remote or on-site support. In addition to service, a comprehensive portfolio of consumables for prepress, press and postpress rounds out the offering. HEIDELBERG is already the largest distributor of consumables in the print media industry.
Artificial intelligence and connected systems, such as the automated eCall in the event of malfunctions, provide a direct link to the service team. The eCall automatically generates a service ticket in the HEIDELBERG Cloud – enriched with a time stamp, log files and a precise error description. This enables HEIDELBERG’s service team to resolve many malfunctions remotely; in the software area, the success rate is almost perfect. In total, around 220,000 service tickets are processed each year. Based on the evaluation of various parameters, intelligent routing then ensures that the ticket is assigned to service staff who are thoroughly familiar with the error pattern. AI-based systems, which HEIDELBERG is continuously expanding for customers and service, assist in this process.
To drive new growth in the lifecycle sector, HEIDELBERG is also making these services available to customers along the value chain and even to other industries. One example is the partnership with the Schubert Group, a specialist in packaging systems for the food, pet food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical sectors. In Brazil, HEIDELBERG already supports the installation and maintenance of Schubert machines throughout their entire lifecycle, with additional markets set to follow. HEIDELBERG has also expanded its service activities into other areas, such as e-mobility and pharmaceutical applications.
