It was not an easy decision for Stefan Jahn and Lutz Ziegenhagen. A year ago, the two owners of the original Berlin print shop 15 Grad, which they started in 1993 in a living room with a Mac computer, wanted to replace their entire portfolio of digital presses. One of the machines they had their eye on was the Versafire CV from Heidelberger Druck, “but we didn’t have any experience with their digital presses”. What ultimately tipped the scales was the “very good advice from Heidelberg”. Combined with the fact that, “all the technology seemed very solid and reliable to us”. They also felt that the Digital Frontend from Heidelberg was very easy to use, and tailored to the actual production sequence with great features. The same could not be said for the solutions offered by other manufacturers, which were much more complicated or did not offer certain functions like white printing at all. Stefan Jahn and Lutz Ziegenhagen describe their portfolio “everything from the idea to the implementation – and more…”. Their services include photo-quality large format printing, design techniques using milling and laser cutting, and prototype building and small-scale production. As a full-service agency, their main focus has always been optimizing print production, both on the hardware and software side. The option of the fifth color means that the Berlin print shop can now offer results which would not have been possible previously, or only possible with outside help. “The digital solution from Heidelberg lets us offer our customers a faster and more individual service, which gives us the edge over the competition,” explains Lutz Ziegenhagen happily. Especially since he says the print shop can now command higher prices. He goes on to explain how the customer in turn can make savings elsewhere, for instance during optimization in the postal shipping area. The customer also enjoys the benefits of a personalized approach. The new owners feel that the full potential of the Versafire CV has not yet been tapped: “we assume that the systems are constantly evolving and being geared to the needs of the market.”
