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The company has commemorated the achievement with a new publication, outlining its most important achievements in the field
HEIDELBERG is celebrating 20 years of using applied digitalisation in printing. To commemorate the achievement, the company has released a new publication going through the company’s most important achievements in the field since 2004.
2004 marked the year that the German manufacturer connected its first printing press to the internet, since then, the company has consistently utilised digitalisation to increase automation and efficiency.
An example of this is HEIDELBERG’s AI-based consulting tool, Print Shop Analytics (PAT), which is designed to provide contract printers with recommendations for more efficient workflows.
The system, which has been available since 2021, identifies potential weak points in production in order to increase efficiency and performance.
The company has made cloud connectivity a key focus, with an estimated 13,000 units worldwide connected to the HEIDELBERG Cloud.
Other innovations in the field from HEIDELBERG highlighted in the publication include a connectible smartphone app, which could display performance data and analytics for its machines. The smartphone app was available as early as 2012.
HEIDELBERG and Canon officially announced a global co-operation in sheetfed inkjet printing at this year’s drupa print exhibition in Düsseldorf.
As part of the agreement, HEIDELBERG expanded its technology portfolio by introducing an inkjet product family, based on the newly announced Canon B2 sheetfed inkjet press and the established B3 sheetfed inkjet press.
Along with this announcement was news about Prinect Touch Free, HEIDELBERG’s latest innovation in digitalisation. The product is a production manager option for full automation in digital and offset printing, aiming to seamlessly integrate offset and digital printing into a single workflow.
The new Speedmaster XL 106 machine was also unveiled at drupa, which came with upgraded cloud functions and AI software including fully automated printing plate logistics.
The announcements at drupa mean that HEIDELBERG is now a total solution provider, offering all modern printing processes including toner, inkjet, offset, and flexographic printing.
Speaking of HEIDELBERG’s history of digitalisation, Dr David Schmedding, chief technology and sales officer at HEIDELBERG, says: "What began 20 years ago at HEIDELBERG with the connection of the first printing press to the internet has opened up unimagined technical possibilities.
“Today we are planning the AI-controlled print shop of tomorrow, which can run shifts autonomously at comparatively low cost. HEIDELBERG will provide important building blocks for this with software, machines, and robotics."
The full publication, titled ‘Digital revolution in the printing industry - 20 years of digital innovations and smart manufacturing at Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG’, is available on the HEIDELBERG website.
