We raising the bar for turnaround times, quality and value for money with our latest investment. At Expert print we’re delighted to announce that we have recently added a new press to our current plant list. The Heidelberg XL75 is renowned as the world leader in the B2 market and print unrivalled quality in super quick time.
The Speedmaster XL 75 with its innovative technology and highest automation level has secured a leading position in the Peak Performance Class. It offers the solution without any compromise in the 50 × 70 format range and a maximum of availability, shortest makeready times as well as consistent high production speeds which ensure the decisive competitive edges in technology and productivity.
The Speedmaster XL 75 offers comprehensive configuration possibilities and satisfies even the most unusual and demanding requirements of customers in commercial and packaging printing. The configuration possibilities range from two to ten printing units, either with or without perfecting device or coating unit. Depending on requirement, the Speedmaster XL 75 can be equipped with packages that allow to reduce makeready times and increase productivity as well as with various components such as, for example, from the Star System. The result is a customized machine that offers you the added value you need for an exceptional market positioning and the guarantee that you are optimally equipped for the future.
As a pioneer for eco-friendly printing Heidelberg develops solutions to reduce CO 2 and process emissions as well as waste and to eliminate it. Therefore, the Speedmaster XL 75 is not only the benchmark for productivity. The high energy efficiency and the careful use of resources make it the most eco-friendly machine in its class. If requested, the Speedmaster XL 75 can be offered as a CO 2 -neutral press, as is the case with all other presses from Heidelberg. By means of a measuring device it is possible to measure and visualize the machine’s energy efficiency per 1000 sheets during the production. This allows the operator to operate the machine in a very energy-efficient way. Another possibility to reduce the energy demand is to use again the waste heat of the DryStar Combination dryer for the drying process by means of heat recovery. The Star System peripherals are perfectly coordinated with the press. They are highly efficient and designed to conserve energy and resources. The reduction or even the complete renouncement of alcohol thanks to the equipment of the machine with special packages is another important contribution to eco-friendly printing. This results in a print process that delivers eco-friendly operation at lower costs.
Johannes Gutenberg stands for one of the greatest emblematic figure in the history of printing. Even if the Chinese and the Koreans had been using moveable types of printing for centuries before the Gutenberg area, Johannes Gutenberg remains the historic man of the printing world.
The latter was a German goldsmith and businessman who lived in an upper class family in Mainz, a small mining town located in Southern Germany. His skills as a goldsmith led him to invent a technology that changed the world of printing. He created the printing press with replaceable and moveable wooden or metal letters in 1436. Gutenberg’s moveable type consisted in separating each letter used in the press so that the writer could rearrange and replace them to make different words, different pages. Gutenberg fabricated his type from an alloy of lead, tin and antimony which were much more solid and long-lasting than the wood and porcelain types preferred in East-Asia. The choice of these materials, better for printing than any other material, has led to printed books of high quality. Johannes Gutenberg also inaugurated a new kind of ink made of oil which replaced the previous water-made ink of a poor quality.
The Gutenberg craftsmanship resulted in clearer and easier to read Roman style letters across a printed page. The Gutenberg moveable type of printing was deeply recognized and praised as being a revolution in the production of books and in the promotion of scientific, artistic and religious knowledge through the facilitated transmission of printed texts. In other words, specialists could more easily share information across Europe. In 1440, Gutenberg created the printing press in the Rhine Valley. It was known as the Gutenberg press. The Gutenberg press was an innovative moveable type printing, made of wood first and metal material later. This new technology manufactured cheaper and cheaper printed materials available for the very common people. Gutenberg’s press machine could print a lot of paper for low price, which was a great revolution at the time. He started his ambitious project with two collaborators: Andreas Dritzehn, Gutenberg’s former apprentice in gem-cutting, and Andreas Heilmann, the owner of a paper mill. One of his most outstanding outputs, containing some colorful pages, was the Gutenberg Bible, an awesome, technical and very aesthetic masterpiece which dated from the 1450s.
Gutenberg’s printing invention was a full success in Germany and later in Europe. His innovative printing press machine was the proper device, at the proper place, at the proper time. Indeed, Gutenberg’s time coincided with the growth of a more educated European middle class and consequently with the increase of reading materials. The Gutenberg press remained the only printing tool used by people for more than 300 years, more precisely until 1811. The Gutenberg printing press represents one of the most important inventions in the history of printing. It allowed the production of books, newspapers, magazines, etc in great numbers and promoted the interest in reading and the value of printed materials.
Now many people will argue that the printing industry isn’t exactly the most eco-friendly industry around. And yes, obviously printers use paper and ink and such; but many printers now offer a whole range of ‘green’ products for companies that want to do their bit for the environment.
With the government putting more pressure on businesses to look at their Green Policies, printers have had to look at new ways in which they can offer this to businesses and keep them coming back as repeat customers.
For example, we offer a recycled leaflet range that is printed on 100% uncoated paper and, if the customer wants a gloss or silk finish, we boast a 55% recycled rate. Not only does this appeal to customers who want to be able to show that they are making steps towards being eco-friendly; the organic look that it gives the promotional material is really popular to recipients.
Talk to you printer to see what range of recycled products they do; you may very well be surprised. While not everything the print industry does is eco-friendly, we are certainly starting to develop a new and better way of thinking when it comes to our green credentials.
Everything from leaflets, brochures, postcards, business cards and presentation folders could potentially be made from recycled material. Maybe one day all printed materials will be made using recycled paper, but until then we will always try to do our best to meet customers’ expectations in the area of recycled printed material.
There are many different ways that you can present your company and brand to customers and other businesses. Most of the time it can come down to personal preferences or budget but there are other factors to consider when making the choice between a Brochure and a Presentation Folder.
Your typical brochure is widely popular as way to send information out to customers. It is a neat and effective way of collating all of the information about your company. Brochures can come in all shapes and sizes and it is this versatility that makes it a powerful tool. The fact that you can use it to really show off your creative flare is a major attraction too. Practically, it means that you can have a set of brochures which keeps all of your marketing material in one place, making it easier to store.
Presentation folders are becoming much more popular with SME’s and start-up businesses. The main reason for this is the cost effective nature of having a Presentation Folder combined with inserts.
A company can have a main folder or cover that has all of its branding and company logos on, but the inserts give the company flexibility in what information they can send out. Waste is reduced and it means you can be much more specific and target certain services to certain customers. The other advantage is that if a new product or service is added, or something significant changes within the business, then the you don’t have the larger cost of printing a whole new range of brochures (plus losing out on any you still have in stock). You can simply add a new insert or update an insert which is considerably cheaper than printing a full re-run of a brochure. The down side is that you physically have more materials to store, and the on-going cost of replacing inserts.
So there are cases for both that need to be considered. It is always best to look at who you are targeting, the services you are offering and your budget. In the end, they both do the same job, just in a different way.
