Half-Size, Two Sides: Multicolor Perfectors

Contributing mightily to the steadily rising sales of half-size presses these days are multicolor perfectors, both the so-called "long" perfectors consisting of six, eight, and 10 printing units, as well as convertible models that can be switched with very little time and trouble from straight to simultaneous, two-side printing.

This press category, which has long been the province of 20x28" four-up machines, has now been stretched by the introduction of oversize machines, to more than 23x29", a format that accommodates six-page forms, plus a range of oblong and odd-shaped jobs. One result is a new description: the "three-quarter" press (also called "oversize 29"), which occupies a place between four-up 28" models and full-size, eight-up 40" machines.

(Meanwhile, several press builders have applied the versatile 23x29" size to a special non-perfecting type of mid-size press that is beefed up and specifically designed for straight, high-productivity printing of lightweight stock and heavy board, for packaging and converting applications.)

In the four-up category, Heidelberg holds the market lead, with more than 6,300 20x29" presses (not units) installed worldwide, including the Printmaster 74 and the Speedmaster 74. In the U.S., Heidelberg's installed base has been calculated at more than 700 such presses.

The Printmaster 74 is presented as an affordable, entry-level machine (it lists for about 35% less than a Speedmaster 74), ideal for smaller shops that had been operating, say, 20"-wide equipment.

It debuted as a two-color press at the Drupa 2000 show in Germany and a four-color at the Print 01 show last fall. Both designs, available with a perfector, feature a rated speed of 12,000 sheets per hour (sph) and less automation, although such options as wash-up devices, Autoplate, and color control can be added.

In the fully automated Speedmaster 74 line, Heidelberg says it sells two-thirds of its multicolor presses as perfectors. The Speedmaster 74, available with up to 10 printing units, features fully automated changeover to perfecting and a rated speed of 15,000 sph.

"In our view," says Harry Wingruber, product manager of the Speedmaster 74 for Heidelberg USA, "perfecting is broadly accepted as a production capability today. It only becomes a niche market if or when printers focus on four-over-four or five-over-five work. The market growth results from many printers wanting to differentiate themselves from their competition. We are being asked to manufacture more customized presses, such as long perfectors with coaters and hybrid UV-type applications."

In Heidelberg's case, adds Wingruber, progress in perfecting is reflected in the automatic changeover device via the CP2000 Center, an increase in speed, and high print quality achieved with proprietary Perfect Jackets on the impression cylinders.

At MAN Roland, half-size press sales have reached the same volume as 40" press sales. "Just 10 years ago, the 40" market was dominant for MAN Roland," says Christian Cerfontaine, director of marketing for MAN Roland. "Now the half-size market is catching up quickly and is reaching the same number of produced printing units on a yearly basis."

As for perfecting, adds Cerfontaine, six colors plus coater covers 80% of the market demand in the mid-size category. "Four-over-four or five-over-five in the 40" size is much more common," he reports. "Eight-color perfecting demand is not growing for us among mid-size presses."

Cerfontaine continues, "The perfecting technique was mastered a long time ago in sheetfed. Cylinder surfaces have been improved with the use of ceramic jackets to avoid scratching on very sensitive coated papers and on foils. Furthermore, we at MAN Roland feel that our DicoWeb technology is the future of short-run multicolor perfecting. This full digital-changeover press utilizes the offset process but no plates, images inside the press, and finishes in line."

Komori America also reports that the half-size market has been particularly robust over the past 10 years. "Currently, we have a boatload of half-size press installations, both here and throughout the world," says Doug Schardt, Komori's sheetfed product manager. "It's difficult to give an accurate count as it is constantly updating, literally by the hour. I can safely say that it is well into the thousands of units."

Komori's largest half-size perfector is four-over-four. "Of course, if a printer needs more units, we're always willing to discuss that," says Schardt. "The reality is that the long perfector market is particularly susceptible to economic conditions; fewer printers are willing to make the investment. At the same time, fewer buyers are willing to pay for jobs that require more than six colors."

Other manufacturers have taken note of this high-growth market.

"We never had a half-size press before," says Bob McKinney, director of marketing for KBA North America. "But this is a good format for a lot of printers. It's a nice step into real offset printing. For us, it's a faster growing market than the 40" press, plus it gives us a full range of presses up to 64"."

Still, the stubbornly slow economy is taking its toll, even on this active segment. "Since the economic downturn, we've seen a cautious slowing of this market," says Schardt of Komori, who is echoed by other manufacturers. "But it is somewhat divided. On the one hand, we saw a fairly strong reduction in large-format plants putting in a half-size press to support their 40" machinery, but then we saw a slight increase in shops moving up to multicolor half-size models."

In equipping their four-page models, manufacturers have been duplicating their efforts involving larger presses, adding a full complement of automation, to allow printers to productively reach into new markets that they didn't serve before. In other cases, they're offering less-expensive models.

In November, Homewood Press, a 72-year-old family-owned general commercial printer in Toledo, Ohio, installed a top-of-the-line Speedmaster 74, a 10-color perfector. "Perfecting is our niche," says Scott Dubuc, vice president of operations, "representing about 95% of our work. We print catalogs and brochures, in runs from 1,500 on up, for a nationwide clientele in the medical, college and university, and pharmaceutical fields, along with manufacturers of CDs and records."

Two years ago, Homewood replaced its older five-color MO and four-color MO perfectors with a new Speedmaster six-color with aqueous coating and convertible perfecting capabilities. This press led Homewood to install the 10-color perfector last year.

"The new press gives us so much flexibility," says Dubuc. "In the past, we were winning jobs but had to turn them down because we didn't have the capacity to print them. We didn't want to go into overtime on our existing presses but knew that we had to make a move. Ten colors allow us to match our customers' demands with one-pass productivity."

In installing the new machine, Homewood found that it needed to bolster its prepress and bindery operations to handle the additional work. Just prior to adding the press, it installed a Fuji Sabre computer-to-plate (CTP) device, to keep up with the number of plates for the perfector.

Homewood also upgraded its bindery, installing a Heidelberg ST 270 stitcher and a new SSP stitcher, scoring, and perforating machine.

"We had growing pains," says Dubuc, "because installing the new perfector boosted our workload, increased sales, and catapulted us into a three-shift operation."

When KBA North America introduced its 20x29" Rapida 74 earlier this year, it also rolled out a six-color Rapida 74 equipped with an automatic, convertible perfector, which can print work ranging from six-color posters in straight production to two four-color postcards plus a flyer in perfecting mode, all at a rated speed of 15,000 sph.

KBA's perfector model, which is available in as many as eight units, came on the market in the U.S. just last month.

Nearly a decade ago, MAN Roland introduced a six-page upstart, a niche product for the North American market that measures 23¼x291/8".

The Roland 300 took time to establish itself but now has a number of supporters. The machine, the only model offered with a standard perfector in the 23x29" size, is available in from two to eight units, with as many as three perfectors and a coater. Its rated speed is 15,000 sph, 16,000 sph when printing straight.

The highly automated 300, which features Pecom networking, JobPilot management software, computerized ink control, fiber optic communication, and automatic presetting, dramatically shortens makeready, says the manufacturer.

In the U.S., where an eight-unit Roland 300 perfector is now in operation, about 125 multicolor perfectors are installed.

As the last part of its two-year plan to improve marketing and raise productivity, Fidelity Printing, a 48-employee general commercial sheetfed shop in St. Petersburg, Fla., added a Roland 300 five-color perfector in January. Fidelity, which also installed a Screen CTP system, linked all its presses through the Roland Pecom network.

Operators download paper specs, color, and press data through the desktop, then prepare makereadies on the shop's 41" Roland 700 six-color perfector and 40" Roland two-color, which make the systems 50% faster than before, according to Fidelity.

"We were interested in the short-run market that we were not competitive in," says Rob Hasson, president of Fidelity Printing. "We felt that the market was heading toward variable-data printing, in which customers ask for fewer copies but want to target a specific market. Since we already had a 700 six-color with perfecting, we knew how easy it was to jump in and out of perfecting with no planning involved."

But the Roland 300's speedy operation has made Fidelity much more efficient. Jobs such as floor plans for architects that used to require two press passes are now produced in a single pass, ready for the bindery.

Fidelity also found that the unique 23x29" size has its benefits. "Some jobs are oblong, and not everything has an 8½x11" format. Also, designers create some really unique pieces," says Hasson. "We weren't sure if we needed the oversize format, but we ran lots of full, six-up jobs in the first six months we had the press. The work is there. If we didn't have this size, we'd have to put those jobs on our big equipment."

Utilizing both the 300 and 700 presses has alleviated shop bottlenecks. "The presses complement each other," says Hasson. "Compared to our old four-color conventional press, we've tripled our efficiency with the new machines and our direct-to-plate system."

Komori America offers a convertible perfecting model in its Lithrone line, which includes the 187/8x26" 26P and the 20½x283/8" 28P, both offered in four, five, and six units, and rated at 13,000 sph when perfecting. Also, Komori's 20x26" Sprint line is equipped with a sheet-reversing mechanism for second-side printing.

"The Lithrone convertible perfector, designed for the 21st century using the newest technology available, is the latest in our perfecting line," says product manager Schardt. "One unique, revolutionary approach is completely stable gripper shafts, which do not take the dual role of rolling in their housing during perfecting and not rolling during straight printing. We think the result is better print quality, especially over time."

He adds, "We've also completely eliminated the single-diameter transfer cylinder at the perfecting unit. This eliminates the possibility that the small cylinder will cause slap, and therefore marking."

At Polly USA, the Performer is described as an affordable Czech-made 19x26" Polly 66, in two-, four-, and five-color configurations, all available with a convertible perfecting unit, a 17-roller inking system, automatic blanket and ink roller wash-up, and available with a Polly control console and optional plate scanner. The press feeder is rated at up to 15,000 sph.

Sakurai's main focus is the half-size market, for which it offers the 474EPII traditional perfecting press, with a sheet size of 21x29" and a rated speed of 13,000 iph.

"Our most exciting news is our [18½x26"] 466SIP four-color convertible perfector, which we're introducing at Graph Expo," says Mike Grego, marketing manager for Sakurai USA. "Along with many of the same benefits of traditional 28" and 29" models, it has a compact design with full automation, 15,000-sph speed, and an attractive price."

He adds, "Actually, we're struggling to keep up with demand for the new press. Our parent company has reallocated production schedules so it can produce the 66 series at full capacity."

One of the first shops to take advantage of the 466 perfector is Network Printing, Fort Worth, Tex., an 11-year-old shop with 19 employees, which installed the unit this spring to complement its 28" Sakurai 472 four-color with coater. Network also added a Screen CTP system and digital proofing.

"We replaced an older straight two-color press that just wasn't hitting the mark," says Gary Lawrence, president of Network Printing. "On two-sided jobs, we'd have to run two passes, at just 9,000 to 10,000 sheets per hour, plus there was no automation. We can run the new 466 as fast as 13,000 per hour, printing both sides of the sheet simultaneously, and complete our makeready in 25 minutes."

Lawrence found that his company can effectively compete with both small-equipment shops and printers with 40" presses. For short-run four-color work, he says, customers may turn to a digital printer, but digital presses have a limited paper size and can become expensive for reruns. The new 466, he adds, can produce high quality on larger sheet sizes.

Lawrence produces a variety of work on the 466, from 6x9" postcards in quantities up to 500,000 all the way to 48-page magazines, in counts from 18,000 to 20,000 copies. "We've had a substantial pickup in work, and we're more competitive and profitable than ever," concludes Lawrence. "In the past five months, we've had a 500% increase in work. If I could buy only one press today, it would be a perfector."