Heidelberg sales director Jim Todd insisted the facility was not due to close. He said: "At a time when other companies are cutting their national demonstration facilities we are making more of ours."

The 1,215sqm Brentford showroom will now house a demonstration facility to complement the manufacturer's 2,500sqm national showroom in Tamworth, which houses the company's range of B1-B3 presses.

Todd said: "Brentford remains as Heidelberg’s UK headquarters and as a base for more finishing and pre-press equipment demonstrations.

"When you cover cutting, folding, stitching, binding, die-cutting and folder gluing, there is too much finishing for one demonstration facility."

The Brentford site will now house equipment including a Polar 115X guillotine, a Stahlfolder TH 82 buckle machine, a Stitchmaster ST 400 and an EB 600 PUR perfect binder. 

Its pre-press suite will feature a Suprasetter CTP and workflow set-ups, with storage space for consumables and spare parts increased to 2,325sqm.

Mark Hogan, marketing manager at Heidelberg, said the move to develop the London site was a two-pronged approach to help cut costs, while offering the best facilities across both sites.

"Heidelberg has shaken up the finishing market over the past decade, enhancing and upgrading its products across the board," he added.

Next month, Heidelberg will run several open days, from 9-11 June, at the Tamworth showroom.

Running under a "lean" theme, the events are designed to help provide a fitness programme for printers.

Todd said: "Lean manufacturing aims to improve and speed up production by eliminating waste and continually improving processes and procedures.

"At this open house, we will combine presentations and expert information points to ensure each printer visiting our open house goes away with new ideas and options for their specific business needs."

Also see:
Heidelberg sales fall by 18% in 2008