It's been more than 30 years since Heidelberg introduced its Speedmaster SM 102 press, but it's still going strong thanks to constant modifications. The German manufacturer says the SM 102, launched in 1975, was the first four-colour press in the B1 format.
"At the time, most machines were one- or two-colour presses and required two or four runs to get four-colours," says Gernot Keller, B1 product manager at Heidelberg UK.
Heidelberg claims that the SM 102 has become the most successful B1 perfecting press in the world. In the UK alone, there have been 160 long perfectors installed since its introduction. The enduring popularity of the press is partly down to the fact it has been constantly upgraded.
As far back as 1977, Heidelberg introduced a film-dampening unit called Alcolor and then computer-controlled press functions came in the shape of the manufacturer's CP Tronic in the late 1980s. In 1991, Autoplate, the automatic plate-changing device, was introduced, although this was a year after Komori's version was unveiled at Drupa. Prior to this Heidelberg had a semi-automatic plate changer, called MultiPlate, that was able to hold three or five plates in a cassette.
"MultiPlate was nice, but the technology was a bit too early for its market and we stopped it in 1995," says Keller.
Constant updates
At Ipex in 1998, the CIP3 compatible processor, the CP2000 press console, was launched offering control via a touchscreen. Its CutStar reel sheeter followed in 2000, a development that has proved to be most popular in the UK, with more than 50 installations.
Also in 2000, the manufacturer introduced Perfect Jackets, a retro-fittable coated exchange jacket for perfecting presses, followed by the Preset Plus feeder at Drupa 2004.
"We were the first to introduce a feeder that could automatically adjust the suction heads and side lays," adds Keller.
By Drupa 2000, the SM 102 had also evolved from the original maximum four-colour configuration to a 12-colour plus coater. Heidelberg launched an eight-colour perfecting model in 1992 and a 10-colour perfecting press in 1996.
A new SM 102 five-colour will cost £1.5m depending on the specification and can come with a three-year service contract and one-year warranty. A seven-year-old six-colour plus coater will cost around £700,000, although Keller says this depends on the condition of the machine.
Heidelberg deals with used presses globally and will take back an old model as part exchange. Depending on their condition, used machines can come with a six-month warranty.
Keller recommends that for secondhand models you do a test run before purchase.
"If the impression cylinder has been dented, you'll get a kiss print where the image is barely visible in certain areas," he says.
There are plenty of dealers trading in used Heidelberg equipment. At the time of writing, there were 137 SM 102s advertised on used equipment site PressXchange.
Specifications
Max sheet size
720x1020mm
Max coating format
710x1020mm
Max substrate
0.8mm
Footprint
Two-colour SM 102 7.44x4.78m
Weight
Five-colour SM 102 without pile 34.25tonnes
Price
New five-colour SM 102:£1.5m
Used six-colour plus coater SM 102: £700,000
What to look for
Service history
Test run
