The latest developments have been carefully planned a few months ahead of Drupa 2004 and mark the first of a series of initiatives that are due to be showcased at the event next year.

The most significant is the roll-out of CoolCure UV. The process works by introducing a nitrogen
chamber into the UV unit that pumps the inert gas onto the surface of the printing plate.

Heidelberg project manager for peripheral systems Axel Becker said this had the effect of halving the drying time of a UV printed sheet.

In addition, Heidelberg has launched InstantStart UV a combination of hardware, software and services that considerably boosts the performance of the press. The key to InstantStart is the newly developed AIII cleaning solution that has a flame point in excess of 55degreesC, ideal for the high temperatures reached on a UV press.

In the past it has been necessary for safety reasons to wait before washing in order to give the dryers time to cool down and then to wait again after washing in order to enable the emissions to escape. This is no longer necessary, saving up to 25% of production time, said Becker.

The developments in UV processes were demonstrated during the opening of Heidelbergs Environmental Information Centre, housed in the Print Media Centre at the company headquarters in Heidelberg, Germany.

The EIC is designed to provide customers and the public with clear information about printing and the environment.

Nine developments in environmentally friendly practices were showcased, including automatic ink supply with InkLine, alcohol reduced printing with HydroStar and CombiStar, and powder extraction using PowderStar and CleanStar.

The company was also awarded the Optimized UV Printing certificate for the performance of its Speedmaster CD74 UV press, presented by a representative of the German equivalent of the Health & Safety Executive.

Story by Tony Brown