MY Holdings has just completed secret beta tests on the Speedmaster CD 74 and has signed an agreement to buy the six-colour machine.


Tests on Heidelbergs B2 carton press, equipped with coater and extended delivery, have been underway at MYs Thorpe plant since last summer.


And according to Thorpes production director John Pomfret it has been running at the fully rated 15,000sph "on at least 90% of work". "We scared the pants off the Germans when they saw us running the press," he added.


MY has been feeding the machine with an average of 11 jobs a day, but claims this has regularly risen to 14. Run lengths have been around the 5,000 sheets mark and most work is produced on 300 to 650 micron board.


This is the first time MY has participated in beta testing, and its highly unusual for these tests to be carried out outside Germany, said Heidelberg UK sales director Jim Todd.


"We were delighted this opportunity arose. We chose MY because we wanted a committed Heidelberg user to use the press in a serious production environment, putting through a good range and volume of work," Todd said.


MY group chief executive John Monks was also impressed with the machine and has signed up for another Heidelberg for one of the groups Italian plants.


The MY group runs 65 presses, 50 of which are sheetfed litho, and has sales of 250m.


l Over 25,000 people have visited Heidelbergs Print Media Academy since its launch last April, and another 8,000 have participated in courses. The Academy has bookings well into 2003, Heidelberg said.


Story by Lauretta Roberts