Despite some questions being raised over its future role in the industry, litho print remains a popular choice, with plenty of new investment to note. We examine some of the latest deals in this sector A STRONG FUTURE: LONG LIVE LITHO PRINT 45 www.printmonthly.co.uk March / April 2024 - Issue 347 LITHO PRINTING While there has been no escaping the digital revolution that has transformed the industry over the past 30 years or so, there is still a strong level of interest in litho. Yes, digital may hold some advantages over litho in terms of being more cost-effective for the printer, but when it comes to quality, nothing quite beats a litho print. It is true that digital has made substantial steps forward in terms of matching litho for print quality, but the fact is that litho still leads the way. For this reason, many print companies continue to work with and invest in litho printing equipment, ensuring they have the ability to deliver high-quality printed work to customers. Of course, litho investment is often more expensive than digital, but here at Print Monthly, we still receive a steady supply of stories about printers purchasing litho kit, showing that demand is very much still there and healthy. World Record Investment Casting our minds back to spring of 2023 and global packaging manufacturer WestRock set out its commitment to litho with a world-record investment from Heidelberg. The company took on two Heidelberg Speedmaster machines at its facility in Poland, one of which was the longest sheetfed offset ever produced. The 42m-long press is a specially adapted custom configuration of a Speedmaster XL 106 with a total of 20 printing and coating units. The machine is suitable for handling a range of packaging applications, with the ability to produce striking coating and metallic effects, completely in-line, double-sided, and in a single pass. In addition, it fits in with WestRock’s wider sustainability strategy by being able to create environmentally friendly products. Going in alongside the world-record press was a slightly smaller litho machine. Another Speedmaster XL 106 with a total of 19 printing and coating units, it is the second longest in the world, behind the larger machine at WestRock. Mark Shaw, business leader for EMEA and APAC at WestRock, comments: “Innovation and sustainability are the bedrock of WestRock’s operation, and by investing in print technology from Heidelberg we are future-proofing our capabilities for our customers. “There is no better demonstration of this than the two longest presses in the world being developed specifically for ▲ WestRock purchased two new Speedmaster XL 106 machines from Heidelberg last year
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