Managing Productivity in Sheet-fed Offset Printing: An IIoT Comparative Study of a Retrofitted Heidelberg Legacy Printing Press Versus the Latest Model
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24425/mper.2025.156144Abstract
This paper examines whether retrofitting a 1997 four-color offset press, Heidelberg Speedmaster SM74-4P, with Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) solutions, preserves its performance compared to a 2021, digitally integrated Heidelberg Speedmaster CX75-4. For this purpose, observational studies with data collection were conducted. The study calculated descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney U tests for print volume, job set-up time, production speed measures, waste, and overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). The results show that retrofitting an older press achieves comparable print volumes, and even the 1997M press had an average gross throughput that was 9.73% higher and a median that was 22.86% higher than the 2021 press. However, the new press achieves 63.14% higher average run length as well as significantly reduces make-ready time and waste. Despite the benefits that new machines offer due to technical advances, modernizing older machinery through IIoT solutions can therefore be a cost-effective strategy. In the discussed case, adaptation to the requirements of work in the modern IIoT environment by a relatively cheap modernization kit compared to a new machine, allowed for better operational efficiency, thus reducing costs and contributing to the sustainable development of the company without the need to invest in a new machine.References
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