Equipment

Benson Box will install a new Heidelberg Speedmaster XL 105 press in the summer after choosing the manufacturer over rival MAN Roland.

The sheetfed kit will complement the Leicestershire carton printer’s existing two MAN Roland 700 presses and three Heidelberg machines.

It will eventually replace Benson’s oldest press, a 15-year-old Heidelberg CD 102, which is due to be decommissioned in the first quarter of 2008.

Benson Box had been a Heidelberg customer before switching to MAN Roland.

Heidelberg UK marketing manager Steve Cavey (pictured) was involved in extensive trials of the machine, which is due to be installed and running by the end of July.

He said: “From our point of view, it’s very important. Benson Box was a Heidelberg user and then they changed over to another supplier. We were very disappointed.”

The new press will feature six printing units and one coating unit, and will be fitted with both UV and IR drying. It will be capable of printing 18,000 sheets an hour.

Benson Box managing director Mark Kerridge said there were benefits of having a mixture of presses with different strengths.

He said: “This is in line with our strategy to proactively reinvest in our plant and equipment to secure our long-term future in the printed folding carton market.”