Q&A WITH JAMES DUNN — RIDING GROWTH WAVE
June 2006
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On the heels of Heidelberg’s announcement that it had enjoyed a successful 2006 fiscal year (ended March 31) worldwide, Heidelberg USA President James Dunn discusses the factors that enabled the venerable manufacturer to complete a successful campaign in the U.S. market specifically.
PI: On a worldwide basis, the Heidelberg Group reported 12 percent sales gains, higher incoming orders and net profits that more than doubled during its recently completed 2006 fiscal year. What factors most led to Heidelberg’s U.S. sales gains during the past 12-month period?
DUNN: Several initiatives drove our success in our 2006 fiscal year. Among the most significant were the introduction of new products and services and our investments in regional offices around the country. On the product side, we expanded our portfolio across the enterprise with offerings for all of our customers--from small business print shops to packaging houses to general commercial and high-volume industrial companies.
One of our largest launches of the year came with the introduction of our newest press, the Speedmaster XL 105. It has set new standards for productivity and offers the fastest makereadies and highest real production speeds in the industry. And the XL 105 enabled us to expand our offerings in the growing packaging market.
We also continued to invest in R&D initiatives and introduced new technologies such as our Saphira chemfree thermal plate designed for our Suprasetter line of CTP devices. Our carefully tested and selected consumables offerings continue to provide a competitive advantage for printers looking to maximize their investments in Heidelberg equipment.
On the workflow side, we launched new versions of our powerful business management and production workflow solutions, such as Prinect Prinance 4.5 for estimating and order management and Prinect Printready 2.1 with MetaDimension for improved JDF handling and MIS integration.
Last, but certainly not least, we rolled out our systemservice 36plus offering and established six new regional offices to provide comprehensive service and support coverage for our customers.
PI: In the sheetfed offset press arena, you enjoyed a 73 percent increase in 20” format press installations. Is this the result of devoting more sales and product development efforts toward small commercial and quick printers?
DUNN: There are several components to our success in sheetfed during the past fiscal year, including:
The breadth of Heidelberg’s offering, especially in the 20” market, where we offer everything from the entry-level Printmaster GTO to the Printmaster PM 52 and all the way up to the industry-leading Speedmaster SM 52;
PI: On a worldwide basis, the Heidelberg Group reported 12 percent sales gains, higher incoming orders and net profits that more than doubled during its recently completed 2006 fiscal year. What factors most led to Heidelberg’s U.S. sales gains during the past 12-month period?
DUNN: Several initiatives drove our success in our 2006 fiscal year. Among the most significant were the introduction of new products and services and our investments in regional offices around the country. On the product side, we expanded our portfolio across the enterprise with offerings for all of our customers--from small business print shops to packaging houses to general commercial and high-volume industrial companies.
One of our largest launches of the year came with the introduction of our newest press, the Speedmaster XL 105. It has set new standards for productivity and offers the fastest makereadies and highest real production speeds in the industry. And the XL 105 enabled us to expand our offerings in the growing packaging market.
We also continued to invest in R&D initiatives and introduced new technologies such as our Saphira chemfree thermal plate designed for our Suprasetter line of CTP devices. Our carefully tested and selected consumables offerings continue to provide a competitive advantage for printers looking to maximize their investments in Heidelberg equipment.
On the workflow side, we launched new versions of our powerful business management and production workflow solutions, such as Prinect Prinance 4.5 for estimating and order management and Prinect Printready 2.1 with MetaDimension for improved JDF handling and MIS integration.
Last, but certainly not least, we rolled out our systemservice 36plus offering and established six new regional offices to provide comprehensive service and support coverage for our customers.
PI: In the sheetfed offset press arena, you enjoyed a 73 percent increase in 20” format press installations. Is this the result of devoting more sales and product development efforts toward small commercial and quick printers?
DUNN: There are several components to our success in sheetfed during the past fiscal year, including:
The breadth of Heidelberg’s offering, especially in the 20” market, where we offer everything from the entry-level Printmaster GTO to the Printmaster PM 52 and all the way up to the industry-leading Speedmaster SM 52;
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