The Ultimate Recycled Workhorse: Our Heidelberg Cylinders

In an industry where technology moves quickly and machinery is increasingly computer-controlled, there’s something rather satisfying about a piece of engineering that simply keeps doing its job.

At Kingfisher Press, we have two Heidelberg Cylinder presses. Their days as printing presses may have ended long ago, but their working lives certainly haven’t.

Today, we use these remarkable machines for creasing, cutting and punching giving equipment built decades ago an entirely new purpose and many more years of productive life.

Built to last. Then built to last some more.

The Heidelberg Cylinder was designed in an era when industrial machinery was made with longevity in mind. Heavy cast construction, gears, shafts, bearings and mechanical controls were the order of the day.

No touchscreens. No software updates. No operating systems becoming obsolete. No circuit boards deciding that after 15 years they’ve had enough.

Just an exceptionally strong piece of mechanical engineering.

And that is precisely why these machines can be repurposed so successfully.

A press originally designed to transfer ink onto paper and board can instead be fitted with cutting and creasing formes, allowing it to die-cut, crease and punch printed sheets with tremendous consistency and pressure.

For us, that means an old printing press has become an extremely useful piece of finishing equipment.

The circular economy – before we called it the circular economy

We hear a great deal today about the circular economy: keeping products and materials in use for as long as possible rather than continually manufacturing, consuming and disposing of them.

Our Heidelberg Cylinders are a wonderfully tangible example of exactly that principle.

Rather than scrapping several tonnes of perfectly serviceable machinery because its original role had been superseded, the machines have been adapted to perform another job.

They finished one working life and started another.

That avoids the resources involved in disposing of the existing equipment and manufacturing an entirely new machine to replace it. And because these Heidelbergs were engineered to be maintained and repaired, individual components can be serviced or replaced without consigning the whole machine to scrap.

Reuse. Repair. Repurpose. Keep working.

It is difficult to imagine a better example of recycling in a manufacturing environment.

Mechanical has its advantages

Modern machinery brings enormous advantages, and we use modern technology throughout our business. But there is also something to be said for machinery that is fundamentally mechanical.

Our Heidelberg Cylinders very rarely go wrong.

When maintenance is required, there isn’t necessarily a computer diagnostic or proprietary electronics system standing between the operator and the machine. The workings are physical, understandable and, importantly, repairable.

These machines were designed in an age when keeping machinery running was expected.

That philosophy feels increasingly relevant today.

From printing press to cutting and creasing powerhouse

The Heidelberg Cylinder earned its reputation as a formidable production printing press. Today, ours have a different role at Kingfisher Press.

We use our two machines to crease, die-cut and punch, making them an important part of producing everything from folders and packaging to other bespoke printed products requiring accurate finishing.

The principle is beautifully simple: take an incredibly robust machine designed to feed sheets accurately and apply substantial, consistent pressure, and give that capability a new purpose.

It may no longer be putting ink onto paper, but it certainly hasn’t retired.

Perhaps the greenest machine is the one you already own

Sustainability in manufacturing isn’t always about buying the newest piece of equipment carrying the latest environmental credentials.

Sometimes it is about recognising the value of what already exists.

Our Heidelberg Cylinders have already consumed the materials and energy required to manufacture them. By maintaining them and finding a new purpose for them, we’re extending that investment over decades rather than years.

There is something wonderfully straightforward about that.

A machine built to print. Repurposed to cut, crease and punch. Maintained rather than discarded. Still earning its keep decades later.

At Kingfisher Press, we’d call that the ultimate recycled workhorse.

Got a project that needs the right finishing touch?

From creasing and cutting to punching and specialist finishing, our Heidelberg Cylinders might be old-school engineering, but they’re still very much part of getting the job done at Kingfisher Press.

If you have a print project in mind, talk to our Suffolk team today. We’ll help you find the right way to print, finish and deliver it with decades of experience and some seriously dependable machinery behind us.

Get in touch with Kingfisher Press and let’s get your next project moving.