Heidelberg installs Germany’s first carbon-neutral press

Germany’s first carbon-neutral Heidelberg Speedmaster SM 52 Anicolor press has begun operations in the Wiesbaden-based Ahlfeldt & Company print shop.

Heidelberg offset the 62 metric tons of CO2 emissions generated manufacturing the five-colour presses by investing in a certified Vietnamese climate protection project.

According to company statement, Anicolor inking units cut makeready times by almost 40 percent when compared to traditional small-format offset printing, job changes are made faster and waste is reduced by up to 90 percent by eliminating ink zone setting.

Ahlfeldt & Company production manager, Armin Ahlfeldt says the company views printing as an integrated process starting with the manufacture of the press itself. “It is impossible for our day-to-day printing operations to be any more environmentally friendly than they are with the Anicolor press.”

He says the print shop intends to produce 14 million prints before the end of the year, totalling between 300 and 400 metric tons of paper and 13,000 printing plates.

Heidelberg developed a method to determine the carbon footprint of all its press series in tandem with Darmstadt University of Technology.
Its parts list form the basis for material assessment then PE International’s GaBi database (GaBi = life cycle assessment) is used to determine the components carbon footprint, including CO2 emissions generated during manufacture and transport of each material.

“The amount of direct (production-related) energy required during operations such as grinding, turning, milling, hardening, and coating components is taken into account in the assessment, as is the indirect energy required for lighting, heating, and cooling the production halls,” said Heidelberg.

The first Anicolor press sold in Australia was installed at Victoria-based Eastern Press in 2008.