Open House: Shengda Printing showcases the future of digital book production

At an impressive open house event, host Shengda Printing in Yongcheng/China, together with HP and Muller Martini, presented state-of-the-art technologies and impressively demonstrated how digital production processes are already a reality today.
 
Sven Olsen, Regional Director Asia Pacific at Muller Martini, opened the event with a remarkable review: "Just two years ago, I would not have expected the Chinese market to develop so rapidly in the direction of digital finishing. I was wrong – and that shows how dynamic and future-oriented this market has become."
 
Around 180 guests from the region came to Shengda Printing to experience a highly automated production facility equipped with state-of-the-art technology. The focus was on the new HP Advantage 2200 and HP Indigo 100k digital printing systems as well as a variety of finishing solutions from Muller Martini and Hunkeler. Particularly impressive was the live production of softcover books directly from the roll – realized with the SigmaLine Compact, the Antaro Digital perfect binder and the InfiniTrim cutting robot. At the same time, Prinova Digital magazines were produced on several saddle stitchers, while Hunkeler PF7 lines produced book blocks from the roll.

Digital transformation
However, a key element of Shengda Printing's success is the intelligent networking of its systems. The integration of Muller Martini's Connex workflow solution into Shengda Printing's existing IT infrastructure enables end-to-end control from order receipt to delivery. This digital process integration not only ensures efficiency in digital production, but also optimizes conventional processes. One example of this is production on two Primera PRO saddle stitchers, on which up to 100 different jobs are processed every day - controlled by digital job assignment and the new multi-job function, which was presented for the first time at drupa 2024. "Digital transformation doesn't just mean switching from analogue to digital," emphasizes Stephen Liu, Sales Director at Muller Martini in Shanghai. "It's also about making existing processes smarter and more efficient – regardless of the production method."
 
The Open House at Shengda Printing impressively demonstrated how far the digital transformation has already progressed in China and the role that innovative partnerships and integrated solutions play in this. For Muller Martini, one thing is clear: the future of print finishing is digital.