PIA/GATF Announces InterTech Technology Award Recipients

ROLAND 700 DirectDrive
MAN Roland

The ROLAND 700 DirectDrive press can cut sheetfed press makeready time by as much as 60 percent. The DirectDrive technology powers the printing unit’s plate cylinder with its own high-torque motor, controlled by MAN Roland’s printnet digital press operating system. Isolating the plate cylinder from the main drive allows a number of time-consuming makeready chores to be completed simultaneously, such as plate changing and washup. The mechanical isolation of the plate cylinder also endows a sheetfed press with 360° circumferential register. This enables a ROLAND 700 DirectDrive to accept printing plates built by different manufacturers, providing unprecedented job flexibility for facilities running a variety of models. “All press manufacturers will have to rise to this level,” pointed out one judge.