It is unclear how many presses that 1,000 comprises, as machines can have anywhere from the typical four units of a straight press to 10 or 12 for a long perfector.

Worldwide sales have exceeded the 750-unit forecast by 25%, said the head of B1 product development, Felix Müller.

There have been 255 units sold in the Asia-Pacific and 620 in Europe. The SX 52 has been the most popular press in all regions, except North America, where the SX 74 has sold most often.

Australia’s head of product management & remarketed equipment, Shane Hanlon, told ProPrint that “the bulk” of the units sold in Australia and New Zealand had been for the SX 52.

“I believe our market is very comfortable with the proven technology offered with the Speedmaster SX, and this coupled with new features and design elements filtering down from the XL presses have added great appeal to the product range,” he said.

[Related: Heidelberg sells 18 Speedmasters locally]

“We see the Speedmaster SX as an efficient, value-adding, high performance press for those customers looking to reduce their overall cost to manufacture.”

Heidelberg also said that more than 200 SX 102 units have been sold since it began shipping in September – 70% of them eight-colour long perfecting presses.

Müller said: “During the crash in 2008-09, sales of perfectors came down, especially in the commercial market. But now we see a clear sign of recovery in the commercial market. There are less print shops, but they are now buying.”

More than 500 of the SX 74 and SX 52 units sold were Anicolor format. Müller said that the past decline in the A3 market had been trumped recently with a rise in year-on-year sales.

[Related: Vels Jensen leaves Heidelberg]

This article originally appeared at printweek.com

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