Heidelberg’s all-in-one digital Customer Portal is a reinvented production management solution that brings together all of the company’s apps into a centralised platform.

Solving a business need can be a challenge, especially when it comes to getting short print runs produced cost-effectively. As operating a print shop is becoming increasingly complex, staying competitive means optimising the use of resources, materials, and time.

And with the print industry becoming more digital now than ever, software is taking centre stage in a space that has traditionally been heavily skewed towards hardware. 

With these factors in mind, Heidelberg has reinvented production management with its Customer Portal – a cloud based all-in-one digital portal that allows users  to manage their operations effortlessly.

It provides easy access to production workflow apps, analytics, service and maintenance, shopping, administration, and a holistic 360-degree overview of a user’s printshop. This enables businesses to simplify their operations with a single interface to access information and get support, streamlining their print shop responsibilities.

“With our digital tools and services, we are a pioneer in the digitisation of print shops around the world,” Heidelberg Australia national sales manager Dierk Wissmann said.

 “The Heidelberg Customer Portal provides everything a user needs to run their print shop smoothly and profitably, helping them optimise their print shop’s efficiency, performance, and transparency.

“It is one customer portal with endless possibilities, and it lets users reduce touchpoints and achieve full transparency in their print shops. It is a powerful tool that users can use to identify and eliminate weak points in production more quickly, thus increasing their efficiency and performance.

The portal houses up-to-date data, making it readily available at a user’s fingertips – enabling simple access from any device, anytime. The easy-to-use interface makes it convenient for a user to see what is important at the moment and allows them to have full transparency of their print shop so that they can take the relevant action immediately.

Since its introduction into Asia Pacific in 2023, there are more than 350 users regionwide – with businesses taking on this software platform growing quickly.

The wide range of apps offered through the Heidelberg Customer Portal include:

1. Analytics: Print Shop Analytics provides real-time evaluation of status and key performance indicators (Insights) including the possibility to benchmark the printing machines against others (benchmarking) as well as integrated advice/ recommendations on how to improve the performance.
2. Production: Everything is located in one application to help users prepare, produce, and manage their production workflows. The Inventory Management App provides users with up-to-date information on consumables.
3. Support: Users can obtain a complete overview of their current service incidents and maintenance status, including the Online Training App to get access to helpful resources in an array of topics.
4. Shopping: Users can get direct access to the Heidelberg eShop with straightforward ordering processes and offerings that are customised to their equipment. They can also track orders and get a full overview of all invoices (not available in all countries).
5. Administration: Users can enjoy the benefits of a thorough, quick, and easy overview of all their equipment and contracts.

One portal to manage all

Improved efficiency and analysis of performance with insights is the key benefit of the Customer Portal.

Using the Insights app, printshops can see, in real-time, important key production figures which the app can then evaluate and interpret.

This analysis can be read with just a few clicks on the modern dashboard of the Insights app.

“Printshops will get real-time information about their pressroom and can quickly identify and eliminate weak points,” Heidelberg Australia technical sales and product manager, Darren Brookes said.

“Insights warns when set target values are not reached or problems occur within production that enable users to precisely narrow down where issues are occurring. These reports are then a basis for improvement with a focus on efficiency and improved performance in the pressroom.”

Performance evaluations and comparisons with benchmarking is also another feature. For example, if a user is wondering how they’re performing in terms of waste with heavier substrates or how good their makeready times are in comparison to the competition for complex job configurations, the Print Shop Analytics app shows benchmarking in detailed reports. A user’s performance will be compared to their competitors within their market segment.

“Benchmarking also allows printshops to measure and track their performance within their market segment. Printshops will get real-time information about their pressroom and can quickly identify and eliminate weak points,” Brookes said.

“Insights warns when set target values are not reached or problems occur within production. This will make users more efficient and improve the performance of their pressroom.”

In addition, digital assistants help improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) with Performance Advisor Technology (PAT). Available as an app in Print Shop Analytics, the artificial intelligence PAT continuously analyses a user’s pressroom and machine data and, if necessary, automatically recommends solutions, just like a human consultant would do.

PAT offers practical suggestions for improvement, highlights strengths and potential savings, generates comprehensive diagrams and data, and gives specific recommendations. PAT also monitors the printing process, recognises deviations, and suggests suitable optimisation measures that will make a company more effective.

Efficient service ticket submission and tracking is also offered within the portal. A ‘traffic light’ logic design easily shows users the service status of their press and software modules (Prinect). The users can create a new ticket from a new issue directly via the app, using very few steps, including uploading a picture or video if necessary.

The status of the ticket can be easily tracked and with every update from Heidelberg’s service colleagues regarding the issue, users will directly get a notification and are able to chat with the experienced Heidelberg team.

Reduced maintenance effort through process efficiency and professional instruction is also achievable through Heidelberg Customer Portal. The Maintenance Manager is a software system that offers the complete maintenance documentation to a user’s dedicated Heidelberg machines.

Additionally, it supports the complete maintenance process administration including planning, due date monitoring and documentation of maintenance.  These additional features are bound to a Heidelberg machine service contract.

Customer success

Heidelberg has seen global success in the uptake of its Customer Portal platform.

Edmonton, Canada-based Burke Group of Companies Limited, is one of the companies that has successfully implemented the Heidelberg Customer Portal.

Aiming to be the best single source solution for its clients, the Burke Group of Companies has gone on to develop its print division into one of the top print production facilities in Canada by investing in the acquisition of other companies whose services add greater value for its current and future customers.

In line with providing an unparalleled and robust suite of solutions, the Heidelberg Customer Portal has enabled the business to continue providing a customer-first commitment.

“The new portal is a great tool. It would take hours to compile and analyse data that the portal provides in seconds,” the company said.

Another company that is a strong advocate of the Heidelberg Customer Portal is Emibra Brazil, a packaging company in Suzano, Brazil.

With a focus on technological evolution, financial solidity, and valuing people, Emibra goes beyond simply supplying packaging. Its mission is to offer customised solutions that meet the needs of customers in various segments, many of which are long-standing partners, with more than 40 years of collaboration.

By using the Heidelberg Customer Portal, the company has been able to remain faithful to the values that it has always been guided by – innovation, quality, and sustainability. The portal offers a solution to Emibra Brazil’s customers that adds value and strengthens partnerships.

“The new Heidelberg Customer Portal is a strategic innovation that expands our ability to make informed decisions at management level. By providing us with actionable data-driven insights, it not only elevates operational effectiveness but also allows us to identify opportunities for growth and long term improvements,” the company said. As evidenced by these companies’ successes, Wissmann said, “Take your printshop to the next level with Heidelberg Customer Portal”.

The benefits, at a glance

Some of the benefits of the Heidelberg Customer portal include:

•  Improved efficiency and performance through real-time production data analysis via the Insights app

•  Performance evaluations and competitor comparisons with benchmarking reports in the Performance Benchmarking App

• Automated improvement suggestions through AI-powered Performance Advisor Technology (PAT), offering optimisation recommendations

•  Simplified service and maintenance processes with clear service and maintenance tracking

 •  Reduced maintenance effort through efficient process management and professional instructions in the Maintenance Manager

•  Transparent shopping processes with direct access to the Heidelberg eShop and order tracking

 • Comprehensive production management via apps such as Inventory Management

 •  Cloud-based platform for easy, anytime access to important data and applications from any device

Turning challenges into benefits

The Heidelberg Customer Portal addresses several major pain points for print shops, including:

•  The lack of real-time production visibility – It offers real-time insights and analytics, helping identify inefficiencies and bottlenecks quickly

•  Complex workflow management – The platform streamlines production processes and inventory management, making it easier to handle multiple tasks

 •  Performance benchmarking – Print shops can compare their performance to industry peers, which is difficult to do manually

 •  Service and maintenance inefficiencies – The portal simplifies service ticket submission and tracking, along with predictive maintenance, reducing downtime

•  Manual performance optimisation – The AI-driven Performance Advisor Technology (PAT) app provides automated recommendations for continuous improvement, eliminating the need for manual analysis

 • Cumbersome procurement processes – Direct access to the Heidelberg eShop simplifies ordering and tracking, reducing administrative effort.

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