New Folders Meet Printers Demands

The latest generation of small-format KBA folders for one-around presses can be seen in action for the first time on the Compacta 217 commercial heatset press demonstrated at Drupa 2004.

The latest generation of small-format KBA folders for one-around presses can be seen in action for the first time on the Compacta 217 commercial heatset press demonstrated at Drupa 2004.

Following the launch of these new folders printers will be able to choose between KBA's familiar, practice-proven gripper folders and a new generation of pin folders like the one incorporated in the press to be seen at Drupa.

This freedom to choose between the two systems and their relevant merits addresses a desire among commercial printers worldwide for systems which can be custom-configured to their individual production scenarios, said the company.

To support such customisation, all the new pin and gripper folders manufactured by KBA are of a modular design with a raft of new features aimed at relieving operator workload while improving productivity and reliability.

The standard versions include a first cross fold, double parallel fold, single-gate fold with or without a subsequent quarterfold, a synchronised length perforator and a right-reading cross perforator.

The depth of the length and cross perforations can be adjusted on the fly.

Conversion to the various types of product is fully automatic from the console.

All the adjustable elements in the folders are controlled via a Profi-Bus system.

This enables their precise positions to be displayed on the console screen during conversion sequences and, what is more important, it allows the entire subassembly to be converted in a minimum of time, since all the adjusting sequences can take place simultaneously.

An additional module can be fitted beneath the folder proper to support the production of 2 x 8pp posters, closed at the head, or, on a two-web press, 2 x 16 pages.

A cut-off cassette with its own dedicated electric drive can also be installed to support the production of 2 x 4, 2 x 8 or 4 x 4 pages.

Production safety and reliability are a top priority in continuous everyday operation.

That is why, with the Compacta 217, KBA has retained its custom of fitting two quarterfolds because this reduces the risk of production stoppages if one should fail.

Both types of folder have dedicated drives, eliminating the need for variable-speed gearing and electromagnetic couplings, for i8nstance.

The ability to disconnect machine parts not required for the current production run not only delivers energy savings but also reduces wear and tear while substantially lengthening maintenance and service intervals.

Dedicated drives enable the cylinder groups to be moved into their set positions while pre-production checks are being carried out.

Another very useful feature, for example, is that the circumferential setting of the spider wheel, which has a direct electric drive, can be adjusted for different copy weights during the production run, thus improving the delivery precision of the copy stream.

Previously, the copy diverter and folding knife for the quarterfold were set once and could then only be adjusted manually.

With KBA's new folders the position of the copies in the stream is monitored by an integrated optical scanner, and the settings for the copy diverters and folding knives are adjusted accordingly, with adjustment actuated automatically by sensors.

So the folder sequence can be adjusted continually to accommodate each printed copy as it arrives.

Precise copy handling and an optimum folding quality are the result.

With this system of optical copy monitoring, external factors such as belt abrasion are no longer significant, so the belts do not have to be changed so often.

A new pre-quarterfold copy-aligning system also helps to optimise the folding quality.

Easy, open access to all the various folder modules simplifies both operation and maintenance work.

The spider wheel and sheet exits, for example, can be folded up out of the way.

The control terminal is located ergonomically at the folder, which also makes the entire folder much simpler to operate.

The stop in the quarterfold can be cleaned easily of trimmings during production.

An additional severing device with automatic monitoring of ribbon infeed width supports register-true severance during make-ready and reduces the risk of web jams in the folder when running the press up to speed.

New zero-play couplings for the cross perforator enhance perforation precision and thus folding quality.

An intelligent, pneumatically operated belt-tensioning system prolongs the service life of the belts still further by maintaining the optimum level of tension throughout the entire production run.

The geometry and configuration of the folding cylinder on a KBA pin folder have been designed to ensure that, during a single-gate fold, the pin marks no longer end up on the inside of the printed copy, where it would not be possible to trim them off, but on the outside.

This is another feature that KBA believes is unique to its folders.

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