Over 1,500 See KBA's Pre-Drupa Premieres

Over 1,500 visitors from 38 countries poured in to a three-day pre-Drupa Open House at KBA's Radebeul (Germany) operation.

Over 1,500 visitors from 38 countries poured in to a three-day pre-Drupa Open House at KBA's Radebeul (Germany) operation.

The technology forum - the first event of its size in KBA's history - covered the press spectrum from A3 format with the Genius 52 to super-large offset with the two-metre wide Rapida 205.

KBA presented not only what it claims to be the world's most efficient and productive sheetfed offset presses in B2, B1, large and very large formats, but also many of new press features and developments.

One such development is the sidelay-free infeed of the brand-new medium-format Rapida 105, which was represented at the open house by a six-colour model with inline coating and high-line delivery extension.

It is capable of fast job changeovers and performs at 18,000 sheets per hour with 130gsm paper and 350gsm board.

The new Rapida 162 (six colours plus coater) ran out a demanding motor industry brochure with metallic spot colours at 14,000 sheets per hour during demonstrations.

B2 printers among the guests saw the world premiere of the new Rapida 74 G (with Gravuflow keyless inking units), which produced postcard and brochure forms with just six sheets of start-up waste.

The waterless Rapida 74 G is said to open up completely new avenues for cost-effective printing on expensive substrates and guarantees ghosting-free results for even the most critical formes.

It combines the virtues of the flexible unit-type press design (up to eight colours, perfecting, coating, perforating, numbering) with the benefits of the patented Gravuflow inking unit, which is already widely used on KBA's 74 Karat press.

A conventional Rapida 74, similarly new in design and with many new features (automatic plate changing, impression cylinder washing), joined the action printing various jobs at 18,000 sheets per hour.

The new Rapida 205 super-large format press (151cm x 205cm) was presented at Plakatfabrik Radebeul (Ellerhold) where it is installed.

It ran two different printing jobs with a fast substrate changeover between.

The first pass of a 72-page motor industry brochure (on a single sheet) was followed up with a display poster at almost 9,000 sheets per hour.

There were also presentations of the digital-integrated 74 Karat press, printing with oil-based inks on lenticular and other plastic substrates, whilst the Genius 52 was demonstrated with an assortment of jobs on paper and board, and quick call-off, short-run production was demonstrated on the small-format DI press, the 46 Karat.

Andreas M?ssner, KBA's executive vice president for sheetfed sales said: "At KBA, we don't just philosophise vaguely about innovations and new business models for the future, KBA gets down to work and presents them today.".

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