Directory Boom With World-First Twin-Web Compacta

Spanish directory printing company Einsa Print International has pressed the button to start what is claimed to be the world's first twin-web Compacta 818 at its As Pontes (Galicia) operation.

Spanish directory printing company Einsa Print International has pressed the button to start what is claimed to be the world's first twin-web Compacta 818 at its As Pontes (Galicia) operation.

The 64-page press is the seventh KBA web offset press since 1999 to thunder in to action at the Pennapurreira industrial estate in north-west Spain.

The acquisition of six 48-page Compacta 618 twin-web presses in recent years has transformed Einsa's 57,000 square metre (614,000 square foot) plant in to a showcase and has been instrumental in enabling the company to move up among the biggest directory printers in Europe said KBA.

The Compacta 618s, which are configured as double-decker pairs, have been functioning flawlessly ever since they came on stream.

The Compacta 818 inaugurated last year has a web 1905mm (75.5") wide and a maximum web speed of 13.8 metres per second (mps) - 2,717 feet per minute.

In addition to the Paginas Amarillas (Yellow Pages) it also prints a battalion of magazines, periodicals, catalogues and promotional material, most in full colour, for its national and international customer base.

The 64pp twin-web press is custom-configured with a KBA Patras A automatic reel-logistics system, two KBA Pastomat RC reel-stands, four double printing units, a 15.3m (50-foot) long heatset dryer for twin-web operation, extra-large chill-roller stands, a superstructure with cantilevered turner bars and a P5-1240L pin folder with double quarterfold and two delivery fans.

KBA said the unusual configuration, with variable web leads, enables the press to be used as a back-up for two-colour directory production by by-passing individual printing units, diverting the web either above or below them.

It is also the first totally alcohol-free press to be installed at Einsa Print.

Alongside output, quality and flexibility, one of the top priorities at a company that has achieved UNE-EN-ISO 14001 accreditation is the environmentally responsible handling of production equipment and consumables.

That is one reason why the Compacta 818 was fitted with a special dual-purpose dampening preparation and temperature-control system that maintains the correct temperature at the inking units and duct rollers and at the same time regulates the metering of additives and alcohol substitutes, added KBA.

Einsa Print International believes its investment in the Compacta 818 consolidates its strong position in both the Iberian and the international marketplace.

General manager Carlos Martinez Fontana said: "Our policy of focusing on a niche market was certainly the right route to take.

Within a few years we have moved up among the leading players in the directory printing market, rapidly expanding our activities well beyond the Spanish market.

Last year, directory printing consumed just under 100,000 tonnes of lightweight stock and this year we anticipate an increase to over 120,000 tonnes." Established in 1971, the company specialised in print on lightweight stock and invested in new equipment on a continuing basis in order to advance its market standing.

Following its successful expansion in to the production of hotel guides and other reference directories it became clear that the telephone directory market offered the greatest potential for growth.

Today, Einsa Print International, with its fleet of 11 coldset and heatset presses at production facilities in Andrade and As Pontes, is one of the top two directory printers in Europe.

Fontana explained: "We have long since expanded beyond the domestic market and now export around 60 per cent of our total output.

Most of our customers are based in Europe - the UK, France, Germany and Greece - but we also ship to South America and the Middle East.

In 2002 we came to the conclusion that we had a choice of either concentrating solely on the directory market or of adopting an additional line of business.

Since the directory market is exposed to economic cycles and we wanted to ensure that our presses are always running at full capacity, we decided to address an emerging demand in the marketplace for high-grade full-colour commercials." He continued: "But even while diversifying our activities, we never lost sight of our core competence.

When we decided to install a 64-page Heidelberg Sunday 4000 press in 2002, the twin-web version of the KBA Compacta 818 was not then available.

With this most recent investment we have re-affirmed our long standing association with Koenig and Bauer.

Since 1996 KBA has shipped a variety of press lines to the USA and has a wealth of experience with twin-web commercial presses.

We took advantage of this know-how when we installed the six 96-page Compacta 618 presses.

Now, with the new Compacta 818, we have benefited once again in the form of a customised configuration capable of handling any type of job we may want to take on in either line of business." The press's configuration is ideal for both of the company's main types of product - conventional 4/4 commercials with a maximum of 64 pages A4 and 2/2 telephone and reference directories with sections up to 128 pages thick, printed in twin-web operation, he added.

"Our satisfaction with our earlier KBA installations meant that we had no qualms in entrusting KBA with the design of a new customised press line.

The fact that the press meets all our production specifications without the need for alcohol in the fount solution is an additional benefit.

We have set our sights on systematically converting our entire fleet to alcohol-free production because we are convinced that this is better not just for our production staff and emissions levels but also for our bottom line," commented explained Carlos Martinez Fontana.

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