Product category:
Printing Presses and Machinery (New and Used, Service and Repair)
News Release from: KBA | Subject: Rapida presses - 105, 162
Edited by the Printingtalk Editorial
Team on 25 April 2005
Fast Turn-Round Demands Prompt
Multi-Press Upgrade
Mohn Media in Gutersloh, Germany, has pressed the button on three customised KBA Rapidas, a new-generation Rapida 105 six-colour coater.
Mohn Media in Gutersloh, Germany, has pressed the button on three customised KBA Rapidas, a new-generation Rapida 105 six-colour coater plus a four-colour and a six-colour coater version of the Rapida 162 The three new presses - which replaced four others in a move that concludes the first phase in a sheetfed upgrade - are networked via Densitronic S colorimetry desks
This article was originally published on Printingtalk on 9 Feb 2004 at 8.00am (UK)
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Wolfgang Hornberg, sheetfed offset project manager at Mohn Media, claimed: "This move has repositioned us right at the very top.
These aren't just any presses - they're the Formula One in print production." Mohn Media chose KBA after scrutinising offers from a number of other companies and comparing them with its specifications.
Hornberg commented: "It was definitely the right choice.
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The biggest SLF offset press on the international market entered the final phase of production at the beginning of November 2003 with the successful conclusion of sheet-run trials at KBA's factory.
We're already seeing a good return on our investment." There were several reasons for the upgrade, the most immediate being a growing demand among customers and in the market for a faster turn-around, greater flexibility and lower prices.
There was also a need to streamline co-ordination between customers and the production line.
KBA added that the Rapidas have materially enhanced product quality.
CTP data are transferred directly to the press lines via a CIP3 interface (CIPCon) which enables all three presses to be accessed from a single PC using KBA Densitronic S quality control software and, according to Hornberg: "The ink profiles generated by the press are 90 per cent accurate, which saves us a lot of waste." One of the claimed advantages of Densitronic S is that it can be used with various colour strips and can measure colour density and the colour spectrum, even in the image, enabling both internally and externally generated data to be checked and monitored.
The level of automation includes ink pumping, cylinder washing and plate changing and Mohn Media staff can now change all the plates in just under four minutes, less than half the eight to 10 minutes previously required.
The two Rapida 162 presses for sheets measuring 1,120mm x 1,620mm (44" x 63.75") can output 14,000 sheets an hour and run 0.06mm to 0.9mm (2pt - 35pt) stock in the standard version, or 1.2mm (48pt) board with the relevant package.
The Rapida 105 can print 740mm x 1,050mm (29" x 41.5") sheets at 18,000 sheets per hour (sph).
The standard version is suitable for stock weights from 60gsm to 350gsm (41lbs - 237lbs book), the special version for a maximum thickness of 1.2mm (48pt).
The Rapida 105 at Mohn Media has an in-line anilox coater which is said to make for greater repetitive accuracy.
Quick-action lock-ups on the coating forme cylinder enable the coating plates to be changed much faster and the anilox roller can also be exchanged much faster in order to adjust the volume of coating applied said KBA and Baldwin multiple washing units for the impression, blanket and plate cylinders substantially reduce cleaning times between jobs.
General manager at Mohn Media, Markus Dohle summarised: "The new presses have given us a huge boost in the marketplace by enabling us to cut unit costs whilst enhancing quality and reliability.
As a result, costs arising from customer claims have been cut by half.
All in all, we are extremely pleased with our decision to invest in KBA sheetfed offset technology." Mohn Media is a print major with a payroll of around 4,400 people.
The Gutersloh plant, which employs 1,700, provides a wide range of services and produces up to 95,000 books a day along with 1.5 million-plus magazines, catalogues and brochures, six million units of promotional print and 130,000 calendars and telephone directories.
Sheetfed offset is just one of the company's divisions, the others being digital services, web offset, action print and print finishing.
The 200-strong digital services division handles all pre-press activities from image and text database management to database publishing and platemaking.
The CTP department alone produces up to 1,000 plates a day.
The 150 staff in the sheetfed offset division operate 10 medium-format and six large-format presses and can print anything that customers demand, from magazines to calendars. Request a free brochure from KBA ...
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