KBA moves In To Decorative Printing With New Press

Under a veil of secrecy KBA's engineers have been developing a gravure press that is claimed to redraw the map in terms of quality and productivity.

Under a veil of secrecy KBA's engineers have been developing a gravure press that is claimed to redraw the map in terms of quality and productivity.

The German press manufacturer, with its counterparts from Decopress Printing in Soest, has produced the TR5D press with which it is aiming to break in to the decorative printing market, which the company believes has huge growth potential.

The new press has already been in 24 hours-a-day, seven days-a-week operation at Decopress's plant in Soest (Germany) since April and the company is reported to be delighted with the machine's performance.

KBA said that the new press is based on its proven gravure assemblies that have been modified to accommodate technology specific to decorative print production.

They include water-based inks, gas-fired dryers, K1 impression rollers with sleeves and the rewinding system.

According to KBA, the specifications for the new press were ambitious, with the highest possible print quality and reproductive accuracy, with a speed and productivity to match.

The reel-stand with overhead belt pendulum is essentially a publication gravure system modified to handle the high web tension necessary in decorative printing.

The overhead dryers for the four printing couples have been supercharged to enable them to dry water-based inks at high speeds and the air flow in the convection dryers is heated by gas jets, added the company.

When the printing width is changed in decorative printing, the covers on the impression rollers must be changed accordingly.

The K1 impression rollers KBA has developed are fitted with claimed quick-change sleeves that eliminate the need for time-consuming changes of complete rollers.

The four forme cylinders are changed automatically - with so called register-true coupling included - in less than six minutes.

The KBA winding unit, with a pre-winder and main winder, is said to allow on-the-fly splicing of the new web whilst the printed web is being rewound.

A web-threading cable automatically feeds the web in at high speed.

Taken together, those features cut make-ready times and production waste to a minimum.

The idea of a joint project, and the form it should take, was first raised in spring 2004.

An agreement was signed at the Drupa 2004 exhibition and that was followed by planning sessions and intensive research and development, said KBA.

Looking back on the early days of the project, KBA's deputy head of gravure Thomas Potzkai, recalled: "First of all we had to come up to speed in a process that represented totally new terrain.

This, in conjunction with the rigorous quality specifications for decorative printing and the water-based inks that are commonly used in this market, posed engineering challenges of a completely different nature from those of publication gravure." He continued: "But thanks to the invaluable support of engineering staff at our pioneer customer Decopress, who displayed an awesome level of expertise spanning repro and formes manufacture through to machine construction, we created a press that had groundbreaking technology that fitted the bill on every count.

The plant in Soest was the perfect environment for the trials we had to carry out and the product of our concerted efforts - the new TR5D press - has been an unmitigated success." He explained that during the acceptance tests the TR5D press functioned like clockwork, with none of the glitches that have become almost routine with other new projects.

Decopress's facility in Soest provides an all-in print media service embracing pre-press, press and post-press.

Most of the original artwork handled by the repro department is large format - for example, depicting wooden flooring or paving stones - and is digitised (scanned) prior to being processed.

The repro data are processed in the in-house formes manufacturing department using one of two processes, electro-mechanical engraving or laser etching.

The decorations are printed on special paper, which is subsequently pressure-laminated on to wood-based composites, such as chipboard for the manufacture of furniture, flooring or other interior design accessories.

Decopress provides the printed rolls of paper to laminators and to the manufacturers of such composite products.

Decopress managing director, Udo Tittgemeyer, is delighted with the outcome: "KBA's new decorative press really does redraw the performance map.

When it comes to printing with water-based inks, its precision, reproductive accuracy and speed are unparalleled.

The TR5D is engineered for a maximum web speed of 900 metres per minute, or 15 metres per second.

The speed at which the press runs during any one production run is determined by job specifications, such as stock weight, colour imposition, reel size and so on." And he emphasised: "No other press on the market can compete with it on performance.

This has given us a huge competitive advantage in terms of productivity and cost-efficiency.".

Back to top