2011 No.72 - Komori

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User Profile User Profile GPS installs second LS40P 38 GPS Colour Graphics, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK From left: Helen McClay, Chairman, and Ian McCurry, Managing Director Komori On Press Northern Ireland’s GPS Colour Graphics has become the first company in the UK to install two Lithrone S40 long perfectors. An eightcolor Lithrone S40P perfector has just taken its place at the Belfast company alongside the 10-color Lithrone S40P, which was installed in 2008. Since the 10-color S40P was installed, replacing two straight Komori Lithrones, the company’s annual turnover has increased by 20 percent. Says Managing Director Ian McCurry, “Job turnaround time on the 10-color perfector is very impressive and we can rely on changing over in 15 to 20 minutes.” Mr. McCurry also highlights increased efficiency levels on the shop floor since the first 10-color press has been in operation. “Through the inherent benefits of printing both sides in one pass, we have no half-completed sheets on the floor waiting for back-up, and, as a further consequence, we’ve reduced makeready waste.” Adds Chairman Helen McClay: “During 2010, our Lithrone S40P was so busy that, because we won’t ever let customers down, we found ourselves having to turn away new, very tight deadline work, even though we were working 24/7. That’s one of the many reasons we have now introduced a second Lithrone S40 perfector. And, as you’d expect, with the added capacity, part of our new sales drive is to alert our customers and prospects that with eighteen 40-inch Lithrone units we can easily handle more work.” Following a 10-color perfector with an eight-color When GPS installed its first Lithrone S40P it had already experienced the benefits of fifth units for sealing and spot coating with one of its straight Lithrones, so it had no doubts that a five-over-five perfector was essential. So, why has GPS now followed up the 10-color S40P with an eight-color version? Mrs. McClay explains: “It’s quite simple. We’re actually adopting exactly the same philosophy as we had before, when our production was based around five-color and four-color Lithrone printing — albeit on straight Lithrone 40s — not perfectors. Just as then, a substantial volume of our work involves sealing along with some special-color applications. When we switched to perfecting, it was to ensure that we had the production power to complete printing in a single pass, whether it be four color, five color or four plus seal. The 10-color was our way to guarantee this. However, its installation also brought an increase in publication work — from short-run commercial jobs to long-run consumer monthly magazines. The new eightcolor perfector can handle these four-over-four sections with consummate ease, freeing our 10-color for work such as five-color covers and work requiring sealing.” McCurry adds: “Indeed, as the two Lithrone S40Ps are so precisely compatible, we can use them in tandem to print different sections of the same job, or — if the deadline is really tight or the run length very long — even to print the same job at the same time on both presses. Our production department is also looking forward to the extra flexibility to make lastminute decisions regarding which Lithrone perfector will print which job.” No problems with heavy stock Strongly influencing the printer’s selection of another Lithrone S40P was its ability to print on thick materials. Before the first perfector was installed, the company conducted strenuous trials to make sure that there was no marking or scuffing on heavyweight stocks — a general reservation about perfecting presses that had deterred GPS from entering the perfecting arena in the past. Says McCurry: “Soon after installing the first S40P, we recognized that Komori’s three double-size perfecting cylinders ensured that there were no problems in printing more rigid materials, such as magazine covers and folders, of up to 400 gsm, without marking.” Another significant observation made quickly by GPS was that its next press was definitely going to be a second Lithrone S40 perfector. So much so that the company embarked immediately on gearing up its workflow, prepress and finishing facilities for the next press. Following closely on the heels of the first S40P installation was the purchase of a Prism Management Information System and Prinergy workflow. More recently, a new MBO T960 Perfection Folder was installed, and then a Heidelberg saddle stitcher was added to its extended finishing department — expansions that required hiring 10 new employees, bringing the staff up to more than 50. To ensure 24/7 job completion, GPS also installed a Synergy Digit 76 laminator — so that lamination of covers, folders and educational training cards could be undertaken in-house. Then, just prior to the delivery of its second S40P, the company installed a second Screen Platerite platemaker, this time the faster and highly automated 8800Z. “It’s three times as fast as our other Platerite, and along with our MIS and Prinergy workflow, it’s all part of our plan to move into full JDF/ CIP4 production very shortly,” says McCurry. Well ahead in green initiatives With such focus on machinery over the last two years, it’s worth noting that the company has not lost its pioneering eco initiatives. Back in 2006, GPS was the first commercial printer in Ireland to become a Carbon Neutral® company and in 2008 it was the first in Northern Ireland to gain FSC accreditation. Helen McClay asserts that GPS is still well ahead of its competitors in green initiatives: “Having achieved a whole host of accreditations, we’re constantly working with our consumables suppliers and with Komori to further improve our eco-friendliness. And the new Komori Lithrone S40P, with its even lower waste levels, makes a further contribution to this aim.” The first Lithrone S40P at GPS, a ten-color machine, installed in 2008. Komori On Press 39
User Profile User Profile Corrà’s turning point with Komori Grafiche Corrà, Arcole, Italy Davide Corrà (far right), Owner to live up to our expectations — both in terms of printing technology and after-sales service. When we chose the LS-840P, we thought we would just use it to print large volumes; however, as soon as it was installed we found it capable of combining great productivity with extraordinary quality. The perfecting unit was an important factor in our selection process – it was the only one that fulfilled our stringent standards,” Davide explains. The LS-840P in a 72 x 103 cm format chosen by Grafiche Corrà is a 4+4 perfector with Full- APC (automatic plate changer), three washing processes, format and sheet thickness presets, ink distributor roller washing, ink removal in all printing units, PDC-SII and connection to the PCC 2.2.x prepress. “We chose this press,” adds Davide, “because we do printing jobs that require a long perfector. In fact, we print specialized magazines for market niches that can also be sold at bookstores. But since it is a long press we can also use it as a straight press whenever we need to print very complex, six- to seven-color catalogs with a protective layer of varnish. Its printing quality amazes us and after the initial training, our operators have not experienced any problems whatsoever. We are very satisfied with its printing stability and register accuracy. It also features an in-line densitometer that guarantees optimum production and quality.” through Edigit and the Komori K-Station. “Our selection of the LS-540 + C was driven by the need to standardize our printing tools. In fact, since the plate size is the same for both presses, we can make a last-minute decision on whether to use the five-color or the eightcolor press based on their actual availability. Without any doubt this is a very important operational advantage,” Davide says. Why this choice? “We chose the Komori brand because the Lithrone S presses are completely automatic. They all perform a complete and fully automatic job changeover in just a few minutes. They are able to move sequentially through the various functions involved such as ink removal, run stopping, blanket and impression cylinder cleaning, plate changing, start-up, pre-inking, feeder activation and finally production printing itself.” “Technology is very advanced in these presses,” concludes Davide Corrà. “We chose not only for their automation, which makes changeover times so fast and quality so consistently high, but also for the Komori reliability. Plus, we enjoy an excellent relationship with the Komori Italian distributor.” 40 Komori On Press Grafiche Corrà is a printer located in Arcole in the Verona province of northeastern Italy. For nearly a quarter of a century, the company has made careful and discerning investments to improve printing quality and productivity. The result has been steadily increasing sales turnover and a growing customer base. “Our company began in 1986 with a passion for the graphics industry,” says Davide Corrà, who is at the helm of the company along with his father, Gianni. “We are a family enterprise deeply committed to developing the print business. We’ve grown dynamically on all fronts — in sales, production capacity, facility size and employee strength. Today we are a one-stop service supplier, from prepress to packaging, offering a wide range of digital and offset solutions with outstanding quality, speed and value. This is why we dare to challenge the market: Gives us free rein and you’ll never regret it!” Corrà moves to the beat of Komori Thanks to this successful growth, each department of the company features the best in terms of currently available technologies. However the printing department, with its two Komori Lithrones as the main production pillars, is truly state-of-the-art: an eight-color long press and a five-color press equipped with an acrylic varnish unit and a dryer. With the sheetfed presses, the company is able to cover the whole lithographic, commercial, publishing and paper-transformation market. And the flexibility and speed of the 72 x 103 cm format bring real quality and economic advantages for the end user. In total, 13 print units are installed and work is done in three shifts. The eight-color press “Our first Komori press was an eight-color Lithrone S40 perfector. We needed a perfecting press but at the same time we insisted on a machine with proven technology that met our requirements. Komori has been the only one The five-color press “In mid 2009, we felt that we needed to add a second press to our shop. Considering how satisfied we were with the first Komori, and after a long evaluation phase, we decided on another Komori — a five-color press that standardizes the print shop,” continues Davide. “This decision gave us the utmost satisfaction — with respect to the ease of use of the presses as well as other benefits, from saving on solvents and alcohol to low maintenance, from the automatic wash-up system to the in-line spectrometer, which ensures a consistent print quality. In other words, just like the LS-840P, the handling of this second press is simplified in a way that makes it surpass the competition.” The LS-540 + C in a 72 x 103 cm format, which was installed in 2009, is equipped with an in-line coating unit, automated plate changing (Full-APC), three wash-ups, automatic sheet size and thickness presets, IR drier, ink roller cooling, ink removal in units 1 and 5 based on actual needs, inking adjustment with PDC-SII and the PCC 2.2.x. prepress connection Komori On Press 41
Page 2 and 3: Feature 1: Lithrone G40 The New Hig
Page 4 and 5: T h e u l t i m a t e p r o d u c e
Page 6 and 7: Rise of the Lithrone G40 Dawn of th
Page 8 and 9: Concept ‘OffsetOnDemand’ empowe
Page 10 and 11: Case Studies ‘We have expanded ou
Page 12 and 13: New Advances: Integrated Control Sy
Page 14 and 15: KOMORI ENTHRONE SERIES K o m o r i
Page 22 and 23: User Profile User Profile nextdayfl
Page 24: Komori to the Rescue The city of Br

2011 No.72 - Komori

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