Report 36 d,e,f,s,i.qxd:Report - KBA

Website: www.nacion.com Sheetfed Offset | Costa Rica
The trio of 18,000sph, highpowered
Rapidas is regarded
throughout the region and beyond
as having redefined the benchmark
in sheetfed offset.
Service package plus
But the production start-up was by
no means the end of the Rapida
project for Grupo Nación, whose intensive
association with KBA will
continue under the terms of a “service
package plus” contract that entails
regular in-depth training for
press operators, and preventive
press maintenance. To make the
most of the Rapidas’ potential the
training courses are also attended
by design and pre-press staff.
Mario Hernández (executive
vice-president for production),
Ronald Rojas (managing director of
Grupo Nación’s print operation)
and head of maintenance Mario
Gonzáles are delighted with developments
to date. Says Mr Hernández:
“The Comet project was a
huge success, so we knew we could
rely on KBA to deliver the goods.
When it came to choosing the
sheetfed presses, it wasn’t the price
that informed our decision but our
confidence in KBA and its cuttingedge
technology. Our four existing
presses from other manufacturers
had reached the limits of their capabilities
and we realised it was
time to re-engineer our entire
sheetfed operation and realign our
objectives. The quality, performance
and productivity of KBA’s
presses gave them an immediate advantage,
and this was underscored
Costa Rica’s leading print provider
completed the transition to all-KBA sheetfed
and web press technology just over a year ago
by solid evidence gleaned on factfinding
tours in Germany, Spain and
the USA.”
Expanding the product range
“The three Rapida 105 five-colour
presses boast just about every possible
whistle and bell,” declares
Ronald Rojas. “They each have a
coater, double extended delivery, a
shaftless feeder, no-sidelay SIS infeed,
automatic plate changing,
Inkline ink pumping, a cartonboard
package and UV/hybrid capability.
All three presses had a smooth,
trouble-free production start. So we
can offer our customers products of
the highest quality, with a faster
turnaround than ever before. This
is particularly true of jobs requiring
UV and hybrid inks and coatings. Interest
among our customers in the
new finishing options is steadily
The press operators at Grupo Nación are proud to be working with the most advanced
medium-format press in Central America
growing, and we are well equipped
to handle an emerging demand for
heavier stock weights. All three
presses feature dual-purpose chilling
devices to support low-alcohol
print production in compliance with
Costa Rica’s rigorous environmental
regulations.”
Mario Gonzáles is equally impressed:
“The training provided by
KBA’s print instructors, and the
service provided by Radebeul and
KBA agency Gevisa Artes Graficas,
have given our staff a detailed understanding
of the presses, enabling
them to get the maximum out of
them in terms of both performance
and quality. The Rapidas are extremely
reliable and will do us
proud for many years to come.”
Cost savings cushion
impact of crisis
The inauguration of the Rapidas at
the end of 2008 was accompanied
by an extension to the Comet press
line from eight towers to ten. “The
Comet is in operation for 16 to 19
hours a day, and is well utilised for
both coldset and semi-commercial
production,” explains Mr Hernández.
“The quality it delivers closely
approaches that of commercial offset.
In addition to our three inhouse
daily titles, La Nación, La Teja
and Al Día, and a weekly, El Financiero,
we also contract print
around 50 other newspaper titles
with small circulations.”
He goes on: “The production
start of the three Rapidas and the
extension to the Comet coincided
with the breaking of the financial
Grupo Nación’s president Manuel Jiménez (l)
and KBA sales manager Ulrich Wicke with a
plaque commemorating the inauguration of
the three Rapida press lines
The controls for the new KBA sheetfed presses
include a DensiTronic Professional closed-loop
densitometric colour measurement and control
system to the left of the ErgoTronic console
and economic crisis. Nevertheless,
we look forward to the future with
confidence and optimism. We have
compensated for smaller circulations
and reduced pagination by
trimming production times and dramatically
cutting costs. We are not
losing any money and our business
is as sound as ever.”
Gerhard Renn
klaus.schmidt@kba.com
Report 36 | 2010 7