No sooner has the installation of a first KBA Rapida 106 at Simply Cartons in Nottingham been signed off, than an order has been placed for a second machine.
The new machine is a six-unit press with double coater and able to run with conventional or UV inks. The specification includes sidelay free feeder, simultaneous plate changing and simultaneous roller washing.
It will be raised on a plinth by 900mm to give a larger pile height and linked to a logistics system for delivery of new material to ensure continuous operation when printing at 20,000sph.
The first press, a seven-colour machine with double coater was ordered in August last year and went into production earlier this year. The success of this press led to the second order which will make the business an all-KBA site.
CEO Craig Mather says: “We are a highly service driven business and our customers expect us to provide them with innovative solutions for their products. We have always had a reputation for using our skills and experience in finding new solutions for our customers.
“We now have the ability to produce up to 40,000 B1 sheets per hour with multiple coating applications. This firepower will give our customers the confidence that we can fulfil varying volume of work without any worry of capacity.”
The company works in a number of areas across the packaging sector, hence a decision to operate with low migration inks. At the time of the first order, Mather said: “Above all, we are innovators: we create the packaging solutions that give our clients the edge. In KBA we saw a perfect fit.”
The decision to focus on KBA as press supplier means the end for Heidelberg and Mitsubishi involvement at the site which employs 120. Complimenting KBA, he adds: “We need to work with a supplier which has a similar pedigree to ours. The synergies between Simply Cartons and KBA in the areas of R&D, innovation, and most importantly, the value placed upon people are clearly apparent.”
