2012 performance pleases KBA UK

- €1.2bn turnover, €35mn investment in property and major sales growth in Africa and South America reported by German printing machinery manufacturer's UK operations 

 

- UK printers honored in annual 1814 Production Excellence Awards, which commemorate the year first powered newspaper press supplied to The Times in London

 

Speaking at its annual 1814 Production Excellence Awards, KBA UK’s managing director Christian Knapp gave an upbeat report on group activity, which showed a return to profit on a €1.2 billion turnover from its 6,000 employees worldwide. 

 

Rating Drupa 2012 as a great success for the company, Knapp also said the year had seen €35 million invested in property and facilities, including €14 million on a new foundry at its headquarters in Würzburg. Major sales growth, he noted, was coming principally from Africa and South America.

 

The 1814 Awards commemorate the year in which Koenig and Bauer, the two founders, supplied the first powered newspaper press to The Times in London. This year’s winner was the SMP Group for its performance of delivering 32 different jobs in a single eight-hour shift on its Rapida 162a press. 

 

The company, which was founded in 1928, has an annual turnover of £32 million, and boasts Nestlé, WH Smith, BT and Tesco amongst its customers.

 

Mastercolour, a long-time KBA user based in Tunbridge Wells, was highly commended for its work on reducing energy consumption and carbon footprint with its new Rapida 75 press. 

 

Make-ready times have been reduced by over 75 percent and the company claims it is now saving 156 production hours per year. The new Rapida, running a triple shift pattern, has replaced three older presses.

 

Lancashire-based Leyprint was also shortlisted for its innovative work on a new Rapida 105, which prints directly onto E-flute corrugated board with a foil liner to give a metallic finish. One product, an eye-catching pack for beer (pictured, top), attracted great interest at the recent BPIF Cartons Conference, and featured on-pack information via the Auresma augmented reality platform.

 

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