KBA Continues to Hold Global Large Format Position

Some 900 large-format Rapidas in just over 10 years
Since Drupa 1995, KBA has shipped almost 900 LF presses with a total of around 7,000 printing units. The most popular choice is the Rapida 162 (340 installations), closely followed by the Rapida 142 (320), which is a favorite among packaging printers and, increasingly, among commercial printers by virtue of the fact that the print format is twice that of a 41-inch press. Over the last three years these have been joined by shipments of some 40 VLF Rapida 185 and 205 presses. Presses shipped between 1995 and 2000 averaged five printing and coating units, but this has since increased to six as the market has evolved. And while there is still a demand for simple four- and five-color presses, there has been a noticeable shift towards presses with ten or more printing, coating and drying units, a high level of automation and all the attendant whistles and bells.