This is the new flagship product of the German manufacturer. Koenig & Bauer is launching its new 740 x 1,060mm sheetfed offset press, the Rapida 106 X, on the market. Featuring the latest technological advances in automation, digitisation and network solutions, the press is touted by the manufacturer as the most efficient Rapida of all time.
Reduced set-up time, plate logistics down to the group level
To ensure that no time is lost during makeready, the Rapida 106 X has features such as simultaneous plate changes in less than a minute with unbent plates, a host of makeready features in masked time and standalone printing of a series of jobs with automatic start of the good sheet counter (AutoRun). Once the sheet counter has reached the desired print run for the job in progress, printing stops and the Rapida 106 X automatically starts the job changeover, the manufacturer explains. Printing of the next job starts without any operator intervention.
In addition, the new PlateTronic plate logistics that Koenig & Bauer offers as an option is fully automated. From job preparation in the PPS LogoTronic Professional system, through CTP and the removal and return of old plates, to the transport of the printing plates to the press and to the printing units concerned, the entire process is carried out without any human intervention.
Up to 20?000 sheets/hour in duplex mode
With a printing capacity of 20?000 sheets/h in duplex mode, the new press holds the world record in its category, the group assures. Koenig & Bauer also promises to save between 30 and 50 per cent of time thanks to a new tool: the Job Optimizer. This optimises the sequence of jobs to be executed according to criteria such as the technical specificity of the job (format, weight, type of coating, complexity of the job, quality requirements) and the available technology.
At all levels, the new Koenig & Bauer press has been redesigned in order to keep driver intervention to a minimum. Colour control has also been improved and an application has been developed to monitor the printing process from a smartphone and make the console mobile. Numerous technologies have been implemented for almost automatic operation.
