Dec. 1, 2003: Williston, VT. KBA North America, a leading sheetfed offset press manufacturer, has announced that K-1 Packaging Group, a privately-held packaging printer located in City of Industry, Calif., installed a KBA Rapida 105 41” six-color sheetfed press in May 2003.           “This is our first KBA Rapida press and we are quite happy with its quality and performance,” says Mike Tsai, production manager of K-1 Packaging. “We needed to replace an older six-color sheetfed press and add a new automated press for capacity. We knew that KBA has a reputation for reliability and the ability to handle super-thick substrates up to corrugated on its presses. On our previous press, we couldn’t handle those substrates and when the paper was thick, we struggled with the job. We were always limited by the press. Now with our Rapida sheetfed press, this is not an issue. What used to be an ordeal is now a walk in the park. Our new press has a 12 ft extended delivery and has been raised to accommodate very thick substrates. We’ve also added KBA’s new Logotronic system. It’s a very sophisticated tool. We’ve found that it is most helpful to be able to preprogram our jobs in the prepress and upload the data into the press. It saves time and increases throughput.”           Founded in 1993, K-1 Packaging Group consists of two primary divisions (lithography and flexography), specializing in the custom design and manufacturing of folding cartons, blister cards, pressure sensitive labels, and point of purchase displays. The company produces packaging for a wide variety of industries, such as consumer products, media software, entertainment software, nutritional supplement, cosmetic, and pharmaceuticals. Customers are drawn to the firm’s service, pride, integrity, and flexibility. K-1 Packaging employs 80 and is located in a 40,000 sq ft facility.           “We are pleased that K-1 Packaging has purchased its first KBA Rapida press,” says Ralf Sammeck, President and CEO of KBA North America. “Our new press will allow K-1to continue its growth in the southern California packaging market.”           KBA North America is a leading supplier of sheetfed offset and digital presses located in Williston, VT. It is a member of the KBA Group, a leader in the manufacture of sheetfed offset, digital offset, web offset, rotogravure directory, security, and newspaper presses.