Ten years ago Turkey was a relatively minor market for Koenig & Bauer sheetfed offset presses. Medium- and large-format commercial and packaging presses were mainly supplied by the two other major German vendors, or by Japanese manufacturers, which stoutly defended their territory. But since Dereli Graphic, a venerable trading firm, became KBA's Turkish sheetfed agent in 2004 and started working with KBA's Radebeul personnel to improve sales and service, demand for Rapidas in Istanbul, Izmir and Ankara has taken off.
 
Bucking the economic recession, over the past two years a total of thirteen medium- and large-format press lines, some with multiple units and advanced equipment, have been installed at leading printers such as Duran-Dogan, Camis Ambalaj Sanayi, Bilnet and Egesan. KBA is rapidly becoming a technological trailblazer in Turkey.
 
Eureka moment for the industry

There are several reasons for this: KBA's high-performance Rapidas brought cutting-edge process technology to the Turkish print industry in the form of hybrid capabilities and eight- or ten-colour perfecting in medium and large formats, while in association with Dereli Graphic KBA has hit the mark among Turkish printers with intensive on-site investment planning advice and bespoke customer services. This has created a solid basis for trust within the shifting media marketplace.

Since founding Dereli Graphic in 1986 the proprietor, Ahmet Dereli, has developed the enterprise into a leading vendor of offset and flexo presses, pre-press equipment, printing inks and other consumables. KBA, Kodak, Flint and Epple are the most prominent names in the company's extensive clientele. The premises in Halkali (Istanbul) that Dereli Graphic has occupied since 2000 provide an attractive working environment for its 55 employees, and include spacious, well-appointed demonstration and training rooms plus a well-stocked spare-parts store. Dereli Graphic exhibits at all the print media trade fairs in Turkey, eg Istanbul Packaging. This, too, promotes customer communications and trust.
 
Camis Ambalaj Sanayi: glass packaging and more

One of KBA's biggest customers in recent years is Tuzla-based Camis Ambalaj Sanayi, a packaging offset specialist owned by Turkey's Sisecam Group, a globally active glass manufacturer. After replacing two large-format non-KBA presses with a Rapida 142 six-colour coater press sporting hybrid and board-printing capabilities plus a double extended delivery, Camis noticed a huge improvement in productivity, quality and product diversity. The press mainly prints microflute and 230g to 450g cardboard, and is therefore mounted on a 630mm (24.85in) plinth.

Sixty per cent of the products printed in Tuzla are for other business units within the group – household glassware, plate glass, packaging for glass and chemicals – the rest is packaging for breweries, food-processing and healthcare industries, and manufacturers of electrical goods, chocolates and shoes. Camis is one of the biggest packaging printers in Turkey, with an annual paper and board consumption of 28,000 tonnes (30,800 US tons). In 2009 it offset-printed 15 million square metres (161m sq.ft) of substrates and generated sales worth €30m ($42m). One of Sisecom's five other subsidiaries, a flexo packaging specialist based in Eskisehir, is the biggest of its kind in Turkey.

Enhancing quality, performance and range applications

The sheets printed in Tuzla are usually laminated onto corrugated. Since 1987 the proportion of UV work has increased from 15 to 50 per cent, and is still rising. With the KBA Rapida 142 six-colour coater press Camis has trimmed makeready times, enhanced quality and performance, and expanded its product range.

Plant manager Mehmet Akinci says: "We knew that our two five-colour presses were no longer capable of addressing market demands, and that we had to invest in new technology. Alongside the increased colour capacity and range of finishing effects achievable, what really fascinates us about the Rapidas are their fast job changes, high output and advanced automation. At today's prices, lengthy job changes are a waste of valuable time and money."

He continues: "Turkey is one of the lucky countries that were less affected than others by the financial crisis. So we could afford to invest in the Rapida 142. Although we achieved eleven per cent growth in 2009, we must wait and see how things go and at what pace growth levels out. But the fact remains that the KBA press has fulfilled the potential displayed at Drupa 2008. We have total confidence in KBA and Dereli Graphic. When the Tuzla plant was flooded last year and we were literally up to our necks in water, they didn't let us down." Ibrahim Özyildirim, head of production at Camis, agrees: "The Rapida 142 six-colour coater press represents a new generation of presses from which we are profiting enormously."