Drupa 2012 saw the addition of a long perfector option to the configurations offered with the new B1 (41in) Rapida 105 unveiled six months ago in Shanghai. And it wasn't long before KBA booked the first order. French print provider IAPCA down south in Le Muy signed up on the spot for an eight-colour Rapida 105 for four-backing-four. The press will feature automatic plate changers and ErgoTronic ACR for register control plus diverse other automation modules. It is scheduled to ship in the autumn.

The launch of the new Rapida 105 on the same platform as the high-end Rapida 106 was followed by a lot of requests for a perfector version. KBA quickly responded and in addition to the twelve-unit Rapida 106 exhibited at Drupa 2012 now offers the Rapida 105 as an eight- or twelve-colour perfector press for four-backing-four or five-backing-five. It incorporates the same triple-drum perfecting system as the Rapida 106. Conversion between straight printing and perfecting is by push-button at the ErgoTronic console and takes just two minutes. The Rapida 105 has a maximum rated output of 15,000sph in straight production and 14,000sph in perfecting mode.

In 2005 IAPCA installed two Rapida 105s: a five-colour coater version and a four-colour perfector for two-backing-two. For company president Jacques Riccobono, KBA Rapidas have a clear technological edge, and that is the reason he chose a third Rapida 105 in such a relatively short space of time.