Almost 30% of global print output is produced in the USA and Canada. So it is no surprise that this huge market is no. 1 on KBA´s list of priorities. Last year the group generated around 15% of its total turnover in North America. Promotional prints and magazines, hefty catalogues, sophisticated packaging, a growing number of newspaper titles, telephone directories, point-of-sale displays and even US dollars are printed on KBA´s sheetfed offset, web offset, webfed gravure, sheetfed gravure, flexo and security presses. A high-performance KBA Commander telephone directory press at the Merced, California, operation of the world´s biggest print group, Quebecor World Inc A four-high KBA Comet tower press at the Standard Examiner in Ogden, Utah   With its medium- and large-format presses already firmly established in the North American packaging industry - KBA is the market leader in large format and has substantially expanded its market share in small and medium formats - at the PRINT 2001 international trade fair from September 6 to 13 in Chicago the group is out to capture the commercial sheetfed offset market. Under the banner "People & Print", KBA´s 1,400m (15,000sq.ft) stand (929) in South Hall (Exhibit Hall A) will feature live demonstrations of a Rapida 162a six-colour large-format press (sheet size 120 x 162cm/47¼ x 63¾in) with coater, autoplate changers and double delivery extension, a Rapida 105 medium-format press (sheet size 72 x 105cm/28¼ x 41¼in) with a similar configuration, the successful new 74 Karat computer-to-plate digital offset press (sheet size 72 x 74cm/28¼ x 29in) and cutting-edge pre-press technology supplied by CreoScitex.   Print Craft Inc. in New Brighton, Minnesota, is one of many satisfied Karat customers in the USA. The photo shows company president Bill Calengor in front of his 74 Karat The 74 Karat is already in operation at several US printing plants. At PRINT it will demonstrate its suitability for the high-quality short-run colour market by printing customer jobs and other jobs selected at short notice by visitors to the show. The outstanding capabilities of this digital press for distribute-then-print and print-on-demand scenarios will be spotlighted by new Internet- and e-commerce-compliant software developed exclusively for the Karat by httprint europe. Color-Art in St. Louis, Missouri, recently expanded its strong market position with a six-colour KBA Rapida 162 KBA now markets the 74 Karat direct, and last year set up a dedicated US sales outlet, Karat Digital Press Division in Fairfield, New Jersey, alongside its two other subsidiaries, KBA North America Inc., Web Press Division in York, Pennsylvania, which has its own production plant and employs around 300 people, and KBA North America Inc., Sheetfed Division in Williston, Vermont, which has 100 sales and service staff.