Supergrafica Shoots into Top Ten Since Supergrafica in the 25-million-soul metropolis of Mexico City pressed the button on the country’s first KBA Rapida 105 8-colour perfector press for 4-back-4 early this year it has outstripped competitors to become one of the country’s top ten commercial print operations. The 15,000sph Rapida 105 marks the company’s transition from half- to full-size 3B. Run in three shifts, seven days a week, it is custom-configured for Supergrafica’s job structure, which is 85 per cent full-colour magazines and brochures, 15 per cent standard commercials. Clear Competitive Edge Production manager Fermin Sanchez is well pleased with the company’s recent performance, which he attributes to the Rapida’s high output, fast makeready and easy handling, supported by cutting-edge control technology: "Thanks to the Rapida’s superb performance and reliability we can undercut our competitors by as much as 50 per cent on price and beat them hands down on delivery time and quality. Half the orders we receive are for runs of 400,000 sheets, 35 per cent between 20,000 and 30,000 sheets, the remaining 15 per cent around 5,000 sheets." He continues, "For us, the Rapida represents a whole new ball game as far as productivity is concerned, so first we had to train all the staff who’d be coming into contact with it – and that meant not just the press crew but pre-press and finishing staff as well because the paper throughput is so enormous. We learned a lot during the start-up phase, and with the first-class training provided by KBA Mexico we were quickly able to exploit the 105’s capabilities to the full." One Good Press Leads to Another Fermin Sanchez lists other benefits the press delivers: "The automatic perfecting system allows us to perfect print in one pass, regardless of stock type, and in a very superior quality. We are so pleased with the Rapida that we are planning to invest in another eight- or ten-colour KBA press and enhance product value by adding a coater and dryer. KBA offers a wide choice of options." Full Marks for Service But Sanchez is well aware that competent service is crucial to maintaining this superb level of performance and reliability: "A high output’s no good if there are no spare parts available when something goes wrong. On our internal assessment scale of 0 to 10 the service provided by KBA Mexico rates full marks. It offers the dependability we need to plan further additions."