Malaysian printing and packaging specialist Linocraft Printers in Johor Bahru has placed an order with KBA for the biggest litho press in Southeast Asia, an 8B (73in) Rapida 185. The six-colour coater version with dryer was chosen because it will enable the company to move into the high-volume VLF packaging sector. For managing director and CEO Andrew Tan Woon Chay, what clinched the deal alongside the format was the Rapida's advanced level of automation, cutting-edge technology and array of automation modules for inline quality control. He is confident that the Rapida will boost business in the high-volume packaging market by offering some unique features.

Linocraft is a full-service print provider with three operations in Malaysia, China and Singapore. The printing plant, which is located at company headquarters south of Johor, is equipped with small- to large-format technology that includes a Rapida 105 universal five-colour coater press. The installation of this robust medium-format press in mid-2006 was the start of a close and cordial association between Linocraft and KBA's local subsidiary, KBA Asia-Pacific. Together, they sat down with the engineers at KBA's factory in Radebeul to work out the most cost-effective technology for the specific needs of packaging production.

Linocraft's customer base is dominated by household names from the electronics industry, such as Dyson, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Panasonic, Brother, Samsung etc. It is also busily expanding its share of the food and drinks packaging market, where customers include Coca Cola and Carlsberg. The VLF Rapida was chosen to address their demands, and will enable Linocraft to streamline the production of visually attractive point-of-sale packaging for vacuum cleaners, televisions and other bulky goods. At present cartons for vacuum cleaners, mobile phones, printers and other bulky goods are printed in several parts and the lid and base laboriously glued onto the sides by hand. With the Rapida 185's 2.4m² (25ft²) sheets such packaging can be printed in a single piece.

The 11,000sph Rapida 185 for Linocraft will feature a carton capability for substrates up to 1.2mm (48pt) thick. This includes a nonstop facility at the feeder, nonstop rollers in the delivery and special board guides. Automatic plate changing is part of the standard kit for the Rapida 185. Quality will be monitored via a DensiTronic Professional closed-loop densitometric colour measurement and control system, while KBA LogoTronic and CIPLink will enable pre-press data to be downloaded for press preset. Provision has been made to add the latest version of KBA's QualiTronic Color Control with Instrument Flight. The Rapida 105 will be embedded in the same network.

Linocraft started off in 1972 as a commercial printer but at the turn of the millennium it moved into the packaging sector, steadily gaining market share. Today the company focuses on top-quality packaging and to this end has long since achieved ISO 9002 accreditation, followed by ISO 14001 certification for its outstanding environmental management. Since 2005 Linocraft's quality excellence has won it medals at the Asian Print Awards almost every year.

The contract for the Rapida 185 was placed just a few weeks after Saudi media enterprise Al Bayan took delivery of a twelve-unit version of the same model, which is the biggest litho press worldwide.