In today's print production, even more emphasis is being placed on setup times and productivity than in the past. Especially with smaller job sizes, every job change means lost time - and it does not matter whether only the printing plates are replaced or else a complete ink change is made.

The Genius 52UV, which permits a complete plate change in just five minutes, was very much in the top class to begin with, and it can now improve on this position thanks to a further innovative development.  

True to the tried and tested motto that "time is money", the emphasis is placed on saving time when new upgrade kits are being developed.

The new, faster changeable blade system from KBA-MetroPrint is revolutionary and its benefits are obvious, states Rainer Endres, KBA-MetroPrint's development manager: "First of all, overall productivity is significantly increased, as ink no longer has to be removed from the blade chamber with a spatula. In future, the machine's setup times can be reduced significantly through the use of multiple blade chamber systems, as time-intensive cleaning is no longer needed. In addition, the new blade chamber system in its closed state has a much larger ink collection volume. The all round time savings per ink change alone are thus around 30% to 40%. Furthermore, less cleaning also means a reduced use of detergents, and that has a positive environmental effect, of course".

There has even been an improvement in the way the new blade chamber is filled. Thanks to the new method of removal, contamination of the machine is reduced to a minimum while user-friendliness is increased. If necessary, the ink can be refilled quickly and easily through an enlarged aperture, allowing production to continue.

Economical use of materials was also an important factor in the development work. The service life of the screen rollers is significantly increased, since the sealing blade is not directly placed on the screen roller during running production, and it protects the material by lifting easily.     

The functions of the standard blade chamber and the new changeable blade chamber share an identical basic principle. The only difference between the chambers is that the changeable version can be removed from the printing units regardless of the filling level - and that without removing the ink from the chamber. Through the use of UV-hardening inks, the blade chambers can remain in the ink chamber and can later be inserted in the printing unit, ready for use.  

This combination of a rapid blade chamber system and an equally fast plate change not only allows the Genius 52UV to impress as a world-beater in terms of setup times, it also clearly underlines the importance of dealing with people, nature, and materials in a responsible way.