The trio is complete. At the end of last year Chinese packaging specialist Jiangsu Zhongcai Printing in the city of Danyang fired up a seven-colour Rapida 105 UV coater press that now prints the luxury packaging for which the company is internationally renowned. It joined two medium- and large-format six- and five-colour KBA presses that went live In 2003 and 2002 respectively, and which have played no small part in Jiangsu Zhongca's rapid growth.

Jiangsu Zhongcai Printing was established in 1994 and together with Shanghai Jiacai Printing is part of the tnp (The National Press) group, a specialist producer of top-quality packaging. Alongside seven offset presses the group operates an array of flexo and gravure presses at two big production plants employing around 1,000 people. The 15-hectare (37-acre) site in Danyang offers over 86,000m2 (926,000ft²) of production space, so in conjunction with a well-equipped pre-press and finishing departments there is plenty of capacity for other types of packaging in addition to upmarket products.

Impressive growth
The ISO 9001:2001 and ISO 14001:2004 accredited enterprise is managed by two brothers, Jiao Xiao Lin and Jiao Xiao Ping, and has experienced incredible growth since its foundation. Sales total around €50m ($71.1m) and are set to climb steeply in the next few years, aided by a subsidiary in Korea. In addition to quality the primary focus is on environmentally friendly manufacturing processes, which have received plenty of accolades from customers.

General manager Jiao Xiao Ping says: "We have a large number of long-term delivery contracts with top national and international firms in the tobacco, electronics, medical, household goods, food and drinks industries. They include Panasonic, Siemens, Motorola, Philips, McDonald, KFC, Colgate and Castel, reflecting our high-powered capabilities. Since our customers are all keen to boost sales in China, we help them develop new, more attractive packaging on an ongoing basis. We work ceaselessly to enhance our designs and quality. We see huge potential in packaging for tobacco and luxury goods like wine and spirits."

Technology and service are key
Technology played just as important a role as marketing strategies in the company's success. Jiao Xiao Ping says: "The fact that we opted for KBA presses again after a considerable interval is no coincidence. We have experience of offset presses from other German and Japanese vendors. But in recent years KBA has drawn ahead of the field, gaining widespread recognition in China and really burnishing its image here. This applies not only to technological innovations but also to performance and, not least, after-sales service. We value the trust engendered in the course of our communications with KBA, and are open to any new advances that may help us drive growth. Our customers are highly discerning and demand ever more complex products that we must be fully capable of delivering."

Big improvements in high-quality sector
Mr Jiao continues: "Prior to making the final decision on which type of press to take we visited a reference installation at Dongguan QP Factory in Shenzhen, where we saw that KBA is well able to provide the technology needed for top-quality packaging production. We were deeply impressed by the demonstrations given on the big KBA fleet there."

Deputy general manager Jianping Bao is also delighted at the continued association with KBA: "The press was delivered bang on schedule and commissioned to our complete satisfaction. It will help us to enhance our product range still further, particularly in the high-quality sector. We have therefore arranged for KBA to provide further training in a three-month cycle."