January 26, 2004 -- RR Donnelley has once again opted for rotogravure know-how from Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) in Frankenthal, Germany. Slated to commence production in the summer of 2005, the new KBA TR8B will hike capacity at the company’s Lancaster (PA) facility situated approx. 100km (62 miles) west of Philadelphia. The company’s new press hall is designed to accommodate two such presses. The new floor-mounted press is engineered for reels of 3.18 metres in width (125.2in) and consists of a double reelstand, eight printing couples, an asymmetrical turner-bar superstructure to handle up to 12 ribbons and two variable folders positioned back-to-back, each with three deliveries. This configuration supports production with 4 or 6 pages around the forme cylinder circumference and cut-off variability from 300 to 530mm (11.81 to 20.87in). Up to 144 pages can be printed per impression at a web speed of 15.5m/s (3,051fpm). Innovative Strategy for Superstructure and Folder The asymmetrically designed superstructure which enables each ribbon to be fed into either folder means that if it is necessary to shut down one folder, the complete production can be fed through the other. Furthermore, it is not necessary to exchange the forme cylinders for a new imposition layout. When utilising both folders with 6-around production, a total of 6 different products can be produced, each with 20 pages in A4 format. With one production run it is possible to output a 120-page product consisting of 6 different sections. Such flexibility is particularly interesting in the USA where high-volume products are often supplemented with numerous inserts and reply cards. The press has been prepared to be upgraded with two formers and four Ad-a-Card devices which will be a particular boost with commercial long or short grain products. Individual Drives and Rapid Changeovers Only the eight printing couples are driven by a horizontal drive shaft. All other components – including draw roller groups – are linked via a virtual shaft and driven by AC servo motors with KBA Drivetronic control. Better access to folders is achieved with smaller individual drives which eliminate space-consuming mechanical shafts etc. and hence the folding cylinders and delivery each have separate drives. Other features of the press include splash-guard-free inking units and automatic forme cylinder changeover with double forme cylinder transport carts. Web travel in the re-designed drying zone has been optimised to ensure particularly gentle drying. The impression roller cleaning system ensures that the surface of the impression roller can be cleaned when the press is webbed up and personnel intervention is only needed when soiling is particularly severe. All forme cylinders can be changed in less than 10 minutes.