Impresora La Unión relies entirely on sheetfed offset from KBA

A Rapida 105 with six inking units, coater and hybrid and UV equipment has been in operation for one year at Impresora La Unión in San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador. This is the company’s second Rapida press and the press room is now kitted out entirely with KBA technology.

Impresora La Unión was founded in 1903 as Tipografía La Unión and is now managed by the fourth generation of the owning family Dutriz. Today managing director Jose Manuel Dutriz employs 200 staff. Every year some 120 million pieces of carton packaging leave the plant destined for companies such as Pizza Hut and KFC. Along with food and frozen goods packaging, production focuses on packaging for the pharmaceutical and textile industries. Customers come from Guatemala, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panama, up to the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico.

The company began to switch from commercial printing to packaging and label printing in the 1950s. In 1965 Impresora La Unión won Colgate Palmolive as a customer and it has exported packaging to Guatemala since 1978. In 1992 the firm was the first printing house in El Salvador to install a four-colour press with coater in 70 x 100cm format (27.5 x 39.3in). It was joined by a five-colour press with coater in 2002.

Streamlined structures

In 2011 the company invested heavily in post-press equipment and the first KBA Rapida 105 with seven inking units and coater arrived in 2013. At the same time the organisation was streamlined boosting efficiency and economy. As part of this process Impresora La Unión replaced a press from another supplier with a second KBA Rapida 105 in 2014.

The new six-colour press has been specially equipped for packaging printing. It is raised by 450mm (17.7in) and has nonstop rollers in the delivery. Semi-automatic plate change, CleanTronic Multi washing systems for the use of conventional and UV ink, and CleanTronic UV all contribute to process automation. Two UV interdeck dryers can be switched between several positions at the printing units. Further IR/TA/UV dryers in the delivery extension and delivery permit a raft of finishing variations inline.

“Short makeready times, a high speed of 16,000sph and a variety of finishing options provide our company with the chance to grow even more,” says Jose Manuel Dutriz. “The Rapida 105 is the ideal instrument enabling us to offer our customers highly finished products with short lead times and added value.”