Belgian Web Printers Invest Heavily In New Kit

Three prominent Belgian printing houses are expanding capacity almost simultaneously with 16-, 32- and 64-page Compacta commercial web press from KBA.

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Belgium, which covers 30,513 square kilometres (11,788sq miles), has the second-highest number of commercial presses in Europe relative to the size of the population. In the UK or Spain there are between 265,000 and 290,000 inhabitants for every commercial press, in France and Germany 197,000 and 177,000, but in Belgium 113,000 and in Finland just 73,000 – a clear indication of many print providers’ focus on exports.

Since the turn of the millennium, Belgian printers have signed up for a total of 34 new commercial presses, around 36% of them large-format 48- to 72-page presses and 38% 16-page presses. KBA is well represented, with over 30% of the commercial press market.

Compacta 215 for Nevada-Nimifi
Nevada-Nimifi Printing in Brussels is a family business formed from the merger of Nevada and Imifi in 1992 and run by proprietor Yves Duplat and his daughters Julie (production) and Delphine (finances). The new 16-page Compacta 215 the company has ordered is its fourth KBA press and follows two other 215s plus one 32-page Compacta 418. Nevada-Nimifi pursues a strategy of dynamic growth that has placed it among the top five print operations in the country. To support this growth the firm has increased its press fleet to five commercial web presses plus three small- and medium-format litho presses, and has also invested heavily in new pre-press and post-press kit. Alongside an F3 folder with a 2x8-page module the Compacta 215 sports various extras including a sheeter and a UV coating unit. It will mainly be used to print covers on stock weights of 200gsm (74lbs) or more.

Second Compacta 408 for Grafix Printing
Druckerei Grafix in Dessel is a major player in the Benelux market for value-added promotional literature. It is owned by the Grafische Groep Bongaerts (GGB), comprising three independently operating enterprises: Grafix Printing (heatset web), Impressa (litho) and DOT Media (pre-press). According to joint managing directors Bart and Tom Bongaerts there are very few firms capable of offering such a wide range of services. The two brothers are the fourth generation in a family business that was established back in 1863. The 32-page short-grain Compacta 408 they have ordered is the second of this type and the seventh KBA commercial web press at the Dessel production plant, bringing the total number of presses to eight. The contract is part of an investment package that also includes new llitho presses and is aimed at enhancing flexibility and turnaround.

T’Hooft expands with Compacta 818
Print runs at Drukkerij T’Hooft in Aalter range from 10,000 to 5 million copies, on just about every type of commercial stock. The company’s new high-volume 64-page Compacta 818 is its eighth KBA web press and joins a line-up of 8-, 16- and 40-page machines. Its ability to print long runs of high-pagination copies will dramatically boost production capacity. The variable-format V5 gripper folder on this double-circumference press can handle both long- and short-grain copies for greater flexibility, and is much more compact than folders from other manufacturers. Since the 40-page press is also configured with a V5, T’Hooft is already familiar with its superior performance.