Canadian contract printing giant Transcontinental has turned to KBA for four triple-wide semicommercial presses in what the German maker says is one of the biggest orders placed with it in recent years. The has ordered four compact KBA Commander CT presses – a total of 16 towers, four single and two double folders and six heatset dryers – will be installed at plants in Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver, starting at the beginning of next year. Montreal-based Transcontinental, which is the largest print corporation in Canada and the sixth largest in North America, will use the plant to accommodate long-term printing contracts and enhance efficiency, the company says. Founded in 1976, it has driven growth in recent years with contract work for big North American newspapers including the ‘Globe and Mail’, ‘La Presse’ and the ‘San Francisco Chronicle’. It is also the leading publisher of consumer magazines and French-language educational resources in the country, and the second-largest community newspaper publisher, with a 14,000-strong workforce and reported revenues of C$2.4 billion in 2008. KBA says the decision to go with the compact KBA presses was influenced by the potentially higher return on investment when factoring in the cost of infrastructure and buildings. Print sector president Brian Reid says Transcontinental was won over by the first-class technical support KBA provided throughout the entire planning period, and by the innovative solutions they offered. “Although the ‘Daily News’ in New York can lay claim to the first triple-wide Commander CT installation in North America, we’ll be the first print operation worldwide with multiple press lines printing hybrid coldset/heatset products or coldset newspapers alongside heatset commercials. “And with these innovative compact presses, we’ll be doing it more cost effectively than was previously considered possible. In addition to the Commander CT’s raft of winning features for reducing operational and maintenance input, what impressed us most was the enormous flexibility displayed in customizing the press for our specific needs.” The presses for Transcontinental will be controlled by KBA ErgoTronic consoles and incorporate heatset dryers with auxiliaries, KF 5 single or double jaw folders and KBA Pastomat reelstands, embedded in Patras A automated reel-logistics systems. Each press line will have a maximum hourly output of 90,000 full-colour newspapers, inserts or magazines with up to 48 broadsheet or 96 tabloid pages. Claus Bolza-Schünemann, deputy president of KBA, says: “Over the past decade we have expended a lot of money and effort developing this new compact platform comprising the waterless Cortina and the conventional Commander CT. “This contract from an internationally respected market player like Transcontinental is a major vote of confidence in KBA and confirms the wisdom of our strategy.” Pictured after the signing in Montreal are (left to right) Jean Denault, VP procurement and technology at Transcontinental; Remi Marcoux, executive chairman of the board and founder Transcontinental; Claus Bolza-Schünemann, KBA deputy president; François Olivier, president and CEO of Transcontinental; Heinz Schmid, KBA North America vice president sales; Winfried Schenker, KBA sales director; and Ted Markle, Transcontinental senior VP newspaper division. Below: The configuration of two of the four floor-mounted Commander CT 6/2 presses with heatset dryers for Transcontinental.