CPI Card Group Adds Second KBA Rapida Press to Expand Market

DALLAS—January 15, 2014—KBA North America announces that CPI Card Group, a global leader in financial, commercial and identification card production and related services, is investing in a new eight-color, 41" KBA Rapida 105 press—its second from KBA in a one year span. The new eight-color press joins a one-year-old seven-color, 41" KBA Rapida 105 UV-equipped sheetfed press with tower coater and plastics package, which was installed in May 2012 at CPI’s Roseville, MN facility. The new eight-color, 41" KBA Rapida 105 press will be delivered in March 2014.

"Earlier this year, management at CPI Card Group began to reassess our press capacity," said Paul Boge, general manager of U.S. prepaid debit market for CPI Card Group. "After consulting with KBA, the decision was made to purchase a second press from KBA to match the extraordinary capabilities and production of our first seven-color press. Equipped with the same features, we believe this second press will provide us with 30 percent additional capacity, quicker makeready, and higher throughput. We’ve added an eighth unit on this press for two reasons: to produce our secure cards in one pass and provide flexibility to our customers who require more colors."

Steve Korn, KBA director of national and key accounts, also added "This capital investment will provide CPI Card Group with a competitive edge in its market place for the foreseeable future. We applaud the management team at CPI for taking the initiative to invest in a second KBA press with this ‘step-change technology’. We value our partnership with CPI and believe that this new press will yield significant benefits to increase its market share."

CPI Card Group’s second new tailor-made KBA Rapida 105 press is purposely-built for plastics printing. Plastic printing is a KBA expertise and this unique press provides CPI with a technological edge for high-volume plastics printing. A full arsenal of KBA automation modules—similar to its first KBA press—will be included, such as the LogoTronic prepress interface, fully-automatic plate changing, tower coater, DensiTronic Professional closed loop densitometry and spectrophotometry, and AutoRegister via CCD video camera. The new press is also equipped with the KBA VariDry system with four interdeck UV lamps moveable throughout all eight printing units providing maximum flexibility. In addition, at the end of the press are three UV lamps that can also be moved throughout all eight printing units providing maximum flexibility and IR thermal air all tailor-made to provide for instantaneous curing of plastics at high speeds.

"Having two presses equipped with the plastics package will be key to our continued growth,” explained Boge. Both KBA Rapida 105 presses will be equipped with numerous press components geared to the reliable transport of plastics and multi-layer substrates. These features include special antistatic systems for plastics at both the feeder and delivery, sheet travel sensors in each printing unit, board sheet guides, and double sheet detectors. By having these important features, says Boge, CPI will be able to continue its high quality production of cards and specialty packaging on a variety of substrates including foil, plastics, and 30 mil PVC.

"These sister presses will also provide us with the flexibility to move our scheduling around in the best interests of our customers," relayed Boge. "At the same time, our consumable purchases will remain the same and we’ll be able to inventory less than if we purchased a different press. All of these considerations impacted our decision."

In addition to offering plastic printing, CPI will be heavily marketing its color management expertise to its customers—a key selling point, says Boge. CPI’s plastic card customers require color consistency run-to-run on all jobs. With a color management certificate in hand and being G7 compliant this spring, Boge feels the company will win even more plastic and packaging jobs for well-known brands. The company has also set its sights on growing its market share and diversifying into new markets in 2014 with its new press.

"The excitement in our facility, especially the pressroom, upon learning about this new press order is nothing short of sheer delight," added Boge. "Employee morale is at an all-time high. When executives at your company are making decisions to invest in new multi-million dollar equipment, it’s a good sign. We’re looking forward to an exciting 2014, especially in the spring with the delivery of our new KBA press."

About CPI Card Group
CPI, a global leader in financial, commercial and identification card production and related services, offers a single source for cards and other form factors, from financial and gift to EMV chip and mobile, and personalization and fulfillment services. CPI offers the largest secure and commercial production network in North America and is the leading commercial provider in the United Kingdom. CPI's production sites include: Denver; Fort Wayne, IN; Las Vegas; Minneapolis; Colchester, England; Liverpool, England; and Toronto, Canada. CPIs’ plants in Colorado, Nevada, Indiana, Canada and Liverpool are ISO 9001 certified.

About KBA North America
KBA North America is located in Dallas, and a member of the KBA Group. Established almost 200 years ago in Wuerzburg, Germany, Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) is the oldest and second largest press manufacturer worldwide. KBA's banner, 'People & Print', reflects its dual focus as a leading innovator for print entrepreneurs. The group's product range is the broadest in the industry; its portfolio includes commercial and newspaper web presses, sheetfed offset presses in all format classes, inkjet systems and presses, special presses for banknotes, securities, metal-decorating, smartcards, glass and plastic decorating, and flexible substrate systems.

Source: KBA.