15.03.11 - The global success story of the 8-page KBA Comet press from Koenig & Bauer (KBA) is about to gain a new chapter in Central Africa. The first installation in Cameroon is scheduled to come on stream at Société de Presse et d'Editions du Cameroun (SOPECAM) in the capital Yaoundé in autumn this year. Since the initial launch at drupa 1995 – from the very beginning with shaftless drives on the individual subassemblies – the four-high tower press has clocked up around 200 installations with newspaper, semi-commercial and book printers around the world, in many cases in combination with heatset dryers.

Leading media company in Central Africa

Alongside the weekly title WeekEnd Sports & Loisirs, the monthly magazine Nyanga and the weekly supplement Alter Eco, SOPECAM publishes the daily newspaper Cameroon Tribune. With a circulation of 25,000 copies, of which more than half are subscriptions, the most popular daily in Cameroon is published as a bilingual newspaper in English and French. In addition to the company's own products, it is planned to print three further dailies and a diversity of other products, such as books and advertising inserts, as contract work on the single-width KBA Comet. SOPECAM was founded in 1977 and has also gathered customers among publishing houses in Gabon and other neighbouring countries.

Sopecam managing director Marie Claire Nnana: “The KBA Comet is exactly the right press to support the modernisation of our print facility and our targeted growth. Alongside our core business with newspapers and supplements, we plan to expand increasingly into the schoolbook segment, which is a very promising area of the market in Central Africa. As a highly flexible means of production, the Comet is ideally suited to handle a broad spectrum of printed products, and will integrate seamlessly into a smooth workflow with our new mailroom systems. The convincing full-colour quality and the high production output are further plus points which could not be overlooked on our visits to other Comet users in Africa.”

Newspaper technology proven on all continents

The KBA Comet for Cameroon is engineered for a maximum output of 75,000 cph with a cut-off length of 578 mm (22 ¾ in). The standard web width is 760 mm (29.9 in), though the press will be capable of handling variable widths from 578 to 870 mm (22 ¾ to 34 ¼ in). In addition to 32-page full-colour tabloid products, it will also be possible to print 48-page tabloid newspapers with up to 16 full-colour pages. The paper flow to the three Pastoline reelstands is maintained by the reel-handling system KBA Patras M. The two four-high towers feature automatic ink supplies, colour register control and fan-out compensation. The superstructure above the KF3 jaw folder includes a former, and automatic cut-off register controls guarantee a high folding quality. Besides provisions for later expansion with further towers, reelstands, a second folder and a hot-air dryer, the project embraces facilities for perforating and a quarter fold. The modern console technology incorporates possibilities for remote maintenance.