Most Nigerians term to stick to a particular product forever, no matter how outdated the product is, once it can serve the purpose to which they want it to serve, they are comfortable with it. What do one liken to such loyalty? In the Nigerian printing industry for instance, the love for Kord printing machine is something most printing practitioners will never come to terms with.
Kord 64 machine which is tagged “obsolete” in the advanced countries of the world have come to stay in the Nigeria printing sector as most press owners who owned this machine have become used to it and find it difficult to let go for a modern printing technology
One may want to argue that the features of this machine, durability and easy to use could be seen as the reason why the not to educated printers have decided to stick to this A2 size machine manufactured in 1974 and introduced in Nigeria in the early 80s
The saying, “The sequence in the improvement drive in any discipline is a vital concern for a given sector and for the printing industry, this has become a mindset to practitioners who look out for innovations to add to their businesses every purchasing calendar year of a given printing firm. The special consideration accorded some brands of machines are as a result of peculiarities in terms of suitability, affordability, maintenance capability, ease of operation, and durability among others.
Technological developments and innovations in the offset printing industry have witnessed a continuum through the ages. The agitation for better means of achieving printing goals had always prompted manufacturers to develop successive equipment to enhance offset printing practitioners’ businesses in their daily activities but what is difficult to understand about this machine -‘ Kord 64’ which is our focus in this article is how it has maintained its relevance over the years till date. An average printing practitioner who doesn’t have this machine still plans towards purchasing one for his/her press.
However, the majority of the offset printers in Nigeria are faced with prevailing economic situations and a lack of funds in adapting to the pace of a new generation of equipment. The status of any economy gives an insight into the well-being of a particular business environment and a particular sector as subsets of that economy. A progressive and steady economy and the extent to which environmental and sectorial activities can rely on such progressive tendencies are major indicators of a healthy industry. With due reference to The World Bank in Nigeria (2019), Nigeria’s economic growth is too low to lift the bottom half of the population out of poverty, hence living standards are expected to worsen.
Developmental trends have therefore brought about a form of the dichotomy between the rich who are craving for new technology and the less privileged who are handicapped and thereby satisfied with the old way of accomplishing goals, as long as the machine in use can keep their operations profitable. The durability of the old mechanical German machine (KORD 64) adopted has enabled printers to stick to this practice irrespective of the marginal profit and competitiveness in the market. Also, the implementation of standardized modern machine operational requirement may be difficult to enforce overnight in order to replace the hitherto working competencies and skills that have become a routine sequence in the offset printing industry.
Based on research and one-on-one contact with printing practitioners, it was revealed that this old machine called KORD 64 is durable, easy to manipulate and maintain, cost-effective and affordable.
“The spare parts are always available, operators with little education rely mostly on apprenticeship/on-the-job training. However, lack of surplus funds hindered the procurement of new machines “. A member of the Association of professional printers of Nigeria and a Kord 64 user in Lagos, Mr. Sekpene Godfrey said.
Since new offset machines are costly and not conveniently affordable to an average printing firm in Nigeria, Kord 64 becomes one of the best sourced after offset printing equipment that gives the user a quality print run, cost-effective to manage with spare parts readily available in the country.
Recent years has witnessed different innovations in the offset printing section of printing, one will think these rapid changes in technology and innovations will bring an end to this equipment -‘ KORD 64’ tagged obsolete in most first world countries but reverse is the case as the demand has continue to increase among.
When asked why this machine? A Lagos based printer who identified himself as Kinle said: “Offset technology is still dominant in the world and Kord 64 has come to stay in Nigeria unless there is a revolution that will throw it out of the market and bring in a more superior machine at the same price as Kord 64 but I do not see that happening” .
Most users of this machine do not have a cash surplus to buy new machines or modernize their facilities. The development of a mental knowledge of the prevailing factors that influenced the use of these particular brands of machines is also germane.
It is amazing to know that the machine manufactured in 1974 has remained relevant and most printing firms in Nigeria are still making use of this type of old machine. From the response we got in the cause of writing this story, it shows the machine is still in operation and it will interest you to know that none of Kord 64 users bought their equipment brand new, all were refurbished but are still functioning appropriately. This implies that the machines are still serviceable, bringing profit to the printing firms.
According to a seasoned printing practitioner who started his printing business with a Kord machine over 30years ago but who wants to remain anonymous stated that the Kord 64 machine is easy to maintain. Most of the time, the operators could take care of minor repair works/servicing without the attention of the engineers. His response revealed that the machine is easy to manipulate and rugged and that spare parts are readily available. ”Among the small and medium scale printing businesses, the possession of Kord 64 is the pride of the sector”. He said
It is noteworthy to know that one of the important things about this printing equipment is that it is a refurbished old machine manufactured with old technology which is mainly mechanical as against new generation offset printer that is almost electronic-driven and f and requires adequate training and education to operate them unlike Kord 64 that is mechanical in nature, durable, easy to maintain and require little education more especially that primary six certificate holders learn the operation on the job. In spite of the old technology, the machine is still serviceable, bringing profit to the printing firms.
Kord is built to stand the taste of time and has maintained good quality print run. It was built with the future in mind
Product Information
- Type: Offset Printer
- Usage: Paper Printer
- Color & Page:
- Place of Origin Germany
- A2 size machine
Key features
- Durability
- Easy to use
- readily available spare parts
- Maintenance affordability
Specifications:
- Make Heidelberg
- Model Number Kord 64
Heidelberg KORD 64 (K-Line)
Made in year 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986 in Germany.
