The Express order, part of an upgrade of the publisher's printing facilities that the Express claims will cost £100m, comprises 22 KBA Commander CT 4/2 compact towers, in a parallel configuration.
Klaus Schmidt, KBA senior vice president marketing and communications, said the company was not permitted to reveal any further details, and the location of the installation remains the subject of a huge amount of industry speculation.
Industry sources believe that rumoured plans for a potential new site earmarked in Luton may have hit a snag. It is significant that the compact Commander CT design means it can potentially fit into smaller industrial buildings than typical newspaper press installations.
The presses will be capable of running high quality newspaper colour, but the Express has not opted for a hybrid-type machine like KBA's Cortina that could potentially be used to produce magazines. When it announced its investment earlier this month the publisher said the re-equipment could ultimately result in it printing its own magazine titles.
Speaking at Ipex, KBA chief executive Helge Hansen also elaborated on the company's plans to expand into complementary business areas with long-term growth potential.
"We are making progress and the main focus is on packaging technologies. A decision will be made in the next few months," he said, while reaffirming the company's continued to commitment to print.
"The printing industry has excellent long-term prospects. The market may be 25% smaller but it's still big enough for press manufacturers and our customers to make good profits.
"We are extremely relaxed. In fact we are not only relaxed, we are extremely positive today. The economic crisis has and will continue to disappear - in many regions it has disappeared - we believe in print and continue to invest."
At the show KBA is running four presses on its striking double-decker stand (6/D560), including a new version of its Rapida 75 B2 machine, the 75E. "E stands for ecology and economy, this press has half the power consumption of comparable presses," Schmidt added.
The press is being demonstrated with a power counter gauge showing the KWh being consumed as it runs. A cut-down model, the 75C, which is speed limited to 13,500sph also joins the range. Its flagship B1 press, the Rapida 106, is also being shown with Flying Job Change for ultra-quick makereadies.
