10 June 2024 – Pioneering digital innovations, presented in exciting live shows at the K&B stand at drupa24 were crowd-pullers. The digital Kyana came to life before the visitors’ eyes and introduced herself personally to the audience as a virtual co-host. The myKyana portal underlined how digitalization can increase the efficiency, productivity and sustainability of companies. Kyana Assist AI chatbot enabled customers to interact directly and receive direct support without waiting times.
In individual live demonstrations, visitors gained a detailed insight into the advantages of the comprehensive myKyana ecosystem directly on the stand. “At drupa, we showed how the combination of traditional printing and state-of-the-art AI and data-based technologies is shaping the future of the printing industry. . . Discussions with customers confirmed that digital productivity tools are becoming the decisive factor for investing in our technologies for printing and finishing,” said Sandra Wagner, vice president of Digitalization at Koenig & Bauer.
The live shows on the Koenig & Bauer stand in hall 16 attracted many visitors. At the Folding Carton Box Show, the company presented a complete packaging workflow© Koenig & Bauer
The new connected packaging solution Follow attracted interest from brand owners and packaging manufacturers. The platform transforms packaging into end-to-end, multimedia communication channels and takes the entire consumer experience to a new level, with augmented reality features and gamification elements. In addition, the platform fulfils future regulations such as the Digital Product Passport, contributing to the sustainability and traceability of products.
Global interest in sheetfed offset
With a strong order intake, Koenig & Bauer exceeded its own targets, especially in the sheetfed offset division. The majority of orders came from China, Spain and Brazil. Orders for all formats including converting were also received from the DACH region, and many other countries in Central Europe, Asia and North and South America. There was great interest in the innovative rotary die-cutters from the CutPRO X 106 series, flatbed die-cutters and folder gluers.
The 7-color Rapida 106 X with coater and extended delivery, presented on the stand with printing speeds of up to 22,000 sheets per hour, is the world’s fastest medium-format sheetfed offset press. It was sold to the Italian printing company Innovative Graphic Boxes during the show. Once installed in Viggiù, in Northern Italy, the press will primarily produce pharmaceutical packaging.
All the postpress systems on show were sold directly from the stand. Qualvis Print & Packaging, for example, will receive the Omega Alius 90 folder gluer, which the company from Leicester in the UK ordered in combination with a Rapida 106 with unique functionalities. A further Rapida 106 with seven inking units and double coater is already in production at Qualvis Print & Packaging.
The CutPRO Q 106 flatbed die-cutter will go to AM-PG Group, a commercial and security printer in Yerevan, Armenia. The company has been a K&B customer for more than 15 years and operates a medium-format Rapida press. The CutPRO X 106 rotary die-cutter, which can run at speeds of up to 16,000 sheets per hour, attracted interest from international trade visitors and was sold at the trade fair in various versions, including for die-cutting labels.
Koenig & Bauer Durst’s quality and flexibility in digital printing
The VariJET 106 digital folding carton printing press from the Koenig & Bauer-Durst joint venture was presented at a trade fair for the first time, and impressed visitors during the product demonstrations with its high print quality and the flexibility of the entire configuration. The possibility of adding several coating and conventional printing units generated enthusiasm among the trade fair visitors. K&B, together with Highcon, demonstrated the possibilities of a fully digital production workflow from printing to finishing.
With printing speeds of up to 22,000 sheets per hour, the Rapida 106 X is the world’s fastest medium-format sheetfed offset press© Koenig & Bauer
The joint venture also confirmed two beta customers for the VariJET 106 and the planned installation of a VariJET at a European customer in July. With water-based digital printing in white for corrugated substrates in primary food packaging, there was also another industry first on show at the stand. Field tests on the Delta SPC 130 are planned for the second half of the year, with commercial installations to follow from the beginning of 2025.
Technological and sustainable innovations in digital & webfed segments
An 18-meter-long digital décor press across the K&B stand caught the eye of drupa visitors. Every centimeter of the AI-generated décor was unique and underlined the innovation and technology leadership of the Koenig & Bauer RotaJET in digital decor printing. Furthermore, folding cartons and top-liner products were at the centre of the RotaJET presentation. The products that combine high-volume digital packaging printing with the AR solution. Follow and the brand security solution ValiPACK received special interest.
K&B had printed 15,000 TetraPaks on the RotaJET, especially for drupa, which were available to visitors at the stand. The information areas for corrugated board and CI flexo printing were also highlighted. The focus was on printing bio-based and biodegradable substrates – as well as the efficient ChromaCUT X Pro and Chroma HighTech 2S machines for printing on both sides of corrugated boards.
High order intake at drupa confirms current year forecast
“The great interest and the remarkable sales successes show that Koenig & Bauer has once again lived up to its claim of developing pioneering technologies for the printing industry for over 200 years,” emphasizes CFO Dr Stephen Kimmich. Since the end of May 2024, K&B has marketed new orders worth € 250 million, including around € 200 million in legally binding orders. The new orders in all segments were placed at and outside of drupa24. The company confirms its forecast of achieving an operating EBIT margin and sales development at the previous year’s stable level for the current financial year. The path already taken to achieve an EBIT margin of 6 to 7% on consolidated sales of € 1.5 billion by the 2026 financial year at the latest, is also secured by the company’s ‘Spotlight’ focus program.
