Effective Jan. 1, 2013, collective special regulations—which were agreed to by KBA, employee representatives and representatives from IG Metall—came into place at the main plants in Würzburg and Radebeul, Germany. Introduced to alleviate fluctuations in capacity utilization, these amendments also serve to improve the profitability of the core sheetfed and web press business.
A new six-color, 41˝ KBA Rapida 105 press with extended delivery is operating in Four Star Color’s new 30,000-square-foot facility located here.
In Autumn 2013 Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) will integrate its plant in Trennfeld, Germany into its main plant in Würzburg, Germany. The assembly specialists in Trennfeld will be offered new positions in the main plant in Würzburg, only 25km (16 miles) away. On completion of the relocation, the plant in Trennfeld will be closed at the end of 2013.
Since installing two new KBA Rapida 145 presses, Omaha, NE-based Specialty Finishing has already seen an 18 percent increase in business, with double-digit sales increases, higher-quality print with consistent color, and significant reduction in start-up waste.
For the first three quarters KBA released an increase in group sales to €916.2m, 16.6% up on the previous year. Beside its core sheetfed and web offset press business, the company is also active in less economy-dependent markets such as packaging, security, digital printing, as well as marking and coding.
The Indian market is focusing increasingly on technology and is characterised by its awareness of quality, which is based on the global market. In recent months, three leading and fast growing packaging companies have installed new medium-format sheetfed offset presses from KBA, among them two high-end Rapida 106s.
With more than 800 participants at six locations in China and one in Taiwan, the KBA road show is one of the printing industry’s most visited events. At the meetings in Dongguan and Xiamen KBA informed packaging printers, who are an important target group, of the relevant packaging news from drupa 2012.
KBA’s new B1 (41˝) Rapida 105 is making strides in the Asian market. Based on the same technological platform as the Rapida 106, the press offers a practical level of automation, the ability to handle an extensive range of substrates and high-production output of up to 16,500 sph. Printers in the region are also buying the Rapida 106 half-format and large-format Rapidas.
As CANAMPAC sets its sights on attracting more national brands, it's clear that change is a fundamental certainty in its progression and its appeal to packaging end-users.
KBA's double-digit increase in sales, its product mix and the savings delivered by a recently expanded cost-cutting program, resulted in a substantial improvement in earnings compared to 2011.
