Koenig & Bauer will remain committed to print and to packaging and industrial print in particular as it moves forwards. This is outlined in the 2023 annual report and accounts which show the business to be in robust health.
The company generated revenues of €1.3 billion and pretax profits of €13.0 million which was inline with expectations. And while incoming orders fell during the year, as Covid affected backlogs wound themselves out, these fell just 3.1% during the year compared to a 17% decline overall for printing press manufacturers according to German engineering federation VDMA.
It has kicked off a spotlight programme which will focus on products, initiatives and business models that will boost earnings. Thus a Drupa, where the company anticipates spending some €10 million, the focus will be on digital, litho and flexo printing for various parts of the packaging sector.
Speaking at a conference to preview what will be at Drupa last week, CEO Dr Andreas Pleßke said that digital printing was increasingly important to Koenig & Bauer. “We made a major move into digital printing – and we haven’t changed our minds since. Inkjet will be the technology of the future and we have several machines in the market already either as beta machines for development machines.”
This includes two beta sites for the Varijet 106, the B1 carton press that has been jointly developed with Durst. A third press has now been ordered.
Packaging’s growth, reaching 8% a year in some cases, is driven by swelling numbers joining the middle classes particularly in India and South East Asia.
Success can come either alone or in collaboration with partners like Durst, Celmacch for rotary die cutters, SEE, Google or Hybrid.
The company also has joint ventures outside print for production of battery power units. This amounts to a feasibility project with Volkswagen about sustainable battery production. It will concluded at the end of the year after which the project goes ahead or is canned. A separate deal is with Mitsubishi Electric for production of electrodes use in batteries at scale.
However neither will deflect Koenig & Bauer from its commitment to printed packaging thanks to “the growing importance of digital printing to packaging.”
