Koenig & Bauer is a printing press manufacturer with a long history, dating back to 1817. The company is also the press manufacturer with the widest range of printing markets served, ranging from newspaper to commercial, security, packaging, container and metal print, just to name the main markets.

Typically, the company is recognised as a manufacturer of analogue printing equipment, mostly offset but including flexo, intaglio and screen print as well. This has changed in recent years, probably to a bigger extent than many have realised, with Koenig & Bauer becoming active in a range of application fields in inkjet. This article aims at providing an overview of the current activities of Koenig & Bauer in inkjet printing.

Coding & Marking

Often under the radar of the printing industry are applications in coding and marking. In 2004 Koenig & Bauer acquired all shares of Metronic (founded in 1972), based in Veitshöchsheim, close to the Koenig & Bauer headquarters in Würzburg. The business unit has been renamed Koenig & Bauer Coding in 2018.

While Metronic once developed and manufactured innovative presses like the Genius as well, the focus is now solely on coding solutions, complemented by software and some auxiliary equipment. Own manufacturing capabilities remained, however, allowing the business unit to produce custom-tailored solutions in the coding area. Inkjet is the major technology employed, although other processes like laser marking are used as well. The company is developing and manufacturing its own continuous inkjet solutions to better adapt to application-specific requirements. Drop-on-demand technology is offered if better suited and a variety of ink systems is available - as necessitated by a wide range of customer requirements. The focus is not on graphics imaging but on reliably adding information at high speeds.

While coding systems can be integrated into printing presses, not all solutions are deployed in printing and packaging plants. Instead, a number of specialty markets are served. For example, a major application is high-speed printing on cables. In general, coding units can be integrated into many kinds of manufacturing lines. With about 320 employees the business unit is a sizeable and established part of Koenig & Bauer.

[caption id="attachment_6298" align="aligncenter" width="409"] AlphaJET 5 HS printer and controller[/caption]

Inkjet Web Solutions

As a major manufacturer of web offset presses, Koenig & Bauer gradually entered the web-fed inkjet world with the RotaJET. Originally the press was launched as a 3-up press (780 mm / 30.7”) at drupa 2012. It faced stiff competition from established inkjet press vendors. Koenig & Bauer resorted to its core competencies and consequently overhauled the RotaJET concept to address underserved market segments. As a result, a series of models ensued as simplex or duplex presses with widths up to 168 cm (66”) - making the RotaJET the widest commercial inkjet web press available. The company switched to Dimatix Samba heads as well, allowing for a very high quality level. The presses can be complemented with an application-specific drier set-up and inline finishing or rewind.

The modularity of the RotaJET permitted Koenig & Bauer to address a wide range of different markets. As a single-sided model, several RotaJET installations are used in décor printing, including presses with very large widths. In folding carton applications, TetraPack became the first customer to explore the capabilities. After extensive field testing the company is now looking at adding more capacity.

In commercial print, the book market shapes up to be the most promising segment. With a very wide width possible, the RotaJET can act as a highly productive short-run printer for larger signatures. It can replace or complement existing offset or flexo book printing solutions.

[caption id="attachment_6300" align="aligncenter" width="380"] Koenig & Bauer RotaJET L[/caption]

Not all inkjet products manufactured are sold by Koenig & Bauer however, also partnerships exist. The HP PageWide T1100S, the widest inkjet web press in the world with a web width of 2.8 m (110”) was developed in close cooperation by HP Inc. and Koenig & Bauer Digital & Web Solutions in under two years and was launched in 2015. HP provides the imaging components, while Koenig & Bauer takes care of the web transport. The recently announced HP T700i will be built by Koenig & Bauer as well.

Koenig & Bauer – Durst Joint Venture

Another good example of a partnership is the Koenig & Bauer joint venture with Durst. After hitting some roadblocks with the original VariJET concept and the inkjet imaging units to be supplied by Xerox, Koenig & Bauer looked for a new digital imaging partner for the proposed folding carton press. When encountering Durst, the combination of expertise and technologies proved to be so promising that not only a new imaging unit provider for the VariJET was found, but a joint venture was founded to pool the single-pass inkjet sheetfed activities.

Eagerly awaited is the market introduction of the VariJET 106 and beta presses are delivered to two large folding carton printers in central Europe right now. After extensive internal testing of performance, operability, and substrates the next milestone is further optimising the press at customer sites, while using them for full print production. The aim is to have several presses operating until drupa 2024.

[caption id="attachment_6301" align="aligncenter" width="401"] Koenig & Bauer – Durst VariJET 106[/caption]

Today the joint venture is in charge of the folding carton as well as the corrugated inkjet presses, which are already fully available on the market. The SPC-130, originally designed by Durst, was originally launched in 2016 and received several upgrades already, based on the pooled know-how. The SPC evolved into a series of upgradeable models from an ECO-version to a fully automated model. The CorruJET 170 was originally developed by Koenig & Bauer and is now managed by the joint venture as well. Again the pooled expertise was used to modify and upgrade the original concept. The CorruJET aims at higher monthly volumes than the SPC, providing a complementary solution.

Kammann

Koenig & Bauer Kammann is located in Northern Germany and was acquired in 2013. The focus is on manufacturing machinery for printing on containers or hollow articles made of glass, plastic, and metal. The business unit utilises screen printing technology since 1955 and in 2015 UV inkjet was added for direct-to-shape printing. It started out as hybrid process with the option for white preprint and spot or specialty colours. With the inkjet inks improving, this became less of a necessity and pure inkjet lines are now being installed as well. Today about 10 to 15% of all Koenig & Bauer Kammann presses sold have inkjet imaging, with about 30 presses installed. They represent a mix of hybrid and standalone inkjet solutions.

The main inkjet head supplier is Xaar, which covers most applications in glass, plastic, and metal. Occasionally Dimatix heads are used when a high resolution is required, although only for printing on plastic. Kammann has an open solution for inks, which can be bought from four approved manufacturers. Important remains strong application support, which includes providing application consulting, workflow, and software as part of the business.

[caption id="attachment_6299" align="alignnone" width="822"] Koenig & Bauer Kammann K15 press[/caption]

Conclusion

Among the traditional press manufacturers, Koenig & Bauer is the company with the widest range of solutions in digital print, through a mix of internal developments, partnerships, and companies acquired. Corresponding to the various markets addressed a range of inkjet technologies are being offered and developed. Especially fruitful are application areas where knowledge can be transferred among units and model lines, and expertise in substrate transport, drying, and finishing can be shared.

Overall, Koenig & Bauer appears to be making a strong push into the inkjet printing market, and the company's investment in research and development suggests that it is committed to continuing to innovate and expand its product offerings in this technology.