Innovative upgrades are expected to increase the productivity of SigmaFolder I technology

For almost forty years, Massachusetts-based King Printing Co., Inc. has been at the forefront of digital book manufacturing, providing short-run, one-off, and print on demand production to both major publishers and independent authors. In 2010, it began investing in Muller Martini’s industry-leading scalable SigmaLine digital book manufacturing technology. Since King Printing is committed to driving customer revenues by achieving faster times to market, it recently upgraded its SigmaFolder 1 technology.

The fully automated SigmaFolder 1 enables signatures of 8-, 12-, or 16-pages to be produced making optimum use of web width. Muller Martini installed eleven efficiency upgrades to the system. One such upgrade, a newly designed signature break, slows down the sheets at higher speeds providing better stability, accuracy and consistency during the folding process.

According to King Printing President Adi Chinai, “These upgrades are designed to bring our folder platform into the realm of Muller Martini’s Finishing 4.0, or ‘the future of finishing.’ Each of the eleven efficiency upgrades offer a distinct, competitive advantage. And, by installing all of them, we’re able to gain the sum of all the parts which is critical to providing the best manufacturing value.” 

Muller Martini engineers scalable SigmaLine technology so that even earlier installs of this technology can achieve greater productivity, higher production speeds and better operating costs. These upgrades are available to any printer or bindery using the original SigmaFolder design.

King Printing and Muller Martini have been partners since the 1990s. Remarked Mr. Chinai, “Our partnership is built on trust, service and solution-offerings. And these are the characteristics we depended upon when we decided to upgrade our systems to the next level, not to mention Muller Martini's commitment to enhancing our existing technology and end-products, while increasing efficiency and productivity levels.”

He added, “The bottom-line for King Printing is continual improvement of our manufacturing operation. We don’t choose to stand still. It’s important to note that by installing these efficiency upgrades, we don’t just drive productivity, we drive the value of our investment as well. And, our partnership with Muller Martini allows us to continuously invest in the future, ensuring that our platforms stay current and leading edge.”