Digital innovation for printers all over the world: Between 16th and 21st May, Koenig & Bauer presented new customer-centric offers based on digital transformation, as well as new and further developed data-driven services, during a series of open house events in Radebeul. While the first two days were devoted specifically to the needs and wishes of commercial printers, their counterparts in the packaging sector became the centre of attention after the weekend.

More than 1,100 print professionals from 40 countries accepted invitations to the four-day event at the sheetfed manufacturing facility. They were treated not only to comprehensive information on the possibilities to streamline and optimise their production processes through digitisation, but also to a whole new experience of the benefits to be derived for their business from a close relationship with Koenig & Bauer and its new data-driven services.

For a number of years already, Koenig & Bauer has supplied some of the best examples of how creative thinking and digital data can give rise to new customer experiences and innovative ser-

vices. The company has earned a wide reputation as a cross-sector pioneer for the digitisation of business processes. The starting point for most product-related customer services is the wealth of information contained in press operating data and the associated log files. The most important digitisation features were presented by way of live demonstrations. Here is an overview:

End-to-end workflows

Within the framework of the print demonstrations, the visitors were able to experience an end-to-end printshop workflow based on the MIS Optimus Dash. The latter visualises the entire value chain of commercial or packaging production and controls company processes in real time. Benefits to be derived from the comprehensive functionality of Optimus Dash include perfect communication between all company departments, lean management practices, the identification of optimisation potential and a clear cost focus.

The Rapida LiveApps literally place modern tools for press control and stores management in the hands of the printer. The ErgoTronicApp can be viewed as a mobile console which provides access to the full scope of press functions. The operator can call up all relevant information on a mobile device, for example job data, production times, press status messages and maintenance reminders, including help texts describing the tasks to be completed. With the ProductionApp, on the other hand, it is possible to manage store room inventories and track consumables batches. Even retrospectively, the app provides a precise overview of which print jobs were produced with which batches of substrates, inks and other consumables.

Thomas Göcke (r), head of marketing & CRM at Koenig & Bauer Sheetfed, here in conversation with moderator Sven Oswald, provided an overview of the data-driven services which are already available to users

Improved communication in remote maintenance

PressCall improves communication in connection with remote maintenance. At the press of a button on the console, all necessary information is sent directly to the hotline technician. Communication is optimised and there are no delays due to language barriers. A customer ticket is automatically created in the CRM system. Solution-finding becomes faster and more efficient, reducing downtime and increasing availability accordingly.

Visual PressSupport is another tool which simplifies communication during remote maintenance. Photos, video clips, audio and commenting functions via a mobile device allow more precise description of the current situation at the press. In this way, Visual PressSupport extends the functionality of remote maintenance to include assistance in case of process-related or mechanical problems.

Evaluation of production data

Users with a remote maintenance contract receive a monthly Performance Report. This report visualises key performance indicators of the installed presses in clearly structured graphical form and provides an overview of all relevant production data at a glance. In addition, the performance data can be compared both internally and externally with other presses used in a comparable manner – all anonymously, of course. This helps to reveal potential for optimisation, reduces unplanned downtimes and enables pertinent maintenance work to be planned in advance. Performance and availability are improved.

A Press Inspection Report presents the results of a press inspection in a similarly structured summary. The user is informed of any potential for technical improvement and can see at a glance the reasons for recommended maintenance work, including the expected duration. The necessary measures are also prioritised in accordance with the possible impact on press availability and the urgency of replacement for individual spare parts.

As production continued, Dirk Winkler explained the functions of the Rapida LiveApps for press control, maintenance, inventory management and consumables tracking

Digital services under one roof

To provide a central point of contact, Koenig & Bauer has set up a Customer Community. This portal is where users find all digital service offers: They can create new tickets, view existing tickets and performance reports, and make use of many other data-driven services. In this way, users and manufacturer have access to identical data at all times and can base their cooperation decisions on the same information status. With the Customer Community, all digital services are brought together under one roof.

At the same time, predictive maintenance is becoming reality. Artificial intelligence methods enable disturbances to be foreseen before they actually affect production or, in the worst case, result in unplanned downtime. If the data from a press indicate the pending failure of a back-up battery, for example, replacement can be coordinated in good time. This spares the user an annoying data loss and there is no need to spend time re-entering the stored press settings.

One-stop partner for packaging solutions

For the first time, it was possible to show the complete process chain for packaging production in a live demonstration – from creation of the jobs in the MIS, via printing and die-cutting through to completion of the folding cartons. Koenig & Bauer has thus positioned itself as a one-stop partner for all the needs of this growth market. Alongside the Rapida sheetfed offset presses, visitors could witness production on an IPress 106 K PRO flat-bed die-cutter from Iberica, an Omega Allpro 110 folder-gluer from Duran, a Rapida RDC 106 rotary die-cutter, and a Laserck Master Blanker for separation of the individual blanks after die-cutting.

For the first time, an Omega Allpro 110 folder-gluer from Koenig & Bauer Duran was integrated into the live packaging production workflow

As participants in a panel discussion, Stefan Segger (Koenig & Bauer Digital & Webfed), Dr. Peter Lechner (Koenig & Bauer Flexotecnica), Franc Freixes (Koenig & Bauer Iberica), Markus Müller (Koenig & Bauer Coding) and Pinar Kucukaras (Koenig & Bauer Duran) provided key information on their current technology solutions for packaging printing.

Both the commercial printing and packaging-oriented events included breakout sessions as a source of more detailed information on topics such as high-volume commercial printing, label printing and finishing, or new solutions for printing and finishing for high-volume and luxury packaging. At the same time, experts from Koenig & Bauer and Optimus provided in-depth explanations of MIS solutions for the individual applications.

The print professionals who came to Radebeul, among them many existing Rapida users, returned home after exciting days packed with a wealth of new information, and must now decide which of the data-driven solutions can ideally contribute to optimisation of their own business concepts.

Panel discussion with acknowledged experts (l-r): Stefan Segger (Koenig & Bauer Digital & Webfed), Dr. Peter Lechner (Koenig & Bauer Flexotecnica), Franc Freixes (Koenig & Bauer Iberica), Markus Müller (Koenig & Bauer Coding) and Pinar Kucukaras (Koenig & Bauer Duran) provided information on Koenig & Bauer technology solutions for packaging printing

Martin Dänhardt