To herald its new investment and step up its game, Wade Holbrook, CEO, International PaperBox proudly introduced the company’s new Koenig & Bauer Rapida 106 seven-color UV press to his customer base, which demonstrates his willingness and commitment to create the highest quality, most vivid and eye-catching folding cartons.
“Since our new Koenig & Bauer press was installed, it has been operating at an astounding level,” says Holbrook, who owns the 50-employee Utah business along with his wife Kay. “Our customers have a much higher standard for quality than what was accepted five years ago. As a business, you have to invest in equipment with the latest most impactful cutting-edge technology that provides the best quality and speed. Otherwise, customers will turn to another printer who will. We’re proud to showcase our new Koenig & Bauer press equipped with a variety of automated features that make our customer’s print vision a reality.”
Left to right: Jim Johnson, Lee Burningham, Brian Carter-Smith, Jeff Hauser, Ben Zaring, Chris Anderson, Kay Holbrook and Wade Holbrook.
With the company’s customer base that seek special and difficult jobs often with vibrant colors and intricate details that incorporate printing, folding, and gluing applications, International PaperBox relies on the speed and efficiency of the new press as well as its new digital quality control features such as the Koenig & Bauer QualiTronic PDFCheck. This system inspects each sheet, compares it to a PDF, and alerts press operators to the differences. Holbrook says this vital new feature is saving them time and money.
To maintain and expedite its color control process, the converter relies on the Rapida’s automatic QualiTronic ColorControl system. Its camera system takes automatic measurements of every single sheet after the coating unit and then adjusts color every tenth sheet, which ensures consistent color throughout the entire run. Press operators are delighted with the ability to control color inline and in real time. It, says Holbrook, has improved the firm’s color consistency immensely.
For customers who seek specialty coating applications and stand-out packages, International PaperBox trusts its Koenig & Bauer VariDRY UV system. They use UV in all of its inks, says Holbrook, and has made a positive impact on customers. Press operators are able to remove bottlenecks by seeing jobs print and dry quickly as they move to postpress finishing, cartons get an extra shine using UV, and some customers like the hardness of UV for abrasion resistance.
“Since the installation of the new press, we have several new projects inhouse,” says Holbrook. “We’ll be able to efficiently produce them all due to the new press’s capabilities. It has been a game changer for us.”
