Press release submitted on behalf of Konica Minolta

Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc. (Konica Minolta), Ramsey, New Jersey, is pleased to announce Laura Blackmer, President, Dealer Sales, has received the 2024 Frank Award for “Best Female Executive.”

The Frank Awards recognize outstanding achievements and excellence in the independent dealer channel of the office technology industry. This is the eighth time Blackmer has received this distinction. Toni Gorveatt and Noah Maphis of Cobb Technologies presented the award to Blackmer during The Cannata Report’s annual gala on November 7.

“It was a delight to have again received this accolade, I am always humbled by this award since it is open to all dealers. I truly appreciate their support and have enjoyed my relationships within this community,” said Blackmer. “I am grateful to The Cannata Report for not only recognizing women in leadership roles with this award category, but also the importance they place on female executives through their Women Influencers program.”

“Laura Blackmer’s recognition as Best Female Executive reflects the deep respect and appreciation she has earned from dealers across the channel,” said CJ Cannata, President and CEO, The Cannata Report. “Her dedication, approachability and communication skills set her apart as one of the most highly esteemed leaders in the industry, and her multiple wins demonstrate her remarkable influence and unwavering commitment to dealer success.”

The Cannata Report’s annual gala raised funds for research led by Rena Feinman, Ph.D., Associate Member of the Center for Discovery and Innovation at Hackensack Meridian Health, seeking to improve response to anticancer therapies for breast cancer patients.

See the full list of 2024 Frank Award winners online.

About Konica Minolta
Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A., Inc.’s (Konica Minolta) journey started 150 years ago, with a vision to see and do things differently. The company innovates for the good of society and the world. The same purpose that kept it moving then, keeps it moving now. Konica Minolta aims to partner with clients to Give Shape to Ideas by supporting their digital transformation through its expansive Intelligent Connected Workplace portfolio. Its business technology offerings include IT Services, intelligent information management, video security solutions and managed print services, as well as office technology and industrial and commercial print solutions. Through its ongoing work, the company is fortunate to be continuously recognized for its products and services. This includes, but is not limited to being included on CRN’s MSP 500 list numerous times; named a finalist in the IT Software Category by The World Technology Awards; recognized as the #1 Brand for Customer Loyalty in the MFP Office Copier Market by Brand Keys and presented with Keypoint Intelligence’s BLI 2021 A3 Line of The Year and BLI 2021-2023 Most Color Consistent A3 Brand Awards for its bizhub i-Series. For more information, please visit Konica Minolta online and follow its account on Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter.

About The Cannata Report
The Cannata Report is the leading intelligence resource for the document imaging channel in the office technology industry, covering a range of topics, including managed IT solutions, managed print services, digital transformation, cybersecurity, cloud communications, network security, production print, services and supplies, vendor finance, mergers and acquisitions, and more. Written specifically for the independent dealer channel, The Cannata Report, founded in 1982, has an audience that includes business leaders in the office technology industry’s hardware, software, IT, leasing, and supplies segments.

Press release submitted on behalf of Schumacher Packaging

Schumacher Packaging, Ebersdorf, Germany, produces a wide range of corrugated and solid board packaging for customers all over the industry. The German company uses the e-commerce version of the BOBST EXPERTFOLD 110 folder-gluer to produce shipping packaging that covers market requirements across Europe.

Schumacher Packaging Group was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in Ebersdorf, Germany. The company is one of the largest European manufacturers of custom-made corrugated and solid board packaging. Hendrik and Björn Schumacher are the third generation to run this family business, which has a total of 29 production facilities in Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Great Britain, and the Netherlands.

The company has recently installed two EXPERTFOLD 110 e-commerce versions in each of their production plants in Hauenstein and Schwarzenberg. “These folder-gluers are extremely flexible, high-performance machines operating in three shifts, 24 hours a day, five days a week. With our EXPERTFOLD 110 folder-gluers, it’s easy to switch between solid and corrugated board. For us, this sets BOBST machines apart from the competition,” explains Hendrik Schumacher, Managing Partner of Schumacher Packaging GmbH.

The e-commerce version has two features that distinguish it from the standard edition. Firstly, it has a GYROBOX module which can rotate blanks up to 1800 in any direction between two folding operations. Secondly, the distance travelled by the boxes from the gluing station to the delivery is longer. This ensures that the glue has time to set, even at high machine speeds. The resulting bonds are guaranteed to give the blanks the necessary stability.

GYROBOX improves reliability
“For the past few years, the demand for packaging which requires a 900 rotation during the folding-gluing process has been growing. That is why we decided to switch to the BOBST GYROBOX system four years ago,” says Schumacher.

Previously, the blanks hit a stop bar before being rotated. However, this standard approach had a serious disadvantage: the faster the machines run, the harder the blanks hit the mechanical stop. “The lighter the material and the faster the speed, the more unreliable the mechanical process became”, reports Schumacher.

GYROBOX, on the other hand, rotates the blank with absolute precision without stopping the box flow. Schumacher: “The BOBST rotating module ensures a steady box stream movement throughout the machine. The result is a more controlled folding-gluing process, less prone to disruption. That’s why we can run our machines at faster speeds, enabling much higher productivity. It also means that we are less dependent on the substrate grammages and the stiffness of the blanks.”

Productivity virtually doubled
Another plus is that the machines, including the GYROBOX, can be set up very quickly. “It only takes a few minutes. After a changeover, the quality stays just as high – whether it’s solid board or corrugated board packaging,” says Schumacher, describing the process continuity.

Once the machine is set up, the company quickly gets another sellable job out of the machine. For a converter active in both industries, this represents a considerable advantage. The EXPERTFOLD 110 machines produce a wide range of production runs at competitive prices. Starting with quantities of about 3,000 boxes, there is virtually no upper limit.

Schumacher explains how the productivity almost doubled: “When the blanks had to be rotated during the folding-gluing process, we managed to produce up to 120,000 boxes per shift. With the new machines, the net production is about 200,000 boxes per shift.”

Also, the longer distance between the gluing and packing process allows the machine to run faster while making packing the boxes less stressful. “It’s the same for the folding process: the longer the folding distance, the more time the machines have to fold the flaps of the boxes.” This improves the quality of the final product.

Flexible and sustainable
The company uses the e-commerce versions of the EXPERTFOLD 110 to make solid board shipping envelopes, corrugated board shipping containers and three-point glued packaging variants. “We can produce complex packaging with specialized gluing and standard boxes with base, cover and auto-adhesive tapes. This makes life easier for our customers, because there’s no need to use adhesive tape to seal the boxes. And simple handling of the packaging is essential for them.”

Producing high-performance packaging in a single machine pass and doubling the folding-gluing line productivity both reduce the energy consumption per box. Additionally, waste has been reduced by 50%. Overall, the production process and the individual packaging have become more sustainable.

“Our machine operators can easily get maximum availability out of the EXPERTFOLD 110. BOBST technology is mature and robust. We’ve really put it to the test, but it has never let us down” concludes Hendrik Schumacher.

Press release submitted on behalf of Highcon and HYBRID Software

Highcon, Yavne, Israel, and HYBRID Software, Gent, Belgium, announced a partnership to elevate the digital diecutting workflow for packaging and display converters by integrating Hybrid’s renowned PACKZ software, offering full PDF support, into Highcon’s Digital Diecutting Workflow Package (DWP). This partnership aims to deliver more streamlined processes, increased precision, and enhanced workflow integration, empowering operators across production sites.

At the core of this collaboration is a custom-designed version of the PACKZ Engine for Highcon, introducing a fully integrated PDF workflow tailored for the digital die-cutting process. By advancing artwork handling, high-quality previews, and automated XML export capabilities, this collaboration enables packaging converters to seamlessly integrate Highcon’s digital solutions into their workflows, simplifying setup while accelerating production timelines.

“Our partnership with Highcon is all about empowering the packaging industry,” said Bert Van der Perre, Chief Commercial Officer, Hybrid Software. “Finishing is a vital step in packaging production, and this collaboration streamlines the process, delivering greater efficiency and precision for our customers.”

“With Highcon’s digital die-cutting systems deployed worldwide, this collaboration with Hybrid Software enables production teams to achieve faster setups and top-quality output,” said Haim Veig, VP Product, Highcon. “Together, we’re optimizing production workflows for digital die cutting.”

About Highcon
Highcon develops, markets, sells, and supports a portfolio of digital cutting and creasing systems that cover a wide range of formats, substrates, and applications. The Highcon technology is transforming the industry, by providing cost effective solutions to the increasing manufacturing inefficiencies facing folding carton and corrugated carton manufacturers as the result of the emerging market trends of e-commerce, shorter time to market, lower job sizes and a drive to sustainability. Such requirements cannot be accommodated by the expensive and slow conventional die-making and setup process. The Highcon digital technology bridges the gap between agile production and design flexibility delivering improved responsiveness, JIT production, short runs, customization of structure and design, and the ability to perform a wide range of applications in-house. Highcon products are installed at customer sites around the world, including some multi-national companies, effectively supporting the needs of global and local brands. Highcon is publicly traded in the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (HICN) and its leading investors are Landa Ventures owned by Benny Landa and JVP led by Erel Margalit. For more information, visit www.highcon.net.

About Hybrid Software
With offices in Belgium, Germany, US, UK, Spain, France, Italy, and China plus a global partner network, HYBRID Software is an enterprise software development company focused on innovative productivity tools for the graphic arts industry.

HYBRID Software’s CLOUDFLOW workflow, PACKZ PDF editor, iC3D visualization software, and print quality solutions offer a unique set of advantages that include native PDF workflows, enterprise cloud solutions, scalable technology with low cost of ownership, and direct integration with leading MIS solutions and output devices. These products are used by thousands of customers worldwide in all areas of prepress and print, including labels and packaging, folding cartons, corrugated, wide format and digital printing. Hybrid Software is a subsidiary of Hybrid Software Group PLC (Euronext: HYSG). For more information, visit www.hybridsoftware.com.

Press release submitted on behalf of W.H. Leary Co.

Leary, Tinley Park, Illinois, announced LearyVIEW Print-II, the latest advancement in print inspection technology designed to empower folding carton manufacturers in achieving 100% print quality assurance at maximum gluer speeds, with ease. Engineered specifically for industries demanding the highest print quality—such as pharmaceutical, luxury goods, and cosmetics—LearyVIEW Print-II integrates seamlessly with existing folder gluers, offering a retrofittable inline inspection solution to detect print quality defects with unparalleled precision.

New to this inspection solution are the individual and adjustable carrier belts that offer maximum quality control for the widest range of carton styles. Align individual vacuum belts at any carton location for optimum travel through the camera inspection unit. Additionally, the easy-to-maintain belts can be replaced quickly, reducing downtime, and ensuring reliable operation. The inspection unit is positioned between the register and pre-fold sections of folder gluers, operating at remarkable speeds of up to 760 m/min (2,500 ft/min). Leary partners with Eye C cameras, a leader in vision inspection technology, to provide reliable inspection for print quality, color consistency and blemishes as small as 0.11 mm (.006 in).

“We are thrilled to introduce LearyVIEW Print-II, a solution that not only guarantees print quality on every single carton, but also operates in an efficient way to boost production efficiency,” said Andrew Sims, Director of Product and Market Development. “By integrating state-of-the-art Eye C camera technology and with new and improved hardware capabilities, we’re enabling folding carton manufacturers to set new benchmarks in quality and reliability.”

Key Features of LearyVIEW™ Print-II Include:
• Seamless Integration for 100% Inspection: As the only retrofittable inline print inspection system for folder gluers, LearyVIEW Print-II is compatible with most existing machines, allowing manufacturers to achieve top-tier inspection standards without the need for brand-new equipment.
• Adjustable Vacuum Belt System: With individual vacuum belts adaptable to various carton shapes and sizes, LearyVIEW Print-II offers maximum control for complex designs, including cartons with cutouts and dividers. The easy-to-maintain belts can be replaced quickly, reducing downtime and ensuring reliable operation.
• Advanced Vision Inspection Technology: Powered by EyeC camera technology, the system inspects print quality by comparing cartons directly to customer-approved PDF artwork, identifying deviations as small as 0.15mm.
• User-Friendly Interface and Smart Detection Software: Designed for ease of use, the intuitive interface minimizes setup time, while intelligent software parameters ensure only relevant defects trigger rejection. The system efficiently ejects non-compliant cartons using either OEM ejectors or Leary’s In-Line Diverter ejector, reducing waste and optimizing quality control.

LearyVIEW Print-II is a groundbreaking solution for folding carton manufacturers seeking to enhance product quality and reduce errors. Its advanced design supports industry-leading speeds, unmatched defect detection, and adaptability, setting a new standard for print inspection. LearyVIEW Print-II is now available for the folding carton market.

About Leary – Leary is an industry leader in glue application, quality control and inspection solutions, providing innovative technologies that empower manufacturers to achieve unparalleled precision, efficiency, and reliability in production. With a strong focus on a holistic approach to the full carton process including machine operation, folding, gluing, quality and measuring performance data, Leary continues to set new standards for delivering quality product in an efficient and sustainable way. For more information, visit www.whleary.com.