Panther Print, based in Wustermark, Germany, set a new world record by printing more than a million square meters of pre-printed corrugated board in 24 hours.
The team used a Bobst 96S central cylinder, CI flexo printing press, an older generation of the company’s MASTER CI 90 SIX to print 1,174,000sqm of liner board in one day.
That is an average of 489 m/min., or 48,917sqm an hour meaning the machine was almost continuously running close to its maximum output of 600m/min, including roll and job changes.
The printers perfectly executed their craft and do everything possible for Panther Print to meet the highest quality demands. The highly automated Bobst flexo printing press was installed in 2010 and has always been popular with the team.
The Bobst 96S installed at Panther Print is equipped with eight inking units on the central cylinder and a separate varnishing unit. Its high level of automation in the setup process and tool handling, fully automatic print cylinder storage, and automatic splicing at speeds up to 450m/min, allow for the fast possible job changes. A special highlight of the machine is the Bobst smartGPS system. This innovative offline system for registration and impression setting uses the latest RFID technology and significantly reduces both machine setup times and waste. The resulting reduction in ink, material and energy consumption makes packaging production more sustainable and improves the ecological balance of the products made in Wustermark.
By commissioning the world’s first BOBST 96S with a 2800mm printing width, Panther Print sets the standard as the market’s largest privately owned packaging manufacturer. This high-performance press poses special challenges for machine design. All of its technology, including drying performance and ink supply, is designed to allow continuous maximum performance.
From the Panther Group’s perspective, flexo pre-print’s strength can be seen in its especially high screen widths on weight-independent coated linings. The company also uses the BOBST 96S to print on Kraftliner and Testliner papers with a weight of only 35g/m² and observes sustainability principles by being suitable for even thinner papers.
