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As the world embraces the digital revolution, it is vital to recognize that digitalisation holds the power to drive sustainability initiatives forward. Transparency becomes the catalyst for change as digitalising sustainability-related data unveils opportunities for energy and cost savings, as well as reduced carbon emissions. However, many business leaders still face the challenge of insufficient data.
The ongoing digitalisation, as we all know, has a definite energy-draining side to it – especially in the form of server farms that have to handle the ever-growing global data traffic. But as always, the antidote lies in the poison. Because digitalisation is also the key to reaching sustainability goals. Visibility is the magic word: Digitalising sustainability-relevant data is the only way to make it transparent, and therefore understand potential for saving: saving energy and therefore costs, saving CO2, and so on. The connection is obviously pretty easy to make. Or is it?
In a new IBM study, 41% of participating business leaders name insufficient data as the biggest obstacle on their companies’ paths to advancing in ESG matters. But how can that bottleneck be tackled fast and efficiently in the print and packaging industry?
Now that summer is coming, energy data is even more valuable in the printing industry: Do you for example know how energy-efficient the air conditioning in your pressroom is? Because in the pressroom, when it comes to temperature and humidity, constant conditions are the best prerequisites for an optimal print result. Soon, air conditioning systems will be running at full speed again. But only if you collect and visualise energy data will you be able to get full transparency on your company’s biggest energy guzzlers.
For this purpose, we are offering the energy management system VisuEnergy X. The SaaS solution offers the opportunity to improve your company’s environmental footprint, production costs and thus, your overall competitiveness. The advantage of VisuEnergy X over other energy management systems is that it has been specifically optimised for the printing and packaging industry. It includes:
Today, it can’t be enough to know how much energy is consumed in order to derive targeted improvement measures. It is much more important to know where, when, how long and in what way this energy is consumed.
Of course measuring and visualising is the basis for deciding on the right savings measures, as well as then monitoring the implementation of these measures. According to the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection, when implementing energy management with a software such as VisuEnergy X in place, you are able to potentially save up to 30% in energy costs – regardless of industry or company size.
The printing business is generally very energy-intensive, for instance through the use of highly energy-consuming dryer technologies that are often necessary to enable ideal printing results. And still, there is not only increasing legal and societal pressure, but a general obligation, to offer packaging that has been produced as climate-neutral as possible. VisuEnergy X is best equipped to help those in the printing and packaging industry to fulfil these requirements.
Find out more about VisuEnergy X and request your personal online demo: https://digitalisation.koenig-bauer.com/en/digital-solutions/visuenergy-x/
With PrintFusion, the interface between Koenig & Bauer Rapida presses and the prepress software from HYBRID Software, your workflow becomes even more efficient. PrintFusion enables a bidirectional exchange of information that ensures seamless integration and automation of production processes. Thanks to the jointly developed PrintFusion interface, data such as setting parameters and positions of measuring elements are automatically exchanged between prepress and the printing presses. The automated data exchange leads to significant increases in efficiency and error prevention, as manual intervention and repetitive tasks are eliminated.
For the development of PrintFusion, HYBRID Software and Koenig & Bauer have combined their expertise to create a highly automated and efficient production environment that meets the requirements of the modern printing industry. This collaboration will continue on an ongoing basis in order to constantly optimise the interface and integrate new functions. One example of this is the automatic feedback to compensate for process-related substrate stretching, which is already being introduced as part of a pilot customer programme.
PrintFusion will be presented to the public for the first time at this year’s leading trade fair for printing technologies. Visitors will have the opportunity to gain an exclusive insight into the first results of the close partnership between HYBRID Software and Koenig & Bauer. Through automation and the intelligent exchange of data between prepress and press, PrintFusion will set new standards in print production and pave the way for a sustainable and high-performance future in the printing industry.
With FOLLOW, Koenig & Bauer is building a bridge between analogue packaging and the digital world. Discover the universe of new possibilities that the cloud-based platform and the associated app have in store for printing businesses, brand owners and consumers.
Under the project title “Printing Goes Metaverse”, Koenig & Bauer is building a bridge from classic printing to the metaverse in collaboration with NABA (Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti, Milan) and epda (european brand & packaging design association). With the support of Italian design students, a project was realised that uses NFT technology to authenticate luxury goods such as limited edition handbags, jewellery or valuable trading cards. The luxury jewellery brand “Gemme” was created as an exemplary visualisation.
Digital proof of ownership is used instead of conventional paper certificates of authenticity. The forgery-proof blockchain technology is impressively demonstrated using special printing technologies and a digital app. This innovative combination of digital proof of authenticity and the traditional art of printing shows how the printing industry is connecting with the new digital reality of the Metaverse.
An NFT is a blockchain-based token that represents digital or physical assets such as artworks, digital content or media. Unlike other cryptocurrencies, each NFT is unique and non-exchangeable. It serves as a digital certificate of ownership and authenticity and enables owners to trade and sell their assets.
Brands from the luxury goods segment in particular are using NFT technology to enable customers to connect the digital and physical worlds. The main focus here is on the experience of being able to use the purchased product in the digital world. In addition, forgery-proof authentication can be guaranteed by NFT’s unique verifications with a complete history and absolute security.
Using a special printing process, functional structures that react to the touch of smartphone sensors can be applied to almost any printed product, creating a link between the physical product and the digital application. In combination with QR codes, this creates a forgery-proof proof of ownership. Customers receive both an origin-verified, printed NFT-Twin and the physical original.
Innovative cloud and KI technologies are opening up a new chapter in the printing industry and will play a central role at the Koenig & Bauer stand. Find out now which futuristic visions will become reality at drupa from 28 May to 7 June 2024.
