Aumüller Druck produces commercial print products from data check through offset printing and finishing to dispatch with around 120 employees on a production area of 11,500 m2 and a total of four Speedmaster XL 106 8-color printing presses. Innovative technology is used throughout the entire value creation process. In order to meet the high social and ecological standards to which Aumüller is committed, attention is always paid to sustainability and improving workplace ergonomics when making investments.
And Aumüller is not only state-of-the-art in printing: Since January 2023, two Stahlfolder TX 96 machines have been equipped with the new Perfect Grip folding rollers. For decades, folding machine customers have had to choose between two folding roller variants: Soft- and Hard-PU folding rollers, each of which had its own individual advantages.
The fact that the engineers have succeeded in combining the advantages of these two variants in a single folding roller is demonstrated not only by the extensive material tests carried out over the past few months, but also by the worldwide field tests, where the new folding rollers have to prove themselves under real conditions. "It was important to us to conduct the field tests internationally because there are major regional differences in the choice of folding rollers. We wanted to develop a folding roller that meets the requirements of all our customers," says Stefan Dettke, Head of Markets and Products for the folding machine business. The field tests took place in Germany, but also in the USA and Japan.
At Aumüller Druck, in the south German region of the Upper Palatinate, over 80 million sheets have already been folded on the Perfect Grip folding rollers during the field test period. The folding rollers have never had to be cleaned extensively during this time and there are no signs of wear. Overall, Volker Dollinger, Managing Director and Operations Manager at Aumüller Druck, is extremely satisfied: "The advantage of the new folding rollers for us is clearly the reduced cleaning effort. But the Perfect Grip folding rollers are also in no way inferior to the old Soft-PU folding rollers in terms of folding quality, especially with glossy papers."
The field tests in the USA and Japan were similarly successful. In Japan, the positive experiences have already led to the reordering of a folding machine that had already been ordered. "We are particularly pleased that the Perfect Grip folding rollers have been so well received in Japan. The Hard-PU folding rollers have proven themselves particularly well there in recent decades. After the successful field tests there, we are now confident that the Asian markets are also ready for a change," comments Mario Pfitzenmeier, project manager of the development project.
