RADEBEUL

Printing Impressions' Commercial Printing Supplier News for May 2009

Albrecht Bolza-Schünemann (57), president and CEO of German press manufacturer Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) since 2003, has resigned with immediate effect from all offices within the group. Bolza-Schünemann announced his decision at the March meeting of the company’s supervisory board, citing the substantial losses incurred by the sheetfed division in Radebeul near Dresden last year (financial results reported below). His brother Claus (53) is now the sole remaining representative of the founding family on the KBA board.

In the past, three departments at the KBA sheetfed offset facility in Radebeul were focussed on the process technology aspects of printing: the customer center, the training center and the test printing plant. This organization meant keeping available considerable parallel press capacities, as just one of a number of negatives. The numerous interfaces and the lack of a consistent standardization concept impeded many decision processes.

With the approval of the supervisory board, on 6 February 2009 Albrecht Bolza-Schünemann (56), president and CEO of German press manufacturer Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA), will hand his financial remit to Helge Hansen (61), a respected banker and business economist. Hansen, who was appointed managing director of Metronic AG (now KBA-Metronic) in July 2003, successfully restructured the company following its acquisition by KBA in 2004.

WÜRZBURG, GERMANY—09/26/08—Following a supervisory board meeting to discuss the latest financial figures, Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) management board announced a downward adjustment in the 2008 earnings forecast issued on 31 March and reaffirmed at the AGM on 19 June in the wake of a highly successful Drupa trade fair. KBA anticipates a slide in group sales for the current financial year (ending 31 December) from €1.6bn to around €1.5bn. Pre-tax earnings, which were originally set to equal last year’s figure of €63.2m, will turn negative in view of a considerable slump in sales of sheetfed presses, provisions for consolidating sheetfed production activities, and adjustments in inventory value.

Group Visits KBA’s German Head­quarters RADEBEUL, GERMANY—KBA North America invited a select number of U.S. and Canadian printers, as well as industry journalists, to visit its headquarters and sheetfed press manufacturing facility here recently. The group was treated to a behind-the-scenes look at the factory assembly hall; the R&D facility; product demonstrations on the new-generation, 41˝ Rapida 105 five-over-five perfector press and the large-format, 56˝ Rapida 142 four-over-four perfector; and visits to several area printers that are utilizing KBA presses in sophisticated markets. Time was also spent sightseeing in Dresden and Leipzig. “Our open house in Germany provided printers with an in-depth education on

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