Finishing & Screen Printing

KAMA print finishing machines in worldwide demand

Thursday 13. June 2013 - Dresden machinery manufacturer achieves double-digit growth and fills order books at China Print

The Dresden company KAMA GmbH has seen its turnover increase for the third year in a row, ending the 2012/13 business year on 31 March with a turnover of 12 million euros. This means a 17 per cent rise in turnover against the previous year, with very positive results. Sales of die-cutting/stamping machines and folder-gluers ‘made in Dresden’ have mushroomed.
Solutions for the trends of tomorrow
“All the innovations we presented at Drupa in 2012 got a great reception and have been snatched up on the market,” explains KAMA’s CEO Marcus Tralau. “Fifteen of our new flagship machines have now been installed: the ProCut 76 for die-cutting/creasing and hot foil stamping in B2 format.”
There is also a great deal of interest in the AutoRegister system for ProCut finishing die-cutters. This new option checks and corrects the alignment of each sheet using a camera to make sure that also digitally printed and cut material is die-cut and finished to an accuracy of one tenth of a millimetre. “The crucial aspect is that the machines are profitable even on small runs,” Tralau says. “After all, short runs are increasingly frequent thanks to the trend towards personalisation and finishing.”
New markets
The market for high-quality finishing is growing in China, too, and the Dresden company has just returned from China Print with full order books. Tralau explains: “We came back with orders for a total volume of one million euros.”
As well as the core markets of Germany (30 per cent of turnover) and the rest of Europe (also 30 per cent), 30 per cent of KAMA’s business now comes from China. Another ten per cent is from the USA and South America. “Customers in China are increasingly also interested in quality,” says the CEO. “Our machines finish print products to a high degree of accuracy, and their sturdy build makes them extremely productive and long-lasting.”
In the company’s second business field, the construction of components and assemblies, turnover is stable (2.4 million euros), with slight growth. In this field, KAMA scores a hit with its highly flexible technology and manufacturing. “This year we started delivering complex assemblies to a new customer in the UK,” Managing Director Steffen Pieper reports.
New development on the starting line
Tralau and Pieper also expect growth in the current business year, with the help of machine presentations at trade fairs in Chicago, Brussels and Tel Aviv. But the KAMA directors have another ace up their sleeve: “We will soon be bringing a new development onto the market to optimise and accelerate post-press workflows.” The Dresdeners have already filed a patent application.