In an increasingly competitive world, reducing costs, increasing production speed, lowering set-up times and striving for the finest quality are key factors for a company to position itself in the market. This applies particularly to Grupo La Papelera in Bolivia, a large-scale and long-established printing company for boxes and display materials with seven business divisions in the country. Its factory for corrugated cardboard in El Alto is sited in the Andes at 4,100 m above sea level, giving it the distinction of being the highest BOBST client in the world. Recently it extended its collection by two new highly automated BOBST machines, a 1228 NT five-color off-line flexo press and a MASTERCUT 2.1 cutting and creasing system. These are already allowing the company to increase productivity and expand their product range.
BOBST equipment has been used by La Papelera for some years for flexo printing, plus flatbed die-cutting with two BOBST SPO machines. So when it was time to replace and upgrade, BOBST naturally was the first choice again, says Conrad von Bergen, General Manager of La Papelera S.A. “Our philosophy for equipment investment is always to look for top quality machines for our core business lines”, he explains. “We have bought other BOBST machines in the past and we had pretty good experiences with their usage and with the support service, from pre-sell through to installation, training and operations, tech support and spare part service.”
Wider and faster
The new equipment comprises a BOBST MASTERCUT 2.1 flatbed die-cutter with POWER REGISTER, BREAKER and PALLETIZER, plus an offline BOBST 1228 NT five-color flexo press. This is a highly effective combination, says Mr. Von Bergen: “The greatest benefits are the reduction of production costs and the increase in production speed. Thus we have had an average improvement of 60% in both lines.”
The MASTERCUT 2.1 was installed in August 2016 at La Papelera. This is the largest BOBST Autoplaten flatbed die-cutter, taking boards up to 1,300 x 2,100 mm and converting up to 7,000 sheets per hour. It can handle litho laminated boards which are processed flawlessly, thanks to BOBST’s unique POWER REGISTER technology. This is a 100% sheet edge contact-free sheet registration system that guarantees perfect cut-to-print results.
As with all BOBST cutters, the MASTERCUT 2.1 uses the patented Centerline® tool alignment system. By using a fixed master reference, which all movable elements of the machine refer to, tools can be pre-aligned, off-machine. It also includes inline BREAKER and PALLETIZER modules, further automating the whole die-cutting part of the production at La Papelera. In future its MASTERCUT 2.1 could be incorporated into an integrated line with a BOBST MASTERFLEX flexo press.
The new BOBST 1228 NT flexo press was installed in February 2017 at La Papelera, where it replaced an older 1.2 [m] x 2,0 [m] flexo line. This is a highly automated machine that can be run by just two operators, with set-up through two touch screens. It can take sheets up to 2,890 mm wide, running at the speed of up to 15,000 boards per hour. It also includes a crush-free Direct Drive Feeder.
Challenging heights
Installing the new equipment was a logistical challenge. Bolivia is a landlocked country and El Alto is located high up in the Andes, adjacent to the larger city of La Paz, but slightly lower. Although El Alto has the world’s highest international airport, BOBST equipment was too heavy to be delivered by air – the platen cutter unit alone weighs 50 tons! So the machines were delivered by sea to the nearest port, Arica in Chile (which is a free port for Bolivia), and then delivered 700 km by road. “The special trucks that we needed are very rare in Bolivia, therefore it was quite interesting to arrange the transport of the machines!”, says Mr. von Bergen.
Once in place, the 4,100 m altitude also plays a part in how the machines run. The atmospheric pressure is lower than in most industrial cities, so the pneumatic and vacuum pumps had to be adapted.
The factory in El Alto produces a range of products made of corrugated cardboard. A lot of these are boxes made out of white or brown lined corrugated cardboard, for customers such as fruit packers. More and more these boxes are demanded with attractive colored designs. “This is why we ordered the five-color flexo press, which allows us to print full color plus a protective clear varnish,” says Mr. von Bergen.
The company also makes high quality boxes for consumer goods and POP. These are printed by offset and laminated onto the corrugated cardboard. The new BOBST 1228 NT flexo press uses a high quality low volume Anilox process that will allow La Papelera to print directly onto coated paper cardboard in future, as an alternative to the litho laminated board.
87-year history
La Papelera (which means The Paper Mill) was founded in 1930 by Mr. von Bergen’s father, Jonny von Bergen Huitz, a young German who had moved to Bolivia and fell in love with the country. He originally bought 80,000 hectares of land with trees, and wanted to set up a paper mill. When that turned out not to be possible he kept the company name but started to import office equipment and later printing equipment into Bolivia. La Papelera became the Bolivian agent for major brands such as Agfa Gevaert, Heidelberg and Pelikan.
He set up a factory in La Paz, dedicated to produce grey cardboard in 1931 and soon after he started using this to make notebooks and office supplies. In 1974 he started producing corrugated paper for cartons, as well as establishing the production of cement sacks and injection-molded plastics. Today these still form the main products of the business group La Papelera.
Jonny von Bergen Huitz died in 1982, but the group he founded 87 years ago is still being run by his three sons, while their sons and a daughter now joined to represent the third generation.
Today the Grupo La Papelera is organized as two companies with a total of seven business units in several Bolivian cities. One of them, La Papelera S.A., consists of three business units: the production of corrugated cardboard, the production of paper bags and sacks, and the recently established packaging (folding carton) division.
The corrugated cardboard division in El Alto has a BHS Corrugator, whose output is then being converted on several flexo folder-gluers and die-cutters including the new BOBST machines. There is also a digital flatbed inkjet used for very small runs.
The other part of the Grupo La Papelera, Madepa S.A., set its focus on exercise books, office supplies and injection molding of plastic items ranging from trays for beverage cans to domestic items such as buckets. It also includes a call center for the distribution of stationary, paper and printing supplies.
Employee programs
In total, the Grupo La Papelera employs 780 people, 360 at La Papelera and 420 at Madepa. The company takes its responsibility towards the employees seriously. “The different courses and programs offered by La Papelera are absolutely important in every area to achieve and recognize different capacities and abilities in each worker,” says Mr. von Bergen. “By this means, we are able to evaluate the individual qualifications of each staff member and assign them to a suitable position.”
The plant employees are very satisfied with the performance of the new BOBST machines, he says. “Among other facts this is because the machines are not only easy to understand, but also to operate. Besides, they can see the improvement in the productivity.”
At present the factory is running two to three shifts daily, but the increase in productivity thanks to the new BOBST machines will allow a reduction to one or two shifts in the future, Mr. von Bergen hopes. It also gives extra scope for expansion of the business.
As it is the case worldwide, automation is becoming more and more vital, Mr. von Bergen says: “With a view to the new competitors that are appearing, not only from our local market but also from outside, the most considerable issue in our industry is the permanent and increasing competition. Therefore, we must seek cost reductions, which means higher productivity, increased production speed, lower set-up times and higher quality.”
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