Koenig & Bauer (K&B) has recorded a major strategic order from India. Greater Noida’s Keshoram Manufacturing recently ordered four identical Rapida 106 medium-format sheetfed offset presses. With this investment in the four seven-color presses equipped with coaters for inline product finishing, the packaging manufacturer is making the transition from its previous use of pre-owned printing presses to an advanced, highly automated folding carton production on an industrial scale.
To support the customer’s ambitious growth plans in a timely manner, Koenig & Bauer will deliver two of the presses in 2026, while the remaining two presses will begin operation in 2027, the company said in a press release.
Corrugated board to folding carton
Keshoram Manufacturing was founded in 2000 by Vikas Goyal in Greater Noida. Operating under the names Kesho Packaging and Keshoram Manufacturing, the company primarily focuses on corrugated board production and currently runs two manufacturing facilities. The management already demonstrated foresight in 2012 by establishing an automated corrugated board plant. From there, Keshoram serves customers in the demanding eCommerce, electronics, FMCG, beverage, and heavy industry sectors – both in the domestic market and for export.
After the company gained its first experiences with folding carton production on a smaller scale using pre-owned sheetfed offset presses, a comprehensive expansion is now slated for the next two years.
Reducing make-ready times and costs
For this massive expansion, Keshoram is placing its trust in Rapida technology from K&B. The four combination presses ordered for conventional and UV production can process substrates with a thickness of up to 1.2 mm.
By utilizing fully automatic FAPC plate changers and the sidelay-free infeed DriveTronic SIS, a unique selling point of Rapida sheetfed offset presses, Keshoram drastically minimizes manual interventions on the machine and significantly shortens make-ready times. This efficiency package is rounded off by automatic colour and register measurement systems, as well as automatic washing systems for blanket and impression cylinders, and rollers.
Vikas Goyal, managing director of Keshoram Manufacturing, explains, “This investment represents a pivotal milestone in our transformation into a future-ready, high-performance packaging company for the domestic and the export market. Our decision to partner with Koenig & Bauer and invest in Rapida 106 technology is rooted in our commitment to automation, process stability, and uncompromising quality.
“As we scale our presence in the folding carton segment, our focus is on serving leading FMCG, electronics, and consumer brands with speed, consistency, and precision at global standards. This expansion not only strengthens our current capabilities but also establishes a robust foundation for sustainable, long-term growth. We are building capacity not just for today’s demand, but for the next decade of packaging excellence.”
“Keshoram Manufacturing’s decision to opt for four identical high-performance presses demonstrates how crucial scalability and absolute process stability are in today’s packaging market,” explains Shashank Surana, executive director of Koenig & Bauer’s sales partner, Indo Polygraph Machinery.
“With this fleet of highly automated Rapida 106 presses, we are not only equipping our partner with printing presses, but providing a comprehensive solution that reduces waste, cuts make-ready times, and generates profitable growth in the folding carton segment.”
