Bourquin is a business that has successfully evolved continually and consistently with the times. The Swiss-based company began life as a straw husk manufacturer in the 19th century, before starting a corrugated factory at the beginning of the 20th. Now, it is a comprehensive supplier of packaging solutions to 15,000 customers across the e-commerce, pharmaceutical, medtech, wine, brewing, industrial and graphic sectors.
BOBST believes in evolution too. The company prides itself on keeping ahead of the latest trends in packaging by listening to its customers, understanding what they need and being able to propose solutions of the highest possible performance. This similarity in company philosophies explains why Bourquin and Bobst have had such a long and successful partnership. Bourquin bought its first Bobst machines back in 1972 – the Autoplaten SPO 1575 EEG with a two-colour Flexo 1575. Ever since, the two companies have maintained a strong relationship based on mutual trust and understanding.
“The connection between our two companies is more than a simple customer-supplier relationship,” explained Luis Manuel Luis (pictured left), Production Manager at Bourquin’s Couvet site. “We are partners. Bobst listens to us; they understand what we need and they go out of their way to find tailored solutions that will work. Just like we do for our own customers.”
Investment reaps dividends
Bourquin is reputed for its product quality but also for its flexibility; it is attentive to rapid changes in consumer habits and versatile in its ability to adapt. Versatile machinery that can assist the company with high production rates and very short set-up times is therefore highly appealing.
Take SPEEDPACK for example; it is a fully automatic packer, which bundles a large range of box formats and types. The modularity and productivity of the unit makes it the perfect packer for any multipoint folder-gluer. For Bourquin, it was the perfect complement to its MASTERFOLD 230 A4 folder-gluer.
Left to right: Pierre Binggeli (Bobst), Iuri Goncalves (Bourquin), Luis Manuel Luis (Bourquin), Sacha Bourgeois (Bobst) and Peter Witzig (Bobst).
“For many years now, we have been waiting for a machine like Speedpack, because we are specialists in folding and gluing,” said Luis Manuel Luis. “We needed a simple, versatile, reliable and fast machine in order to reduce workload at the delivery of the folder-gluer. We also needed a solution to increase the productivity of our line regardless of the type of packaging, format or even the type of corrugated board.”
Speedpack is an innovative automatic packer for corrugated packaging that allows users to realise the full potential of their Bobst folder-gluer. With the highest possible number of batches per hour and short set-up times, Bobst says it increases productivity.
The packer picks up boxes as they exit the folder-gluer and batches them up in exactly the right way – quickly and reliably, while preserving the quality of the boxes. It has a fluid operation, a minimal footprint, optimal ergonomics and excellent accessibility, making set-up times for repeat orders negligible. All of which means this robust packer can process literally any type of box, while maintaining irreproachable levels of quality.
“Not only does the Speedpack meet all our expectations perfectly, but we had a great collaboration with Bobst in the installation and set-up phase” said Luis Manuel Luis. “We are seeing all the benefits already – its reliability, flexibility, ease of use, short set-up times and high production rates for all types of boxes. We have also reduced the difficulty of our employees’ work. This is a significant advantage, especially for large format packaging and doublewall boxes.”
He concludes, “Like Bobst, we always have one eye on the future. There are always ways you can improve, and through our special partnership, we look forward to finding ways to advance folding and gluing even further in the future.”
