Colbert Packaging Orders 10-Color, 41" RMGT TP (Tandem Perfector) Sheetfed Offset UV Press

Colbert Packaging and RM Machinery used the backdrop of the RMGT stand during drupa 2024 in Germany to announce Colbert Packaging’s purchase of its fifth Mitsubishi sheetfed offset press in seven years: an RMGT 10 Series Tandem Perfector (TP) UV press equipped with two offset printing units on the back side and eight units on the front.

The new, 41” RMGT 1060 TP LX 10-color CC LD + UV press will replace two existing presses at Colbert’s 170,000-sq.-ft. Kenosha, Wisconsin, facility. An existing Eagle Systems cold foil unit at Colbert will also be transferred to the new press after it is installed in February 2025.

Colbert Packaging President John Lackner and CFO Kraig Lang were on hand, along with RM Machinery CEO Rahul Kaushik and other RM Machinery and RMGT executives, to celebrate the order signing at drupa on May 29.

Celebrating its 65th anniversary, the independent, woman-owned Colbert Packaging provides paperboard packaging solutions, primarily for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. A member of ICG, Colbert’s Kenosha facility produces offset and flexographic printed folding cartons, pressure-sensitive roll labels, and package inserts. Its 105,000-sq.-ft. Elkhart, Indiana, operation — which provides redundancy to ensure SLAs are met — specializes in folding carton production and paper tray forming.

According to Lackner, the new RMGT 1060 TP LX purchase decision was largely driven by gains in automation and efficiency. “We looked at our current bottlenecks running sheets through [an existing] press two or three times, and how we could do it in a single operation versus multiple passes.” And, he says the new, highly automated machine will also help meet customer demands for cold foils, gloss and dull coatings, quick turnarounds, and better pricing.

In addition, Lackner points out that the fact that the 285-employee Colbert Packaging has standardized its sheetfed operations around the RMGT press platform makes it easier for the company to move its operators from press to press.

“As a family-owned business, we maintain long-tenure employees and continually invest in our business,” he adds. “We’re not owned by private equity or run by a [paper] mill, which gives us a market advantage.

“Aside from our customers, we’ve also built great partnerships with key suppliers, like RMGT,” Lackner concludes. “As a company, we’re not about transactional relationships.”