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For nearly two centuries, Mohn Media has stood for industrial-scale print production in Germany. Founded in 1835 in Gütersloh as the origin of today’s Bertelsmann group, the company has continuously evolved its manufacturing infrastructure to meet changing market demands. Today, Mohn Media operates one of Europe’s most advanced print facilities, producing catalogues, magazines, books, and direct marketing materials at high volumes and tight turnaround times.

Starting point: capacity, automation, reliability

Mohn Media’s production portfolio requires short changeover times, stable quality at high speeds, and reliable throughput across a wide range of formats. Existing equipment had reached the limits of economic operation in both printing and hardcover finishing. For Jörg Raschpichler, Head of Purchasing and Materials Management at Mohn Media, the objective was clear: replace legacy assets with technology capable of sustaining industrial volumes while reducing manual intervention and setup time.

For Mohn Media, supplier selection was based not only on price but on technical depth and execution capability.

“For Mohn Media, the key criteria for selecting a second-hand machinery partner are technical expertise and commercial reliability.”
— Jörg Raschpichler

Solution: two systems for two production bottlenecks

To reinforce the pressroom, allaoui supplied a Koenig & Bauer Rapida 162-8 SW4 FAPC very large format sheetfed offset press. The eight-colour configuration with perfecting, automated plate changing, and inline quality control expanded format flexibility and stabilized high-volume production. Due to its size and weight, the installation required detailed logistics planning and phased commissioning before the press entered full production at the Gütersloh site in May 2017.

For hardcover book production, Mohn Media ordered a Müller Martini Diamant MC 60 casing-in line. With individual servo drives, motion control automation, and a variable thin-book rubdown device, the line supports consistent quality across changing book formats while running at up to 60 cycles per minute. The system was installed and commissioned in January 2017, enabling higher throughput with reduced setup times.

Implementation: building on prior group experience

Both machines were delivered and installed on schedule. The project also followed an earlier cooperation within Bertelsmann Marketins Services: one year earlier, allaoui had supplied a Koenig & Bauer Rapida 106-8+L SW4 ALV2 to GGP Media, Mohn Media’s sister company within Bertelsmann.

Reflecting on that previous project, Martin Hawich, Head of Production and Technology at GGP Media, commented:

“When we were contemplating updating our sheetfed printing technology, we had two choices: buying new or opting for a young used press. After receiving an attractive offer from allaoui, we chose the used option due to the lower investment costs and strong references. During all projects, our requirements were met to our full satisfaction. Particularly noteworthy were the fast and reliable execution, the responsive project management, and the crisis management whenever something did not go as planned.”
— Martin Hawich

This positive experience at group level created a high degree of operational confidence for the subsequent Mohn Media project.

From left: Martin Hawich and Ammar Allaoui

Result: stabilized capacity and scalable production

Both systems were integrated into live production environments without disruption to customer delivery commitments. The new press and casing-in line strengthened two structural bottlenecks in Mohn Media’s operation, improving throughput stability and reducing changeover times across varying job profiles.

From Mohn Media’s perspective, disciplined execution was decisive for the project’s success.

“For projects of this scale, adherence to schedules and professional project handling are decisive criteria.”
— Jörg Raschpichler

With both installations running in production, Mohn Media established a scalable platform for future volume growth and format diversity in both printing and hardcover finishing.