For any sign-maker already handling rigid materials, the move into printing onto corrugated looks like a fairly natural progression and opens up new applications in point-of-sale (POS) display and constructional materials for exhibitions, as well as customised short-run or sample packaging production. But the material has its own particular characteristics and existing finishing gear might not be suitable for the combination of cutting, creasing, and perforation that’s needed. That’s what Kongsberg’s Ultimate line of cutting tables is designed for. Previewed at a customer event at the end of 2023 and launched to the wider world at drupa 2024, the new family was designed to provide a significant hike in performance for the requirements of complex corrugated finishing, particularly in the light of continuing trends for shorter runs, more custom and complex shapes, plus pressure for both increased sustainability and profitability as printing systems get faster and finishing needs to keep up. The Cut of a Thousand Lifts To do what was needed, Kongsberg studied a range of typical jobs in detail and worked out how best to optimise performance and accuracy with some engineering innovations. Research director, Simon Kvanvik, notes that some POS /Free Standing Display Unit (FSDU) jobs could have up to a thousand cutting tool lifts in addition to the various cuts or creases that are made in the substrate, and that increasing cutting speed alone isn’t necessarily the answer. “We built an analysis of how increased speed or acceleration would affect performance in typical jobs. We found that increased acceleration has four to five times the impact of increased [maximum] speed,” he explains, “but you need both for the best performance.” Therefore, a key design objective for the Ultimate range is how fast the cutting head assembly can be accelerated (and decelerated), in not just the usual x and y directions but also including the raising and lowering of the cutting head. The result uses a variant on the linear direct drive motor that Kongsberg calls PrecisionDrive, to achieve acceleration of up to 2.7G (G being the acceleration due to gravity at sea level, just under 10m/s2); for comparison Kongsberg’s C-series tables manage up to about 1.7G and the X series up to about 0.56G. Linear speed tops out at just over 167m per min, compared to 100m per min in the C-series and half that in the X series. The increase in productivity in real world use is harder to quantify as it depends very much on the nature of the job. Long straight cuts, as might be found in cutting out banners for soft signage, benefit more from the speed boost, while complex POS/ point-of-purchase (POP) cut-outs or folding carton production will gain more from the greater acceleration across a multitude of short cuts or creases. Kvanvik points out that the performance boost doesn’t come at the cost of a tradeKongsberg set its sights on the corrugated market with the 2024 launch of the Ultimate line of digital cutting tables, aiming to bring new levels of performance with no loss of precision. Michael Walker looks at the smallest member of the family Finding the Best Cut with the Kongsberg Ultimate 24 Michael Walker is a trade journalist, technical writer, and editor with over 37 years’ experience in the print, prepress, photography, and digital imaging sectors, with a particular interest in the digital transformation of processes. In addition to editing Desktop Publishing Today and Digital Printer magazines, he is co-author with Neil Barstow of Getting Colour Right (Ilex Press, 2004) and Practical Colour Management for Photographers and Digital Image Makers (2009, self-published e-book) and winner of a Communicators in Business Gold Award. UNDER THE HOOD | KONGSBERG ULTIMATE 24 19 www.signlink.co.uk Issue 264 - April | May 2026
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