User Report Vögeli AG

Vögeli AG in Langnau is already making intensive use of the extensive digitalisation capabilities offered by the uTraxx ERP system – and sees further potential. In other areas too, the Emmental-based print shop is regarded as a pioneer.

Vögeli began its digital transformation early. When the company switched software providers again in 2014 and chose uTraxx, it was aiming to accelerate its digitalisation efforts. Today, not only costing but also quotation and order processing, production data acquisition, and inventory management are handled via uTraxx. A webshop, initially set up in 2014, is also fully integrated. “With uTraxx, we were able to continue operating at the high level we had already achieved, but we also see further potential and are gradually rolling the solution out to additional areas,” says co-managing director Markus Vögeli.

Recently, task management was introduced and linked to the visual planning board. According to Vögeli, the benefits are already noticeable: operations are running more smoothly, and mistakes occur less frequently. Updates on the status of print jobs are no longer missed. Many processes are now automated: “For example, if a new cutting die is required, a task is triggered that already includes the form for the die maker to fill in.” His vision is to fully automate the entire print process – for both digital and offset printing.

Some issues remain unresolved – particularly the machine integration via JDF, which has been in use for some time but still does not work to the desired extent. “We’re maybe at 80%,” says Markus Vögeli. However, this is not due to the software provider uTraxx, but rather to the supplier of the prepress workflow. An update expected later this year should enable full use of the functions implemented by uTraxx.

Minor issues have surfaced from time to time, Vögeli explains. One machine manufacturer discovered, for example, that its JDF components couldn’t process umlauts. JMF updates are also not applied automatically. “Every JDF provider has some smaller issues with machine integration.” Still, efforts are ongoing to find solutions.

Much is already working as intended. The switch to uTraxx has significantly accelerated processes, says Markus Vögeli. In internal sales alone, the time saved on costing is estimated at a minimum of 50 percent compared to the previous system. Major time and cost savings have also been achieved in prepress – for example, because the ERP system now handles customer reorders automatically.

Getting staff on board with the automated solution was not an issue for Vögeli. “uTraxx is self-explanatory and intuitive to use,” says Markus Vögeli. With previous software solutions, the training effort had been considerably higher.

One clear advantage, according to Markus Vögeli, is that almost all of the software components used by his print shop come from a single provider. However, since no system can cover everything, it's essential that it remains open to other solutions. “That was the main reason we chose uTraxx.”

The company’s self-developed webshop was integrated without issue, as were a recently acquired folding carton gluer and a die-cutting machine. “uTraxx offers us a great deal of flexibility, and we can configure everything ourselves,” says the trained print engineer. Another point in favour of uTraxx was the intuitive costing system with automatically generated impositions.

For print shops considering a system change, Markus Vögeli recommends a gradual approach: “First map the core functions, then move on to more automation.” He would begin with costing, quotations, and order processing, followed by inventory management, and later JDF integration. “And then keep looking for further optimisation.”

This commitment to continuous improvement and the search for ever better solutions is, as Vögeli puts it, part of the company’s philosophy. Together with his brother Renato, he manages the now 100-year-old business in Langnau in the Emmental, which employs over 50 staff. The company specialises in digital printing as well as packaging and finishing.

Since 2017, Vögeli AG has been able to produce printed materials that are 100% sustainable, as all materials – paper, inks, coatings, and adhesives – can return to the biological cycle. Vögeli is the only printing company in Switzerland with Cradle-to-Cradle certification. The majority of print products produced by Vögeli today carry this label.

Sustainable thinking shapes not only the production but also the infrastructure. Electricity is supplied by a rooftop photovoltaic system, and the production hall is climate-controlled using groundwater cooling and waste heat recovery. The company’s commitment to climate responsibility even extends to its employees who drive to work: they receive training in fuel-efficient driving.