The Obeikan Investment Group, based in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), was founded in 1982 as a printing company. To date, it has grown into one of the hundred largest companies in Saudi Arabia with a turnover of 1.6 billion dollars and 3,000 employees. An important division is the production of packaging based on cellulose and plastic materials.
Today, the Obeikan Investment Group includes Obeikan Folding Carton, one of the largest packaging producers in the Middle East. The company supplies national and multinational brands with high-quality packaging made of solid board and corrugated board. Its customers are primarily from the food, detergent and cosmetics industries. Obeikan Folding Carton is the only member currently from Middle East & Africa in the International Packaging Group (IPG).
Obeikan Folding Carton employs around 230 people at its production site in Riyadh. According to the company, its capacities are designed to process 50,000 tonnes of solid board and corrugated board per year.
From left to right: Haitham R. Soliman (Maintenance & Engineering Director Obeikan ); Khaled Abdulwahab (Operation Director Obeikan Packaging Factory); Simon Gamble (Finance Director); Abdalah Alhareri (National Sales & Marketing Manager Juffali printing systems); Khaled Khazaal (General Manager Obeikan Folding Carton); Edward Pfeifer (Sales Director, Dealer Markets).
As a packaging producer, Obeikan Folding Carton is exposed to tough competitive and cost pressures. In order to maximize productivity and cost-effective production, the company has automated its processes to a high degree. When the company invested in its first Speedmaster XL 106 from HEIDELBERG in 2013, it was the peak performance printing system of the 18,000-unit generation. For Mr Abdullah Al Obeikan, Chairman of the Obeikan Industrial Company, the pile logistics played a key role in the very high productivity achieved by his printing team on the six-colour press. The figures make it clear: ten years after the Speedmaster XL 106 went into operation, over 600 million well printed sheets had passed through the press. "An outstanding performance by a true master in printing, which highlights how instrumentally and effectively the Obeikan team manages to optimize the day-to-day production flow, facilitated by the state-of-the-art HEIDELBERG superior technology," says Mr Abdullah Obeikan.
To mark the 600 millionth printed sheet, HEIDELBERG presented the Obeikan management with a Business Partner Award in the 'High Performance Customer' category.
The Speedmaster XL 106 has now been in operation for almost eleven years. As the customer confirms, it continues to produce reliably day after day at maximum output of up to 18,000 sheets per hour.
As a second major catalyst for the excellent result, the customer mentions the 24/7 support provided by Juffali Printing Systems and its highly trained service team. Juffali Printing Systems distributes HEIDELBERG products in Saudi Arabia and in this function is responsible for the close monitoring and support of those print shops that work with HEIDELBERG technology.
"Service is the lifeblood of any organization," says Mr Haitham Soliman, Director of Maintenance and Service at the Obeikan Investment Group. "Customer service is not a department, it's an attitude. We can see it with Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG and Juffali printing systems team. Hard work and dedication are the bedrock of every great achievement," he states.
From left to Right: Ibrahim Serdah (Service Manager Juffali printing systems); Abdalah Alhareri (National Sales & Marketing Manager Juffali printing systems); Khaled Khazaal (General Manager Obeikan Folding Carton); Panos Bartziokas (Area Business Manager, Dealer Markets); Abdullah Al Obeikan (Chairman Obeikan Industrial Company); Zeid Al Jehni (General Manager Heidelberg Middle east); Fuad Al Mallah (Regional Sales Manager Juffali printing systems); Bassel Elnashar (Manufacturing general manager Obeikan Folding Carton); Haitham R. Soliman (Maintenance & Engineering Director Obeikan group).
Maximum reliability and availability - the customer uses these attributes to summarise the qualities of the now eleven-year-old Speedmaster XL 106. As a result, the Obeikan Investment Group commissioned a second highly productive press in the Peak Performance class last year.
The new Speedmaster XL 106 is a model from the 2023 generation, equipped with Push to Stop technology. In conjunction with the fully automated pile logistics and inline quality control Prinect Inpress Control, the printing system works largely autonomously. The new Speedmaster XL 106 has already proven its capabilities. Seven months after commissioning, the press counter showed over 40 million good sheets. It is well on the way to surpassing the record set by its older sister press.
