APPL Group joins Maschinenraum

As a shared innovation ecosystem from Mittelstand for Mittelstand, Maschinenraum wants to enable medium-sized and family-owned companies to understand and boldly shape the future by exchanging resources, methods and infrastructures. So far, more than 17 companies have joined Maschinenraum, including Viessmann, Knauf, the Paracelsus Kliniken and Fiege Logistik. The membership of APPL Group is a further important step in the mission of Maschinenraum to unite medium-sized companies in order to create the next generation of Mittelstand.

"We are convinced that medium-sized companies can exploit greater potential together than alone, because important innovations often arise at the interfaces between different industries – and for this to happen, there is an urgent need for an exchange of ideas across company and industry boundaries. I am therefore all the more delighted that with APPL Group we have been able to gain another forward-looking family business and one of Germany's largest printing companies as a member," says Tobias Rappers, Managing Director of Maschinenraum.

For APPL Group, the membership is an important next step in driving forward the company's digital transformation. Even during the Corona crisis, the company digitized its existing infrastructure within a very short time and saw the crisis as an opportunity. This path is now to be consistently pursued with the new membership.

"Our industry is undergoing a profound and at the same time very dynamic process of change. We have understood that new, modern business models and working methods are needed to meet market conditions and changing customer needs. We believe in our products, invest in our sites in Wemding and Freising to achieve this, and create access to innovative ideas through our membership at Maschinenraum. Two factors are critical to success: access to young talent and the exchange of ideas with like-minded people who are facing similar challenges or have already mastered them. With its great network of established universities and other medium-sized and family-owned companies, Maschinenraum gives us access to both. This knowledge will also enable us to promote and develop APPL's employees. Together with Maschinenraum, we would like to use this opportunity to drive forward the digital transformation of the printing industry," says Markus Appl, Managing Director and shareholder of APPL Group.

About Maschinenraum:

Maschinenraum is a shared innovation ecosystem that brings together German medium-sized and family-owned companies to jointly create a future worth living for future generations to come. As a catalyst of industrial change, Maschinenraum supports companies by sharing resources, methods and infrastructure. With its network and knowledge of established companies, start-ups and innovation drivers, Maschinenraum enables its members to learn from each other and together shape the next generation of Mittelstand. Originating from the transformation history of the Viessmann Group, Maschinenraum is a neutral platform from Mittelstand for Mittelstand.

About APPL:

APPL group is one of the leading European printing companies in the fields of sheetfed and web offset production and print finishing. Our more than 500 employees produce sophisticated illustrated books, books, catalogs, magazines and newspaper supplements. APPL imprints in the production of color printing products for well-known European customers in the fields of publishing, industry and trade.