Koenig & Bauer Unlocks New Opportunities Through Cooperation With Bosch

Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection, leading provider of inspection and security technologies in the printing industry, is cooperating with Bosch Secure Authentication to decisively optimise technologies in the field of brand protection and traceability for protectable printed products. Counterfeit products pose an enormous economic risk for brand manufacturers and carry health, safety, or financial risks for consumers. “This cooperation is an important step for Koenig & Bauer and once again underlines the company’s innovative strength. By integrating cutting-edge technology into our printing presses, we are strengthening our position as a leading supplier of security solutions and offering our customers and their customers crucial added value in protecting their brands,” explains Julian Schubert, CEO of Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection.

Bosch Secure Authentication GmbH was founded in 2025 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Bosch GmbH and is part of the Bosch Group. Since 2017, Bosch has been intensively involved with authentication and traceability and has already tested the technology in its own production lines. The Origify software developed by Bosch records the individual microstructures of every single product and converts them into a digital identity. In previous projects, automotive parts, in particular, were registered and verified with Origify during production. On this basis, the company is now focusing on the development and marketing of solutions for the printing sector, the luxury goods market, and the manufacturing industry.

The Ovjera systems, specifically adapted for the printing industry, are designed for high volumes and manufacturing speeds and can be integrated directly into printing presses without slowing down the production flow. In this cooperation, Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection is playing a crucial role in tackling the challenges posed by product counterfeiting. Although products in a series appear identical on the surface, they nonetheless show subtle differences in terms of micropatterns, material variance, and production characteristics. The Ovjera technology utilises this uniqueness and captures it at an optical level. Similar to a biometric process, Ovjera can assign a precise identity to every object, which can be retrieved at a later point in time and serves as an invisible serial or key element for linked data.

Using Ovjera technology, products can be protected by being photographed at the end of the production chain – that is, before packaging and shipping. The ‘entropy essence’ of the surfaces is stored in a database. For verification, a photo can be taken again later using a smartphone app. This is then compared with the reference data stored in the database. The authenticity of a product can thus be clearly verified at any time – without any additional security features or imprints. The solution can be used by companies to detect counterfeits internally – for example, so that fake returns do not re-enter the goods cycle. At the same time, it can be opened up to end consumers: If a company approves the check, customers can verify the authenticity of the products themselves using a smartphone app.

Marc Hunsänger, Director Protection Technologies at Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection, emphasises: “With Ovjera, we are integrating a technology that lays the foundation for the next generation of brand protection. Our customers receive a future-proof tool for anchoring the digital, counterfeit-proof identity of their products directly in the printing process – without any additional materials. In this way, we achieve a significant increase in security while simultaneously minimising the risks associated with artificially created security features. This is modern, sustainable, and highly secure production all in one.”

For Koenig & Bauer Vision & Protection, the integration of cutting-edge technology from Bosch Secure Authentication opens up strategic growth opportunities to strengthen its position as a technology enabler for counterfeit-proof supply chains and the highest levels of protection. Furthermore, new business models are emerging through the sustainable networking of the protected asset and the user. By integrating Ovjera solutions directly into the printing presses, Koenig & Bauer can offer its customers and their customers a technological leading position and a decisive competitive advantage in the fight against counterfeiting and fraud.