The founder of the Müller Martini Group and a pioneer in machine development and print finishing for the graphic arts industry, Hans Müller, has died at the age of 96 in Zofingen, Switzerland.
Hans Müller set several milestones for the industrial production of print products. He started out in 1946 with the first pad and booklet stitching machine, which he had developed, giving rise to what has become a global company. Five years after the first pad stitching machine, he constructed the first perfect binder, followed by the first saddle stitcher with automatic signature feeders, coupled with a three-knife trimmer in 1954. Other machines could stitch at 1,000 copies per hour but his fully automated machine quadrupled that rate. In 1956, he offered the graphic arts industry flying stitching heads, which for the first time stitched without stop and go, enabling a further significant increase in production speed.
He worked with clients to further develop print technology. He said, “I’m happy that I’ve managed to provide our discerning customers with innovative and market-driven solutions in the form of our machines. Some solutions were developed in response to suggestions by customers and in close cooperation with them.”
He held the company’s employees in high esteem and said,“I find it highly gratifying that I could give many people interesting tasks.”
He went almost daily to his office at the Müller Martini headquarters in Zofingen, even at an advanced age. With Hans Müller’s passing, the world has lost a pioneer who shaped the graphic arts industry for decades.
