And the winner is: our customers.
And Karl Knauer.

Pohl-Scandia GmbH has every reason to rejoice about winning the German Packaging Award 2023 in the category “Functionality & Convenience”. According to the expert panel, the innovative shipping packaging, which has been developed by packaging specialist Karl Knauer for its sister company Pohl-Scandia, meets all criteria for functionality, sustainability and aesthetics.

The Druck&Medien Awards were presented for the 18th time this year. Black Forest-based packaging and promotional products specialist Karl Knauer, who has been a Druck&Medien award winner in previous years, was this time nominated as a finalist in the category “Packaging Printer of the Year” and was particularly thrilled to receive the silver award in the category “Training Company of the Year”.

The judging panel praised the company’s environmental initiatives in its statement for the award in the "Environmental Initiative" category, “Karl Knauer KG has been impressively demonstrating for years how sustainability can be integrated into a company and lived by the entire workforce." The “Economic Excellence” category award went to Karl Knauer for its sustainable quality management system, something which has been developed continually and consistently over the past years.

For the fourteenth time, Forbes magazine and Dun & Bradstreet Poland have published a list of companies in Poland that have increased their value the fastest in the last three years. The 2022 list covers almost 7,000 companies with small and medium-sized businesses as well as large corporations - including KARL KNAUER POLAND Sp. z o.o.

Further awards are following in 2022: After the German Packaging Award and the European Carton Excellence Award, the plastic-free toothbrush packaging also won the WorldStar Award. For the third time in a row, the World Packaging Organisation awarded the prize to Karl Knauer.

The Druck&Medien Awards were presented for the 17th time this year. Packaging and advertising specialist Karl Knauer was nominated by the jury in four categories – "Packaging Printer of the Year", "Most Innovative Company of the Year", "Training Company of the Year" and "Environmentally Oriented Company of the Year". At the award ceremony in Berlin, the Black Forest company was able to secure two second places in the highly competitive competition and a silver certificate for "Training Company of the Year" and "Packaging Printer of the Year".

The new plastic-free, blister packaging based on renewable fibres can be fully disposed of in the paper waste without being separated. The carton blister packaging features an innovative window made of sustainable cellulose fibres, which replaces the familiar plastic cover and thus still optimally presents the product. For this, Karl Knauer, together with GSK Consumer Healthcare and M+C Schiffer, was awarded the renowned German Packaging Award 2021. At the European Carton Excellence Award, the product was nominated for the public voting shortlist and took first place in the category "General Packaging, Recycled Fibre".

What makes the advertising industry’s sustainability award so special is the fact that it’s not just the participating producers’ individual products or projects being judged; their overall corporate sustainability profile is being assessed and awarded too. This time around, the packaging specialist was crowned winner of the 2021 PSI Sustainability Award in the ‘Economic Excellence’ and ‘Social Initiative’ categories.

Karl Knauer has been honoured with the prestigious WorldStar Award for the second time in a row. The international jury of experts selected the packaging for the ASAHEGO face cream by luxury natural cosmetics brand The Creammaker from 345 entries from 35 countries as the winner in the "Luxury" category. In their statement, the packaging experts praised the packaging’s "unusually successful combination of aesthetics, functionality and originality".

Exceptional. Emotional. Magical. The diorama presentation box for ASAHEGO high-end cosmetics enchants and takes you into another world. The holistic packaging concept was made especially impressive with a multi-level unboxing experience, including storytelling, and especially emotive product staging. The “golden” packaging award is also something truly special.

Together with Krones AG, Karl Knauer is developing "LitePac Top". The jury recognised the sustainable replacement of shrink film packaging with a nomination among the finalists of the Special Packaging Award of the German Sustainability Award. In the end, "LitePac Top" took third place.

Every year the readers of the magazine "Druck & Medien" decide on the printers of the year in four categories. With this award, the magazine wants to draw attention to special companies and pioneers in the industry. In the category "Innovation" Karl Knauer was voted third out of ten nominees. Thank you very much!

The packaging for the sports compression hosiery range scores points with its minimal usage of material, high consumer appeal and convenience, as well as integrated anti-theft protection. Complex yet intuitive. The verdict of the international specialist jury: “The extraordinary wrap packaging is a design masterpiece”. We couldn’t have summed it up any better.

We never get tired of winning: every time we win the coveted WorldStar, this represents a very special appreciation of our work. The integrated packaging concept for the cosmetics series “elline Switzerland” is also remarkable, however: the world’s first illuminated cosmetics packaging.

Magical depth effect: pressing the activate button causes a light presentation to begin on the cover (which is only 6mm thick) with an extremely deep infinity effect. This not only looks impressive, it also has enormous marketing potential. In our opinion. And that of our customers too.

Presenting product claims? One of the things we find easiest. When one of the packages in the seven-part folding box series is opened, the delicately laser-cut “Treasures of Youth” lettering begins to glow brightly. This is very fitting, as “elline” basically means “the illuminated one”. This thought was presumably shared by the experts of the Pure Beauty Global Award and of Display Superstar. The world’s first illuminated packaging in the cosmetics segment astounded industry professionals.

All good things come in threes. As always, we are delighted to have won our fourth award for the ultra-thin illuminated Coca-Cola bottle label. Pressing the printed play icon causes the Coca-Cola lettering to light up brightly at the POS – thanks to printed OLEDs from our partner INURU.

Truly Oscar-worthy: the exceptional packaging for the film release of the blockbuster Black Panther has not only impressed award juries worldwide but is also a hit with influencers online. The spectacular packaging including a light show was developed on behalf of the film sponsor PepsiCo (USA).

We are once again the proud overall winner of the prestigious sustainability award and will now hand over to the jury: “[Karl Knauer] is exemplary in the three pillars of sustainability [...]. The current certificates and audits on climate and environmental management, the responsible use of resources [...] testify to a company on the pulse of environmental corporate environmental policy.”

The German Packaging Award, AmeriStar, POPAI DACH Award, Hermes Creative Award, 3D Printing Industries Award, Creativity Print & Packaging Award, MarCom Award, New York Design Award ... we’ve stopped counting and are simply delighted about this deluge of awards for the spectacular packaging of Brisk ice tea from the film sponsor PepsiCo (USA) for the cinema release of the film Black Panther.

Being selected for the group of finalists in the prestigious ProCarton Award is always something very special. As is the packaging for the speedE®. Conventional tools are generally packaged in plastic boxes, but this screwdriver comes in sustainable cardboard. ‘Wow’ effect when opening included!

Our day-care centre is above all a benefit for families: the joint project with the two partners Hydro Systems and the municipality of Biberach successfully helps our employees to better reconcile family and work, for example with its family- and employee-friendly flexible opening hours.

The illuminated Coca-Cola label with integrated OLED technology from INURU sweeps the board! From packaging, labels and displays to advertising media, the fields of application for OLED finishing are numerous. The only limit is your imagination! Or our imagination – we can see ourselves winning many more awards for this innovative development.

One of the most prestigious international packaging awards comes to Biberach: with the World Star, we celebrate our fifth award for whisky packaging with over 16,000 3D holographic lenses, UV varnish, internal printing and relief embossing.

Pure magic: wafer-thin, light-emitting, flexible and sustainable – printed OLEDs are the future of illuminated packaging. Used here in the label of a Coca-Cola bottle, developed jointly by Karl Knauer and INURU. Our delight in winning the national packaging award is also magical.

Advertising media and design object combined: the note sculptures are real eye-catchers and present our clients’ advertising messages in a clever way. Printable on all sides, available in several variants, simply practical and aesthetic: these qualities have thus far impressed two award juries.

Even our company founder, Karl Knauer, always put people first. Today, almost 80 years after the founding of the company, this remains a standard that we hold ourselves to. Annual employee appraisal interviews, ergonomic workstations, healthcare services, sports groups and study programmes: we have lots to offer our employees.

At Karl Knauer, young talent has a great future: in a vast range of apprenticeship trades, the young people learn not only for their future career but also for life. This is ensured by many initiatives such as internal company mentors, workshops on health and finance topics and the wide range of leisure activities offered.

Sustainable social responsibility is always a top priority for Karl Knauer, and it is outstandingly documented and thoroughly anchored in all areas of the business. The PSI Awards have recognised this with two different accolades: the Environmental Excellence Award and being named as the overall winner.

School-age childcare and holiday childcare, child-friendly organic lunches, bilingual language training, emergency places, speech therapy and so much more. Our company day-care centre Fliegerkiste represents a genuine reconciliation of work and family life and makes life easier for our employees with an exceptionally broad range of care.

Our note sculptures turn not only the heads of our customers, but also those of the communication experts of the iF design Award. The sides of the sculptures are printed with the advertising message and remain an eye-catcher on the business partner’s desk in form and appearance.

The premium packaging for Bauerfeind is really not an old hand, despite impressing customers at the POS with gold and silver film embossing, soft touch, UV varnish and convenience features. It is only when it comes to awards that it is a veteran: it has walked away with the German Design Award for the third time.

We are continuing in 2016 where we left off in 2015: with a new award for the spectacular Glenmorangie whisky packaging. Fitted with over 16,000 holographic lenses, not only is the packaging impressive at the POS, but also when it comes to winning awards.

Cleverly designed, with high-quality finish: the packaging for the products in the Bauerfeind sports line combines convenience with gold and silver embossing, UV spot varnish and a soft-touch surface for a particularly soft feel. Definitely a looker, and a feeler, if there is such a thing.

With over 16,000 3D holographic lenses and many other finishes, the packaging for Glenmorangie whisky shines. We had never been able to achieve such good holographics on a packaging on this scale before. This is a new dimension of premium packaging. In our opinion. And in the opinion of the juries of the iF design Award, Drinks International Travel Retail Award and Pro Carton ECMA Award.

Multi-sensory packaging impresses! This impressive invitation for the Red Bull photo competition appeals to three senses at once: sight, touch and hearing. This had never been done before, according to the experts. Therefore, it is no surprise that this packaging won one of the most important international packaging awards.

Wow: after 30 national and international awards for our illuminated gin packaging, we have now won another major accolade with the German Design Award. A real milestone in packaging development!

Repeat awards: the exceptional invitation to the “Red Bull Illume 2013 Image Quest” photo competition is a multi-sensory experience. Soft-touch surface, illuminated lettering, the audible click of the fictitious camera shutter release. This impresses not only the recipients, but also expert juries.

A potential world record: for what is believed to be the world’s first freely available illuminated packaging, we have already picked up 30 national and international awards. Imagination and inventiveness, technical know-how and many years of experience in packaging are key in this success story.

Which award does a company that prints packaging enjoy receiving the most? Of course, one that confirms all of our work as a whole. In other words: we are proud! Proud of this special award and proud of developing and producing – in the words of the jury – “packaging with the most surprising effect, individuality and high quality standards”.

Imagine you are standing in front of a sales display and the display can detect your age and gender and adapt the advertising message that it displays accordingly. A vision of the future? It is already here! For this target-group-orientated development, we were awarded the prestigious silver Display Superstar award.

Functionality meets design: the packaging for the Bauerfeind sports line impresses with a whole series of high-quality finishes and a particularly high level of convenience for straightforward and intuitive handling. All in all an “outstanding product presentation”, according to the expert jury.

Surprise box from Karl Knauer: the promotional packaging for the Red Bull photo competition is a challenge for almost all the senses. Soft-touch surface, illuminated lettering, the audible click of the fictitious camera shutter release. Perhaps less surprising: being awarded the most important prize in the German packaging industry.

Pure innovation: our illuminated packaging for the Bombay Sapphire gin, believed to be the first of its kind to be freely available the world, won almost every major award in the industry! As soon as the customer picks up the packaging, it lights up. Spectacular, unique, astounding. POS marketing at its best!

Even our company founder, Karl Knauer, was known for his visionary decisions. It therefore comes as no surprise that innovation is part of our company’s DNA. The deciding factor for us being named the printing industry’s most innovative company at the Druck&Medien Awards was our packaging for Bombay Sapphire – almost certainly the world’s first illuminated packaging.