In half-year figures published this morning, the firm reported that the Dusseldorf show had helped push new orders for the half up 34.7% to 491m (731.6m).

KBA reduced its pre-tax loss by a third to 12.4m, despite having to absorb the costs of Drupa during the period. 

The firm's figures echo those released earlier in the week by Heidelberg, showing a second-quarter loss of 42m despite a 64% jump in orders to 475m.

KBA's sheetfed division showed orders up 38.5% to 286m in the period, apparently to the company's surprise.

KBA president Albrecht Bolza-Schnemann said that the division had "landed an unexpectedly large number of contracts" at Drupa.

The web division also performed well, with orders up 29.6% year-on-year to 204m.

KBA failed to hit its own sales targets, however, with growth of just 6.7% year-on-year to 359m.

"The rescheduling of certain shipments, and thus a delay in the related earnings, pushed Group sales in the first six months below our target for the year," said Schnemann.

But he remained bullish on the prospects for the remainder of 2004, both for KBA and the industry as a whole.

"We are confident that a higher turnover in the second half-year and cost savings from restructuring our web and special press division will enable us to achieve the substantial increase in sales to around 939m we predicted at the AGM, and move back into the black," he said.

Schnemann added that the high visitor numbers at Drupa had "re-ignited a vital spark", and added: "Print is back in force, having rediscovered its strengths, its capabilities, and, above all, its self-assurance."

Story by Josh Brooks