> At the Nuremberg plant where it makes graphite leads and pens, it has developed an "anti-break system" for coloured pencils.

> This extra coating around the coloured pencil leads stops them breaking when sharpened, which Staedtler says has boosted sales.

It seems Faber-Castell also has this. E.g., https://d2j6dbq0eux0bg.cloudfront.net/images/28404083/189426... , the sign below "Triangular Grip" indicates that. I've been using the ordinary 12-pack and I remember reading about this on their packaging.

Of course, there are a lot of ways to explain this but it seems strange to me it did not converge on a patent dispute this being Germany, and they already had a lawsuit over claims on being the oldest manufacturer, what's another one between friends.