Packaging magazine oct:nov 17

Oct/Nov 2017

FLEXO YES we now do FLEXO Read full article “Flexo Steps Up To The Plate” on Page 8

ASIAN

PACKAGING EXCELLENCE AWARDS: 2018

Free Entry Form - Collect Your Best Work Today

YEARS

Entries submission close on 16th March 2018 at 5pm.

Paper & Board Packaging

Flexible Packaging Narrow Web

Folding Carton

F1 - Flexo F2 - Gravure F3 - Digital

P1- Offset P2- Flexo / Gravure P3 - Digital

Mid Web

Corrugated P5 - Post-Print

F4 - Flexo F5 - Gravure F6 - Digital

Specialty & Others

Wide Web

P4 - Pre-print

P6 - Metalized Paper P7 - Printed Bag P8 - Embellishments BEST IN CLASS!

F7 - Flexo F8- Gravure F9 - Digital

Specialty & Others

+US$2000.00

F10 - Embellishments BEST IN CLASS! +US$2000.00

Labels All Labels

L1 - Offset L2 - Flexo L3 - Letterpress L4 - Gravure L5 - Digital

Specialty & Others L6 - Special Substrate L7 - Embellishments

ASIAN PACKAGING EXCELLENCE AWARDS

NEW Catergories N1- Combination Printing N2 - Mock-up / Sample (<50 produced) N3 - Structural Design N4 - Concept/Graphic Design

BEST IN CLASS! +US$2000.00

All Narrow Web, Mid Web, Wide Web, Beverage Carton and Cups and Pre-Print for Corrugated entries, MUST BE submitted with a minimum of five (5) full cylinder print repeats, at full printed web width and wound onto a 75mm (3â&#x20AC;?) cardboard core.All Narrow Web, Mid Web and Wide Web entries MUST NOT be printed onto a pressure sensitive web substrate

WINNERS WILL BE INVITED TO BE ON STAGE TO COLLECT THEIR AWARDS AT THE 2018 GALA AWARDS DINNER. 3rd MAY IN BANGKOK.

Co-Organiser

Asian Label Association

Epson - Spengler AG - Esko - Daetwyler - Swedev - QuadTech - K Walter - Stripsteel Glunz & Jensen - Degra - Flexowash

FREE ENTRY FORM

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PAPER & BOARD

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LABELS

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IMPORTANT INFORMATION A company can enter a maximum of ten (10) jobs per printing category. All entries must be from a commercial print production run: Sheetfed entries must be full sheets untrimmed and supplied in a tube or flat between 2 sheets of cardboard to avoid creasing. All production details must be provided in all sections of the entry form and in English. (Otherwise, an entry will not be deemed eligible). Please note that all entries are non-returnable, unless a self addressed courier pack is supplied with an entry. All entries must be printed within the Asian Region between 21st March 2017 and 16th March 2018

Send all entries to: Asian Packaging Excellence Awards 39 Robinson Road, Robinson Point #11-01, Suite 25A - Singapore 068911 Entries submission closes on March 16th 2018 www.printinnovationasia.com

We hope to see you on stage in Bangkok - 3rd May 2018

LABELS & PACKAGING INNOVATION CONFERENCE : 2018 We will be sending out soon the details for the 16th Annual Packaging Conference in Bangkok Thailand on 2nd - 3rd May 2018 As the Packaging Industry continues to grow, its more imoportant than ever that you KEEP AHEAD of trends, technology and more than ever your competition.

We have the best line up of speakers from around the world that will show you over two days all that you need to be one step ahead. You cannot afford to miss this event. Look out and reserve your seat soon.

Co-Organiser

Asian Label Association

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Oct/Nov 2017

2 Asian Packaging Excellence Awards

2018 Entry Form 8 Flexo Steps Up to the Plate 12 Food label printing? Hereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s everything you

need to know 16 The Big Five of Flexo Printing 20 The Secret is in the Sauce 24 Join forces on Colour Management Technology 26 Asia will continue to domin ate label

market to 2022 28 Print Master Goes for the Gold 34 BOBST launches new BOBST M8

flexible packaging line 36 UTECO in the race for the future

and industry 4.0 38 HP leads the Digital Pri nt Industry transformation 44 Serial tester of UV innovations in label printing 48 Achieve a high quality print with good

run economy 50 Fully automated flexo plate mounting system 52 Pack Print International 2017 records

biggest turnout 54 Dual-shape labels: external and internal

die-cutting shape 56 200 Years of Growth 58 Entered into an exclusive partnership 60 BOBSTâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most successful ever Labelexpo

Europe participation 62 Special press for large Indian packaging

printing company 64 Debunking Colour Management Myths 68 News from around the region and the world

AFTA Pte Ltd 39 Robinson Road, Robinson Point #11-01, Suite 25A Singapore 068911 Tel+65 6733 5342 Fax +656733 3586 Chairman

Paul Callaghan paul@printinnovationasia.com

Conference Director

Elizabeth Liew elizabeth@printinnovationasia.com Editor:

Sha Jumari sha@printinnovationasia.com

Chairman Judging Panel 2014 Packaging Excellence Awards Head Judge - Bob James Afta has 11 active Committee members for 2017 For everything you need go to www.printinnovationasia.com

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

8

Flexo Steps Up to the Plate As flexible packaging becomes one of the fastest growing market segments in Asia, advancements in flexography technology is making it the preferred method in Asia. By Sha Jumari.

As packaging continues to grow rapidly, flexible packaging is exhibiting the fastest growing market. Over the past ten years, flexible packaging has been one of the fastest growing packaging sectors, especially as developing economies continue to expand.

According to the Smithers Pira report (Future of Global Flexible Packaging to 2022), the total market for consumer and industrial flexible packaging is projected to grow at an annual rate of 4.3%. The market is valued at $230 billion in 2017, and is projected to reach $283 billion in 2022. With Asia being the largest regional market

with 40% of global packaging market volume, it is projected to be the fastest growing market for consumer flexible packaging.

“Flexible packaging is becoming more popular each day as it is able to take on a wider variety of graphic and packaging designs to impress consumers. Smaller print runs are increasingly required due to market demands and fast turnover for product launches,” said Daniel Kuah, Sales and Marketing Manager for Capitol Gravure.

Along with this growth comes a new set of challenges for packaging printers,

one of which is the increase in demand for short runs. Consumers in Asia are demanding a faster turnaround time in the printing process. Superbrands especially, are diversifying their printing methods to further suit different product packaging needs, such as the need to regionalise products to cater to specific local holidays or events.

Digital printing has been hyped as the perfect solution to serve this need, but it still only covers a small percentage of the flexible packaging market.

Historically, Asia favours gravure processes for flexible packaging, over flexography.

“In Singapore, offset printing and digital printing are preferred due to market product demand. Flexo in Singapore is limited to label printing with narrow web machines,” said Kuah.

“In countries like Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, there is a greater need for gravure printing over the last 20 years. This is because gravure printing is able to produce fantastic print results with a wide range of colour curve.”

Closing the quality gap between gravure and flexo Kuah noted that in the past 15 years, there has been a sharp improvement in the development of the flexo industry: “Today, improvements in flexo technology allows for fantastic prints with vibrant print quality – as many flexo printers can attest to. Flexo can now print images and gradients as well, when previously it was used primarily for text.”

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

9 “Although flexo is more convenient to set up for printers compared to gravure, it has its limitations. Side effects such as ‘halo’ was often an issue. However, with recent improvements in plate making technology and engraving technology, such side effects can be eliminated. Furthermore, flexo is no longer limited to solid colors and texts, and top technology in digital and laser engraving can ensure optimal print quality that is on par with that of the conventional gravure printing rollers,” Kuah continued.

“Recent innovations have made flexo a much cheaper option and perfectly suitable for short runs. More flexographic printers are adopting the Extended Colour Gamut (ECG) approach, which involves a fixed colour palette consisting of CMYK combined with green, orange and blue or violet. This eliminated the need for spot colours 90% of the time, can deliver much better quality prints than CMYK on its own. This saves costs on print set up and inks,” Kuah continued.

“Due to all these changing conditions and trends, flexography printing will inevitably grow in demand. To meet the needs of our clients in the region, Capitol Gravure has begun investing heavily in the technology,” said Kuah.

Capitol Gravure is a Singaporean company that was established in 1969 by managing directors Kuah Chee San and Wah Leong Wah. The company specialises in producing premium quality printing rollers for clients within the region, including Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and China. Capitol Gravure has been the appointed cylinder manufacturer for Philip Morris International and British American Tobacco.

Although the company’s strengths lie in gravure printing rollers, the company recently expanded its product catalogue to include flexo. Capitol Gravure’s offerings now include flexo printing rubber sleeves with engraving and ceramic anilox roller for ink transfer and coating purposes.

Shorter Lead Times for Asian Printers According to Kuah, offering flexo products not only fills a gap in the Asian market, it solves one major challenge faced by flexo printers now: “At the moment, flexo sleeves and ceramic anilox rollers are mostly purchased from Europe. This required a long lead time of six to eight weeks due to the shipping time. For example, any last minute changes to the rubber sleeves due to a mistake tend to be difficult. This is because it will need to be changed as a whole and the order for it is placed in Europe. Shipping for the new sleeves can take from six to eight weeks to arrive. In order to save time and to meet delivery deadlines, print runs are continued with the damaged sleeve. Any unusable prints would have to be disposed off.”

“With this particular issue in mind, we decided to launch the flexo rubber sleeves and ceramic anilox rollers. Our mandrel production and coating facilities for the ceramic anilox rollers are also all based in our factory in Malaysia. This immediately eliminates 10 to 14 waiting days for our customers based in the Southeast Asian region,” Kuah continued.

Capitol Gravure’s flexo rubber sleeves are designed for Direct Laser Engraving (DLE) technology. The content rubber sleeves and plates make it suitable to engrave a 3D image onto the rubber surface. The company’s ceramic rollers are carefully engineered and have achieved a healthy surface hardness of about 1300 -1400hv.

Daniel Kuah, Sales and Marketing Manager for Capitol Gravure.

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

10 plants in Malaysia, and one in Beijing, China. Capitol Gravure differentiates itself from the competition by placing high priority in R&D to provide the best solutions.

“We invest continuously in R&D. Our rubber sleeve partner is Bottcher Systems. They’ve developed the fiberglass base sleeves as well as special rubber compounds that are specially designed for our customers in the flexo and gravure business,” said Kuah. “For the flexo sleeves for DLE, we focused on the engraving properties as well as ink transfer and lay down in R&D. Both of these are important for our customers who are running the laser, as well as for the printer as the end user of our products.”

Its latest laser engravers from ALE are high speed engravers that can produce high lines per CM and achieve various types of cell shapes and depths.

manual mounting of a plate. This leads to a high quality print by register, even when there are finer details or multiimage jobs,” said Kuah.

“Asia is dominated by gravure technology, so the images are almost designed to be seamless. DLE sleeves are seamless by nature. Aside from this, the register accuracy of DLE sleeves is provided by the laser, and not by the

The Capitol Difference Established for more than 45 years, Capitol Gravure today is a 200-strong team. The company is headquartered in Singapore, and has five production

“At the end of the day, our goal is to be able to provide speed in production, convenience in customer service and savings in shipping costs for our customers in the region. Like what we have done for the gravure printing cylinder industry, we aim to be the leading engraver for the flexo industry in Southeast Asia,” Kuah concluded.

For further information on Capitol Gravure and its recently launched flexography offerings, visit http:// www.capitol-gravure.com.sg/ or scan the QR code.

Now Your PARTNERS for FLEXO TIME QUALITY SERVICE Call us today or scan the QR Code below

+65 6787 7275 danielkuah@capitol-gravure.com.sg 11 Tampines Street 92 Tampines Industrial Park A #02-07, Tampines Biz Hub Singapore 528872

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

12

Food label printing?

Here’s everything you need to know

By Filip Weymans, VP Global Marketing

Not one label is the same – different applications require different digital technologies, which is precisely why printing is such an exciting business. Whether it is for pharma, wine & spirits, durables, health & beauty, industrial chemicals or beverages, every label comes with its own aesthetic and functional requirements. we dive deeper into the characteristics of each of these labels, and advice which digital printing technology is best suited. There are many decisive factors and one could easily get confused and feel lost with all the options out there. We will tell exactly which digital printing technology is recommended to achieve the optimal results, taking

into account quality, substrates, look & feel and functionality, amongst other technical specialities.

First up in this article, is food label printing and its specific requirements due to its stringent food safety regulations and demand for high quality at reasonable cost.

Food safe digital label printing and the concept of migration A crucial concept in the discussion of food safety is “migration” – the transfer of substances from the packaging to the packed foods. In order to measure the likeliness of substances migrating through packaging and thus contaminating the food migration thresholds are defined. The so-called Specific Migration Limit (SML) is the

maximum permitted amount of a given substance that can be released from a packaging material or printed layer into food.

Here are some of the most important factors contributing to migration: • size of the ink/toner molecule: the larger the molecule, the less its tendency to migrate • temperature: migration is faster at higher temperatures • nature of the food: fatty foods are more prone to migration then dry foods • nature of the packaging materials • type of coating

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

13

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

14 Food safety and dry toner When it comes to food safety, dry toner clearly has an advantage over other technologies, such as liquid toner and inkjet, both in terms of migration and chemical composition. For example, the colorant used to produce dry toner is a pigment, which isn’t considered a migrant. There is no liquid substance involved and surrounding the pigment particles is a polyester resin, which is a polymer with a high molecular mass, also highly unlikely to migrate.

Liquid toner is less suited for food label printing as it requires a carrier liquid. Usually a mineral oil is used, which evaporates during and after the electrophotographic process. However, if the residual carrier liquid isn’t allowed enough time, some particles still may be present.

Inkjet food label printing and cost Water-based inkjet consists mainly of pigments that have no tendency to migrate and neither have the dispersing agents – very high molecular weight compounds. The only potential migrants present in water-based inkjet prints are humectants residing in the substrate prior to full evaporation.

However, water-based inkjet is rarely used since adhesion to polymeric substrates is problematic.

UV curable inkjet is prone to penetrate paper substrates due to its low viscosity (6 times lower than UV flexo). The low viscosity is required to ensure that the ink can be jetted through the small inkjet nozzles so this is an intrinsic issue of the technology. When the ink penetrates the substrate you cannot properly cure the ink, leaving dangerous components exposed to migrate - this is a risk you simply cannot take.

A primer can reduce the penetration problem but not overcome it. Anyhow a primer is required when printing on paper based materials to achieve

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

15 any primer, making it by far the best choice for food label printing.

Food labels and print quality Food sells when its packaging triggers the appetite of the consumers. In other words, packaging and labels have to look their best on shelf. Therefore, image quality is an important aspect.

The dry toner process qualifies for food labels, both in terms of print resolution and consistent dot positioning. It makes for very reliable and consistent printing. Inkjet is less used because it is prone to dot positioning errors, thus inherently vulnerable to variations between the target location of a drop and its actual landing spot. Again, a primer can overcome this. good solids and proper color gamut.

However, this increases the cost. Dry toner, on the other hand, can print on standard paper label materials without

Considering all points, a dry toner digital press is undoubtely the best option for those who want to print

food labels digitally and respect market demands.

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

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The Big Five of Flexo Printing – A Wave of rotec® Innovations – Sleeves and Adapters • increased productivity • easy mount technology • unique airflow-system • weight reduction • 99% noise reduction • faster press speeds • highest dimensional stability • vibration-damping • damage protection • cost effectiveness • improved operator safety • Flint Group has used the past few years to concentrate their forces on in-depth research and listening carefully to its customers. The strong product development team then started creating state-of-the-art technology and developing positive and pioneering solutions in collaboration with the printer, for the printer. This is in line with Flint Group’s focus on being a solution provider, covering the entire value chain of the printing and packaging industry, with its unmatched product portfolio. Uwe Müller, Flint Group Quality & Product Development Manager says, “Everything we invent is to help our customers work smarter!”

Now, rotec® product developments are in the forefront of the business with a great wave of new product introductions this year. It is important to mention that these new sleeves and adapters were especially developed to increase productivity and cost effectiveness for the customers. Patrick Lüdecke, Flint Group Sales Director Sleeves states, “I am proud of our latest innovative developments. We are filling the gaps between the existing product line and our customer’s essential needs and reaching a next level of products

and services which are better, faster and easier to use” At this point, Flint Group proudly presents the greatest breakthroughs of rotec® innovations, the rotec® Big Five of Flexo Printing.

ONE – rotec® Eco Bridge A new-to-world-technology adapter, nominated for the Flexo Tech Award 2017 The rotec® Eco Bridge technology is the first of its kind and has an innovative, patent pending, unique airflow system that works significantly different from a standard adapter. This innovation has also been nominated for the FlexoTech International Print & Innovation Awards as a finalist.

The main advantage of the rotec® Eco Bridge is the easy mounting and demounting of the sleeves. Some presses have problems mounting sleeves on standard adapters with air holes because of compromised compressed air flow. The rotec® Eco Bridge solves this! Instead of multiple air holes on the operator side and along the length of the adapter, the rotec® Eco Bridge has one breathable metal ring.

The air flows through the ring, across the entire circumference, which creates an immediate and more efficient air pillow to easily mount sleeves. It is so much more efficient that the compressed air volume can be reduced by up to 90%, while still allowing an effortless and easy sleeve mounting.

The positive effect - machine setup times can be decreased, making it more cost effective with increased productivity.

Another key advantage of the rotec® Eco Bridge is press operator safety, relating to noise reduction. Customers are not only worried about the heavy loads operators are lifting in their daily work, but also about exposure to noise.

Sleeve mounting and de-mounting, especially in pre-press areas, require an almost constant flow of compressed air, which is uncomfortably loud.

Mounting sleeves on a typical standard adapter leads to noise levels of ≥85 decibels, which is comparable to heavy city traffic.

Remarkably, the rotec® Eco Bridge system runs at less than 60 decibels, similar to a quiet office environment.

Standard Adapter air flow compared to Eco Bridge

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

18 This decibel difference is perceived by the human ear as more than 99% noise reduction. This kind of noise reduction is a remarkable safety benefit for any customer and operator.

The rotec® Eco Bridge is currently available as a polyurethane adapter with air sourced from the air cylinder (Unifit) or from an external air source (Airo). Coming soon – the Eco Bridge ring technology will be added to the rotec® carbon adapter for applications in high-speed presses, as well as lightweight adapters and compressible adapters.

TWO - rotec® Smart Sleeve rotec® Smart Premium Sleeve Work Smarter!

and

There are many questions keeping customers awake at night, “How can I achieve higher productivity on press?”

“Are higher press speeds possible?”

“What if the sleeves were easier to handle?”

“How can I better protect my sleeve investment?”

The rotec® Smart and rotec® Smart Premium are cost efficient sleeves to help flexographic presses work smarter. These sleeves are completely new generation designs and answer some of the customers’ questions.

Higher productivity comes from the new base sleeve with “easy-mount

rotec® Eco Bridge on plate-mounting equipment demonstrating easy sleeve mounting technology”. The better compression and decompression characteristics make mounting significantly easier, while still maintaining a strong hold to the air cylinder after mounting.

Several pilot customers confirmed that with the rotec® Smart and rotec® Smart Premium Sleeves, it is possible to achieve more than 30% faster press speeds. A North American customer was able to achieve an increase of 37% in press speed, from 250 to 400 m/min, without any negative impact on the printing quality. Sustainable increased press speeds - what a remarkable example of working smarter! Of course, the degree of faster press speeds is dependent on the print job and the press set-up requirements of the end customer.

On top of that, rotec® Smart and rotec® Smart Premium sleeves are weight-optimized with the advanced polyurethane intermediate foam layer.

This new material provides up to 15% weight reduction while maintaining mechanical durability compared to similar products in the market, and improves the safety for the press operators with easier handling.

For customers with the need of higher dimensional stability, the rotec® Smart Premium is the right choice. A long lasting, consistent register accuracy can be achieved through an additional glass-fiber barrier layer, because the diameter of the sleeve will be consistent over time. Even in regions with high humidity or extreme climate changes, a long-lasting register accuracy can be ensured to protect the investment in sleeves.

THREE - rotec® Ω Bridge CFX New build-up construction of high modulus carbon fiber for high quality, high-speed printing!

rotec® Smart Premium Sleeve construction – with “easy-mount technology” and barrier layer for superior dimensional stability

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

19 The rotec® Ω Bridge CFX is a second generation of the rotec® carbon adapter developments for tri-axial stiffness.

Why is stiffness important for highspeed presses? Presses can produce poor print quality, especially at higher press speeds, because the air cylinder will start to bounce and impact the print. Carbon-fiber adapters like rotec® Ω Bridge CFX, have tri-axial stiffness in all directions to prevent vibration, which leads to maximum printing performance at higher printing press speeds.

The extremely durable protection layer on the surface of the rotec® Ω Bridge CFX makes it superior to other carbon fiber adapters in the market. Carbon fiber adapters are strong, but with no protection, they can be scratched or marked during storage and transport around the press. This type of damage to the carbon surface cannot be repaired, resulting in loss of investments. To prevent this, Flint Group adds a protective polyurethane surface layer.

In the event of surface damage, it can

Graph of weight reduction comparison of rotec® Bridge LW and rotec® Bridge ULW adapters of-the-art adapter technologies from Flint Group, to improve the ease of use in sleeve handling. The rotec® Lightweight adapter series offers significant weight savings for improved safety and handling, and especially effective for use on press and plate-mounting equipment in mid-web and wide-web applications.

The rotec® Lightweight Adapter series provides up to 45% weight reduction with the lightweight version (rotec® Bridge LW) and up to 65% weight reduction with the ultra-lightweight version (rotec® Bridge ULW). As a rule of thumb, the larger the wall thickness, the higher the achievable weight reduction. These constructions are extremely durable and available in wall thicknesses greater than 30 mm.

High-modulus carbon fiber weave used in rotec® Ω Bridge CFX be replaced, thus extending the life of the carbon fiber adapter and protecting the customer’s investment.

FOUR - Lightweight Adapters – rotec® Bridge LW and rotec® Bridge ULW State-of-the art technology and the easiest handling one can imagine.

The rotec® Bridge LW and the rotec® Bridge ULW are the latest state-

Subsequent to a test phase, a US customer reported, “We are running the rotec® Bridge ULW successfully on the press since the end of 2016, which is running at speeds of 350-450 m/ minute. Additionally, we registered a weight reduction of approximately 35%. This result is amazing, and much safer for our operators.”

Another Flint Group customer has been using the rotec® Bridge ULW in their plate mounting equipment for more than 2 years. The original adapter weighed 77 kg. Now, they use the rotec® Bridge ULW, weighing only 27 kg - a weight reduction of 65%. They said, “This is an outstanding result for the

handling of sleeves, meeting required weight-limits, accident prevention, and achieving an overall higher health and safety for our operators.”

FIVE – rotec® Compressible With careful listening to their customers, Flint Group developed another big innovation for customers who required an even harder, yet compressible surface; the rotec® Compressible - Extra Firm with 70 Shore A hardness.

One of Flint Group’s German customers confirmed: “The higher hardness compressibility was ideal to achieve our needs – within one color station, the harder surface provided improved full tone printing, with compressibility for high quality detail screen printing.”

The rotec® Compressible sleeves are used in conjunction with cost-efficient, hard tape. The standardized, long-lasting quality of the rotec® Compressible sleeve guarantees constant printing conditions, especially for large orders or repeat orders.

The rotec® Compressible is also still available as Medium (50 Shore A hardness), and Firm (60 Shore A hardness).

With the range of hardness levels available, Flint Group’s experienced sales team can help customers find the best choice to best meet their individual needs and demands.

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

20

The Secret is in the Sauce We catch up with the packaging design team from Thailand’s Thai Containers Group to find out what goes into their award-winning entry for preprint corrugated packaging. By Sha Jumari.

Thai Containers Group (TCG) is no stranger to the Asian Packaging Excellence Awards. The company has been taking part in the awards year-onyear, and has never gone home empty handed.

In the 2017th edition, the company submitted five entries in total; two entries to Pre-print Corrugated category, and three entries to the Post print Corrugated category. TCG bagged two awards: Gold in Preprint, and Bronze in Postprint.

“We are very appreciative and grateful for the award wins. Design is just one part of the whole process. The award belongs to everyone involved in this project; from the sales representative, designers, prepress, production, delivery, and even the customer. The win would not be possible if the cooperation and coordination between all the departments are not good,” said Ms Prinda Akkaraphab, design solution center manager, Thai Containers Group Co. Ltd. Ms Peeraporn Sumretpon, lead designer for the winning entry, agreed:

“It’s not just my win; it’s the win of the team. The packaging that we submitted, we were able to produce with the collaborative effort of my team of designers, prepress and production. It’s the success of the team.”

The winning Gold entry is a corrugated packaging for the Thai company, Thaitheparos. Thaitheparos manufactures the Golden Mountain brand, which currently holds the number one market share for seasoning sauces in Thailand. This particular soy

sauce is the brand’s bestseller item. As part of the new marketing campaign, the client wanted a more attractive look in the supermarket.

The entire project took two months to complete. All the client gave to the team is a food shot, an image of the bottle and the logo. The rest is up to the team.

The machine used for the packaging is a machine from the German brand, Conprinta.

“The Thaitheparos packaging was difficult to produce. Firstly, the paper weight is only 100 grams, the same as regular writing paper. In order to produce good quality for preprint, our challenge was to adjust the machine to be able to handle the lightweight paper,” said Sumretpon. “Secondly, we only have four colours; two spot colours and two process colours – which are transparent colours. We had to use our knowhow to separate the colours for the printing press in order to produce a good printing quality.”

Important features of the soy sauce that the brand wanted to highlight include was its exceptional marinating qualities and its ability to produce more tasty food. They also wanted the

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;¢ Oct/Nov 2017

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

22 packaging to convey that it is an allnatural product.

3D simulation, sample making and testing, and plate making.

“We executed this by ensuring there is texture in the food shot, and incorporate green elements in the final look. It was important that we focus on the food shot and the branding.

The box is modern looking, and stands out as most attractive in shops,” said Sumretpon.

“We always strive to improve design quality and brainstorm for new packaging designs for the customer.

We do market surveys, research and development, product analysis and always keep updated on packaging trends. Our aim is to propose as many ideas as possible to the customers, and always think beyond the customer expectations,” said Akkaraphab.

TCG is the first in Thailand to have a preprint machine. The company has a specialised Design Solution Centre with professional designers to provide a one-stop service for packaging research, structural and graphic design,

The team from this innovative department is responsible for choosing the winning entries for award submission. The entries were chosen

based on design, print quality of the total lot, the final appearance, printing registration, the printing quality, the printing speed and the production capability.

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IST METZ SEA Co., Ltd., 4, info@th

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

23 According to Peeraporn, the current packaging trend in Thailand is all about the millenials: “Thailand is going for speed. It goes in line with the rise of Generation Y, who are constantly onthe-go and busy. Packaging will tend to follow this rise. Therefore speed in lead times is becoming more important in Thailand. In terms of quality, we see it moving towards the quality that Japan has.”

“A recurring problem for the design team is that the customer is concerned with cost. Sometimes when we design beyond customer expectations, and the customers really love it, but due to the cost that comes with it, it doesn’t get

approved. This is always the challenge for us, as they want the costs to always go down. I would say around 80% of customers are very concerned with cost,” Peeraporn added.

Established since 1971, TCG is a subsidiary of Thai conglomerate, SCG Packaging. TCG is one of the largest corrugated containers manufacturer in Southeast Asia, with a number of production bases in various locations across the region to serve both domestic and international markets.

The company has since styled itself as a total packaging solution provider.

Its services aim to cover every aspect

h.ist-uv.com, www.ist-uv.com

of the packaging production cycle; including primary packaging, folding cartons, corrugated containers, logistics materials and merchandising displays.

TCG has put in place a recycling programme, which recycles used packaging back into the production process.

Is TCG ready for the next Asian Packaging Excellence Awards in 2018?

“Sure! We are already in the process of choosing the next entry pieces to submit for the next awards. We are excited because we have many great products with many customers,” said Akkaraphab.

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

24

Join forces on Colour Management Technology Leading industry innovators offer a unique combination of inline color measurement and press-side correction of ink formulations

print houses. For about half the cost of other inline systems, package printers can utilize accurate, automated L*a*b* measurement on film, paper or board—ensuring that all printed product is within their customers’ color specifications. The M1, M0, ISO compliant technology enables printers to reduce time and waste while confidently maintaining color throughout the roll—without the need to wait for a roll change to measure with a handheld device.

Uteco Converting S.p.A. and QuadTech, Inc. today announced an agreement to demonstrate the benefits of the newest color management technology at Uteco’s headquarters outside of Verona, Italy. Beginning in mid-September, QuadTech’s recently launched ColorTrack™ and Color Measurement with DeltaCam™ will be featured at Uteco’s ConverDrome® technology demonstration facility.

Uteco is the world leader in the production of printing machines designed for flexible packaging applications, and will exhibit at Labelexpo Europe 2017 (September 25-28, Brussels, Belgium) at stand 4B37 & 4A25. The QuadTech solutions will be available for demonstration at Uteco’s “Gravure Technology Meets Innovation” open house event on September 28-29. QuadTech will also display the latest color management technology at Labelexpo Europe, giving regular live demonstrations of

ColorTrack™ and InkWeigh™ at stand 3B52.

QuadTech’s ColorTrack, a unique new color management software for flexo and gravure packaging applications, is an industry-first highly adaptive “color expert in a box” solution for packaging printers. With a variety of options for hand-held and inline configurations, the software facilitates fast, accurate pressside correction of ink formulations.

Without any hardware modifications to the press, ColorTrack automates the process of delivering absolute consistency from press-to-press, shiftto-shift, and plant-to-plant. With the optional InkWeigh, press operators can view and weigh ink recipes received from the formulation software to easily make press-side corrections.

Color Measurement with DeltaCam™, launched at last year’s drupa, makes advanced, inline spectral measurement affordable to individual Packaging

“We could not be more pleased to join forces with one of the most technologically innovative companies in the flexographic and rotogravure printing industries,” says QuadTech President Karl Fritchen. “Uteco’s reputation and commitment to forwardthinking research & development is perfectly aligned with QuadTech’s efforts to bring new cost efficiencies and powerful color management solutions to the market.”

Mr. Aldo Peretti, Uteco CEO comments: “Uteco Group demonstrates that we are state-of-theart by investing and operating on the major guidelines that make the industry a ‘4.0’ business, and by making large investments with particular attention to research, development, knowledge and innovation. In a complex and niche market, Uteco has become a marketreference thanks to its investments in new technologies and in automation. We also invest in continuous organizational improvements, in line with the World Class Manufacturing.”

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

26

Asia will continue to domin The region is expected to take up 48% of the worldwide label market by volume in 2022.

A new Smithers Pira report (The Future of Label Printing to 2022) revealed that label markets are set for steady growth and expected to expand at an average of 2.8% year on year to yield a total value of $39.50 billion in 2022.

With over 465 billion A4 sheet equivalents in 2017, Asia is today 46%

of worldwide label market by volume.

Above average growth will push this to 48% by the end of the Smithers Pira study period. The only region with higher annual expansion across this period is the nascent African market, but even by 2022 it share will be less than 4% of global supply.

In 2017 this market is worth $34.46 billion globally. Over the next five years, market growth will expand at an average of 2.8% year on year to yield a total value of $39.50 billion in 2022. This contrasts with an annual growth rate of just 1.2% in the wider print market, as traditional end-use applications see margins eroded by electronic media.

Labels, like packaging are more resilient in the face of this threat, and there is still significant commercial potential especially in newer markets where population are still making the transition to buying more labelled products.

Narrow-web label printers have pioneered the use of digital (toner and inkjet systems) across the past decade, and this trend is far from exhausted with new high volume machines be launched every year. The value share of digital printing is now 29.3%, up from 20.8% in 2012 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; this will rise to 35.6% in 2022. In volume terms the shares are

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

27

ate label market to 2022

low around 1.0% per year, while the value of inkjet work will grow at 16.5% per year across the same period. For analogue presses reasonable expansion is predicted for sheetfed and coldest litho; although the later process is confined to higher volume low value prints.

Within its analysis of label formats, Smithers Pira shows that pressure sensitive labels are the dominant product. These have a 58% market share by value in 2017; and above average growth will see this increase progressively across the next five years.

There will also be new demand for sleeves and in-mould labels, while the market share for wet-glue labels will fall.

lower 13.0% in 2017, and 17.9% in 2022 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; reflecting digitalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s concentration in shorter run, higher value applications.

Many print service providers are now adopting a hybrid working approach and progressively channelling work onto digital presses as their productivity increases and the average run lengths demanded by customer decline.

Significantly within digital the growth rate for toner printing will be relatively

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

28

Print Master Goes for the Gold As Thailand’s Print Master is preparing for the upcoming Asian Packaging Excellence Awards 2018, we speak with the innovative company to find out what it takes to be best of the best. By Sha Jumari.

Print Master not only won Gold at the last Asian Packaging Excellence Awards 2017, it also took home the Judges’ Best of the Best Award. The Thai company submitted three entries in 2017 and won two awards. Its entry for the ‘Gravure Films – Surface Print’ was a pouch for a consumer food product. In addition, the company’s entry in the ‘Gravure Films – Reverse Print’ category won a Silver award.

“This award is good for our people, as they are able to be proud that they are recognised for the work that they do. We actually have received so many awards so this is normal for us!” quipped Tweesit Kunakorn, managing director of Print Master Co. Ltd. “But an award is really just an award. It celebrates only one moment of success.

It doesn’t show our year-round hard

work. To keep up with the quality that we are known for, we still need to keep up and maintain our work ethics all year round.”

The winning entry is a printed laminate bag for a cereal drink from the brand Nesvita. The packaging was made by reverse & partial surface matt coating on a rotogravure printing machine.

Following it was laminating the printed substrate with a barrier and heatsealing film, which was then left to age for a while until the adhesive cures completely. The final step was to bring the finished product to a pouch-making machine to be made into the final preformed bags.

“The job called for production printing quality. It was quite challenging in terms of quality control due to the design

Tweesit Kunakorn, managing director of Print Master Co. Ltd. which placed a lot of importance on colour registration and strength,” said Kunakorn.

Green is the new Gold Print Master has been established since 1983, specialising in flexible packaging.

It began as a small startup in the heart of Bangkok, with used machinery

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

30 Besides Print Master also places importance on productivity. Though Print Master has humble beginnings with used machinery, once the company became financially strong and stable, it invested in new machinery for quality printing. Its factories today houses a variety of new machinery from Korea, Japan, USA, and especially from Europe.

“Over the last ten years, we have been focusing our investments more in European technology. One of our main concerns is productivity, and European machines, though costly, are well known for being able to run on high productivity while producing high quality,” said Kunakorn.

The Asian Innovation Conundrum “Cost is the biggest concern in our region. Our Southeast Asian region tends to be a little funny when it comes to innovation. Our region has tried many times to create the market, to use new technology, new materials, to get more value, and to design packaging that follow European, US or Japanese trends. However, it is not that easy to create this innovative environment,” said Kunakorn.

“As a business, it is our responsibility to keep up with the technology and to work hard to convince the customer by presenting on the added value of innovation in packaging,” added Kunakorn.

from Europe. The original factory was located within what is known as a “green area”.

environment, so it was important for us to include non-solvent printing as one of our processes,” said Kunakorn.

Therefore, when the company wanted to expand in year 2000 and build a second factory, it decided to move operations to the industrial part of Bangkok; Samutprakarn. At the new factory, the company was able to install new machines for rotogravure, lamination and flexible packaging.

Today, Print Master has four factories; one in Bangkok, and three in Samutprakarn.

The eco-conscious company became involved when European and US countries were calling for environmental awareness for print processes.

Print Master is the first company in Thailand to introduce the dry lamination process: “Not only that, we were later on in 1987, the first in Southeast Asia to bring in a solvent-free dry lamination system. We are concerned about the

“We have to do something to show our concern and involvement. As compared to Japan, Europe or the US, caring for the environment is not a priority here in Thailand. We decided to introduce more eco-friendly processes so that the industry will start to be more concerned. If no one thinks to want to start this, how else would we create the awareness and change the industry mindset to be more environmentally conscious? This is why we decided to be the first,” urged Kunakorn.

“Trends in Europe and Asia tend to differ. In Asia, we tend to follow the Japanese trends. Japan is very good in packaging, especially in flexible packaging, such as stand-up pouches with cap and box pouches, but of course the cost of the innovation is high. It’s hard to progress if cost remains a priority,” said Kunakorn.

With a staff stronghold of 500, Kunakorn is focused on employee development: “Right now, we want to educate and improve the skills of our people. High quality is coming, and we have to pay attention to it. We need to know how to control costs.”

“However, education is not easy. When you’ve been doing something a certain way for a long time, it’s not easy to just

KBA-Flexotecnica

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

31

Class-Leading technology for water based flexo printing

KBA.F.103.e

The new NEO flexographic press designed by KBA-Flexotecnica and showed at last DRUPA sets the standards for Hybrid flexo press technology. This successful new product range features a number of innovative concepts which enable to print with either solvent and water-based, UV LED and EB ink systems on many different substrates.

KBA-Flexotecnica S.p.A. +39 (0371) 4431, info@kba-flexotecnica.com, www.kba-flexotecnica.com KBA Asia Pacific Sdn. Bhd., Singapore, +65 6562 8582, a.friedrich@kbaasiapacific.com KBA Printing Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., +86 10 8447 5909, w.zehner@kbachina.com KBA (HK) Co. Ltd., +852 2742 8368, eric.wong@kba.com.hk www.kba.com

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

32

change,” said Kunakorn. “Our attention is on the younger generation, the new graduates from university in printing, packaging and design that are joining us. We want to create an environment for the younger generation to always brainstorm on ideas, innovate and help improve the working conditions.”

how to keep up with demand for higher quality,” added Kunakorn.

“For us, and since we’re Thai, we don’t have the extensive technical background as those from Europe, Japan, or from bigger multinational companies. We have to learn the processes ourselves, in order to understand the technical aspects and concerns when we are working, and

“We have always been keeping up with the technology by speaking with suppliers and seeing demos. There are still limitations on the technology, and when taken into account the investment, it is hard to compete with other technologies and processes in printing,” said Kunakorn.

The Hunt for Digital Although Print Master has no digital machines in its arsenal just yet, it has always been on the heels of the technology since digital first came out.

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“However, digital printing is not a technology we can ignore. Digital printing can solve a lot of existing concerns and issues for current processes,” Kunakorn continued.

“Short run jobs, for example. It is not easy to do short-run jobs on rotogravure or flexo. When changing jobs, you need a lot of time in order to change out a lot of things. In digital, you don’t have to. Another issue is the cylinder cost, which gets eliminated in digital. The third benefit for digital is the cost of the job change. When changing a job for rotogravure or flexo, you waste material. With digital, there is no wastage. These are all benefits that we can agree on.”

“However, for us right now, the cons outweighs the pros. Firstly, the machine is very expensive. Secondly, a digital press cannot run very fast on speed. Thirdly, in a converting process, there is concern to be able to run after printing. Finally, there is still a limitation in the width of the material, as digital cannot do wide web yet.

These are major concerns for us now.”

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

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BOBST launches new BOBST M8 flexible packaging line The new system for flexible packaging line with Digital Flexo technology promises momentous change and growth potential for label printers.

Labelexpo Europe in Brussels saw the announcement of the BOBST M8, a high speed, highly automated print production and finishing system for flexible packaging and related work.

Previous Labelexpo Europe shows have been prime venues for BOBST to première some of its most innovative technologies, so news that the company was keeping details of a brand new development under wraps right up to the show opening night, sent the industry buzzing with anticipation.

The new BOBST M8 line is a multiprocess, multi-web inline printing and converting machine. For the first time, users are offered the advances - and the advantages - of BOBST’s unique Digital Flexo technology on a machine with web widths up to 1070 mm and speeds up to 400 m/min. BOBST Digital Flexo features include complete digital control of the press, with

camera-monitored closed loop press operations that enable fully automated pre-register and adjustment of the print pressure and register, and camerabased print quality/PDF comparisons at all speeds.

“These capabilities will have momentous effects on today’s market dynamics, with their golden rule of diversify to succeed,” said Matteo Cardinotti, managing director of Bobst Firenze and Head of Narrow & midweb multi-process product line.

“Most printing companies today know they need to diversify in order to grow or even maintain revenue streams, and many label printers have been adding equipment to produce short run customized packaging to complement their revenue. The new BOBST M8 press is uniquely suited to forwardthinking label printing companies

that want to move into the flexible packaging market in a way that exceeds contingency needs to allow strong and sustainable growth in this sector.”

Important to users is the total flexibility the press offers in terms of substrates, consumables and applications, being able to run UV, water-based or solventbased inks. Alongside digital control and total colour consistency, the M8 delivers automatic on-the-fly job changeover sequences and up to 95% press uptime. These distinctive features enable the press to operate profitably with all run lengths, including just-intime orders. Another feature of the press is the spectrum of substrates handled by the press, which basically includes all types used in packaging reelto-reel printing: film, aluminum foil, lamitubes and paper. The cardboard version of the M8 can handle substrates up to 600 gsm.

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

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UTECO in the race for the future and industry 4.0 Uteco Group is always at the cutting-edge, investing in the major "4.0" industry's leading, relaunching important investments with a particular focus on R&D and taking direct part in the so called "Fourth Industrial Revolution", which will lead to innovative technologies within the manufacturing industry.

Uteco Group is always at the cuttingedge, investing in the major "4.0" industry's leading, relaunching important investments with a particular focus on R&D and taking direct part in the so called "Fourth Industrial Revolution", which will lead to innovative technologies within the manufacturing industry. In this regard, the company has studied and developed Uteco Data Acquisition Analysis (U.D.A.A): a new data acquisition and processing system integrated in the printing press.

In a brief interview with the Engineer Alessio Garonzi, we discuss deeply which direct benefits it can take for the final customer.

Tell us about U.D.A.A., what does it consist of?

We first introduced the UDAA in 2016 at Drupa in Dusseldorf, the most important fair in our industry, recording a lot of interest from numerous visitors and customers.

From the discussions with our reference customers the UDAA comes out. It is a modular and scalable system that, interconnected with the printing machine, collects all sensitive data related to the process, to the consumption, to the machine efficiency

and makes it easily available to the customer, in order to contribute to the analysis, improvement and optimization of the production processes.

Uteco Data Acquisition consists of four modules:

Analysis

INK MODULE (inks consumption measurement and historicization) OEE MODULE (machineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s efficiency parameters measurement and historicization) ENERGY MODULE (Energy consumption measurement and historicization) DATA LOGGER MODULE (machineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s process data measurement and historicization).

The system is designed to be scalable and therefore suitable for a customers with different needs. In fact, each customer can compose his custom UDAA with the modules he considers necessary, without losing the opportunity to add others later.

Each module can automatically generate reports and process in realtime the information, on the basis of the data acquired by the machine. The data are centralized on a controller and PC, a kind of black box, and available to the customer in various ways. The ink module, for example, is able to calculate and archiving the ink consumption of each job and to alert in real-time the operator when the ink is depleted or to estimate the ink needed to complete the ongoing job.

Moreover it can be realized to be used in different ways: UDAA can be configured to work both as a standalone central system connected to the corporate network, where the customer can find information, data and reports from the machine through a simple and intuitive interface, and as a true tool for interconnection and integration with the company's production system.

The Data Logger, on the other hand, historicises all those process-sensitive machine variables, rather than maintenance or analysis of machine efficiency. In its developments it can be interconnected with the company network for the information exchange or for the integration with the production system.

Exactly, we've already developed solutions for customers in the context of Industry 4.0 for information and data exchange between the machine and management systems. The possibility, for example, of managing the job in a fully automated way, starting from the customer's production management system, by processing and setting up the recipe directly in the machine, and finally to get reports of the job done, will become more and more widespread reality.

So this product can meet multiple needs?

Interconnection and integration, these are keywords in terms of Industry 4.0.

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

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leads the Digital Pri Company: HP Inc. Headquarters: Singapore Number of countries served: APJ (Asia Pacific & Japan) Interviewee/s & Designation: Mike Boyle Vice President Graphics Solutions Business - Asia Pacific Japan Nick Price - Business Manager HP PageWide Industrial HP continues to lead the acceleration of the analog-to-digital graphics printing transformation. Commercial digital page volume for HP’s customers are growing double digit , alongside accelerated adoption of its digital presses by leading print service providers worldwide as they grow business in a connected world.

Michael Boyle, General Manager, HP Inc. Graphics Solutions Business, Asia Pacific and Japan explained “Brands across Asia Pacific and Japan need to engage their customers, reduce time to market, optimize supply chains, and deliver security solutions, HP continues to deliver innovative digital printing solutions that help brands meet these challenges, giving them a competitive edge on the crowded shelves, while also enhancing their profitability”.

Print Innovation Asia talks to Nick Price, Business Manager for HP PageWide Presses to find out how HP are succeeding in the market.

1. Why is digital printing growing?

Digital printing has historically been seen as a good solution for short runs. However with significant improvements in digital printing technology the economic crossover point is becoming more and more attractive.

Today HP have presses that can produce up to 100 million m2 of printed output per annum, which was unheard of just a couple of years ago.

This kind of productivity and competitive cost per copy completely changes the game and is driving the charge towards digital printing.

Secondly the flexibility of digital printing is also creating new applications and opportunities. Mass customization means that each and every printed page can be different.

Brand owners, and their creative agencies are now leveraging on the possibilities and are integrating them into their various product campaigns.

The labels and packaging segment has seen an explosion of personalized and mass customized campaigns that simply cannot be produced with analogue printing due to fixed images on plates and cylinders.

2. What are your observations on the digital printing industry in Asia Pacific? (As a global player, how do you perceive the Asia Pacific market? Can you give us your views on its present conditions and future projections?)

Much of the future global growth in Print & Packaging will happen in Asia Pacific, both through export manufacturing demand, and increasingly through domestic GDP growth; consumers in Asia Pacific will have more money to spend and are becoming more discerning and demanding. This is good news for the Print and Packaging market as it is driving overall volumes and variety.

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

nt Industry transformation

39

Most of this will require digital printing due to the customized print and the fast turnaround time required.

4. What challenges do digital print adopters in Asia face?

Printing and packaging is becoming more complex.

Individual print runs are declining yet the number of jobs produced per day is increasing, add to this the need for faster turnaround times and this is adding complexity to production.

The main challenge will be ROI. Those companies that are not prepared with adequate workflow and properly trained and experienced staff to manage this complexity will result in inefficiency that will impact profitability.

We are seeing this play out, with the larger players expanding their position and footprint in the market through acquisition and capacity building. These large players have developed a healthy mix of conventional and digital printing and have learned how to maximize them together.

At the same time this is putting a lot of pressure on the small-medium sized business that have ageing analogue equipment and are relatively risk-averse in regards to new technology.

Having a business transformation strategy and understanding the benefits of digital printing would certainly equip them with the choice points, and more importantly how to leverage both conventional printing and digital printing together.

3. What industry trends are gaining traction now in Asia?(Can you give us a forecast on where the industry is headed within the next five years?

What do you think will be the biggest opportunity for digital print in the upcoming year?)

Most print segments have already seen digital printing becoming mainstream.

However, we now see the growth of digital printing in labels and packaging increasing significantly over the next few years.

Mass customization will also likely grow in this space, so we will see more and more unique designs for the same product.

But probably the single biggest change will be the impact of e-commerce on retail and the way print and packaging is produced. Delivery boxes will become printed real-estate space on which personalized messaging and advertising can be printed. This will create new revenue streams for retailers and will elevate the importance of secondary packaging.

Nick Price, Business Manager for HP PageWide Presses

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

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HP PageWide Industrial T1100S Press This will require some mindset change and business transformation on the part of the print providers to survive.

5. How can printers make the easier transition into digital print?

Printers and Brand Owners can now take advantage of a large number of resources in Asia, demo centers, customer open houses and the ability to test many ideas, substrates and relevant applications on demo presses.

Choosing a supplier that has these resources and shows a long term commitment to both country and region will be crucial to success.

presses for longer runs and less changes.

This will improve margins on existing equipment and also gives time for the organization to learn and adapt to the new skillsets required to sell, market and produce digital print.

6. What is the single most important feature that PSPs should keep in mind when making digital print purchases?

Buying a digital press is just the beginning of the journey and certainly no guarantee to success.

Developing a partnership approach with the digital printing supplier will be critical and aligning on clear expectations from the beginning will set a solid foundation. A long term partnership will help increase the chances of mutual success, since a digital press is much more than just a piece of hardware that requires a good operator.

There are many levels of engagement that will help with success, such as

In operational terms, the transition will be a combination of things. First of all identify which work can be moved easily to digital print, for example: - Multiple SKUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s with short runs - Jobs which have frequent design changes - Jobs which have many separations/ plates/cylinders - Work which requires fast turnaround time - Many jobs on same substrate By moving this type of work to digital first will help to maximize conventional

Rice bags being produced on a HP PageWide Industrial T400S Packaging Press in South Korea

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HP has reinvented the versatility, productivity and quality of Corrugated printing so that you can stay ahead of your competitors. From basic corrugated to high value boxes, reduce delivery times on long and short runs while providing offset-substitutable quality. Always with end-to-end support from HP. The HP PageWide T400S Press gives you preprint and digital in one. The HP Scitex 17000 Corrugated Press ensures high-quality results delivered cost-effectively. Meanwhile, the HP PageWide T1100S Press with Multi-lane Printing Architecture cost-effectively prints multiple short runs with variable box sizes on one roll.

As with all HP PageWide Presses, you can take advantage of HP PrintOS, an open and secure cloud-based print production operating system to help you get more out of your HP presses and printers, simplify and automate your production process and enable new forms of collaboration.

Find out more: hp.com/go/pagewidepress/corrugated, hp.com/go/scitex/corrugated and hp.com/go/PrintOs Š 2017 HP Development Company, L.P.

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia â&#x20AC;˘ Oct/Nov 2017

42 service, technical support, businesses development, marketing & brand owner networking.

7. Asia Pacific, while progressive in terms of technology, is still very much price-sensitive. Costing plays a big part in the final decision. What are your thoughts on this?

There is still a mindset in Asia that the cost of ink is the main factor when considering digital printing. Of course production costs are important, there are significant operational cost savings that directly benefit from digital printing that need to be factored in.

- Elimination of cylinders, plates, chemistry, solvents, recycling, CTP and hardware - Reduction of inventory, print only what you need and get paid for everything you print - Reduction of make-ready, time and waste - Reduction of storage and warehouse management - Faster turn-around time with more jobs per shift

To truly succeed though, digital printing should be part of a broader business transformation that will require time, a steep learning curve and a rethink of current skillsets throughout the organization.

It is critical to build a strong sales and marketing team that understands the value proposition of digital printing to develop new business opportunities.

Equally as important is to develop a production team that are properly trained and experienced to maximize the operational benefits of the digital press.

Without a healthy sales pipeline, happy customers and efficient production it will be hard to sustain a long term business. Ultimately ink costs will become a minor cost component of the overall investment and business transformation.

8. What is the one thing that the digital print industry should do more of, or perhaps should do better in?

Brands, publishers and retailers are

Jeb Hurley and Nick Price from the HP PageWide Industrial business constantly looking for ways to innovate and differentiate for their consumers in an ever competitive market place.

The adoption of digital printing is often made for operational considerations, however it can also provide a wealth of new opportunities that can benefit the brand owner in a big way.

Education and collaboration will lead to the creation of new ideas and applications that will ultimately filter down the supply chain and benefit all of those suppliers that have digital capabilities.

HP is working tirelessly with brand owners to share and collaborate on the possibilities of digital printing and in the last few years we have seen a proliferation of new print and packaging ideas.

However, the more we can educate and share the possibilities of digital printing as a broader industry the more the brands owners will start integrating them into their design, product marketing, manufacturing and procurement processes.

This will help move the conversation from cost reduction to business growth.

Any last messages?

Come and visit HP Singapore Centre of Excellence to see the possibilities for yourself.

HP's brand new headquarters at Depot Close in Singapore, opened in August 2017

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

Limitless Possibilities Be free to grow with the endless applications of the HP Indigo 20000 Digital Press

HP Indigo has reinvented versatility so that you can create unique solutions for your brand customers, to set them and yourself apart from the competition. The HP Indigo 20000 Digital Press thrives in the most demanding converting environments to deliver the highest quality for the world’s leading brands. And with Pack Ready, you can deliver high performance applications with immediate time to market.

As with all HP Indigo Digital Presses, you can take advantage of HP PrintOS, an open and secure cloud-based print production operating system to help you get more out of your HP presses and printers, simplify and automate your production process and enable new forms of collaboration.

Reinvent your ability to be unique, with the HP Indigo 20000 Digital Press.

Find out more: hp.com/go/hpindigo20000 and hp.com/go/PrintOS © 2017 HP Development Company, L.P.

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Serial tester of UV innovations in label printing For the second time, Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten has taken on the role of field test client for a new MBS UV system generation from IST METZ

The new generation of MBS UV units from IST METZ was put through its paces in a field test At Labelexpo Europe 2015, IST METZ exhibited the new generation of the MBS UV system. The printing company Oscar Mahl has been testing the new MBS UV system in practical use since May 2015. The company is well versed in the role of field test client: the predecessor version was also put through its paces in Schwäbisch Hall three and a half years ago. The latest generation is in use on an Omet XFlex X6 430. On a visit to the printing company, Managing Director Erwin Oscar Mahl and Production Manager Knut Schulzke reported on their initial experiences.

The printing company Oscar Mahl identified the need for a new press back in the middle of 2014. In order to ensure that the business unit of Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten would be able to meet customer demand for multilayer labels and void labels, the company was on the search for a suitable production line. In the process, the printing company contacted Chromos GmbH in Friedberg, a service and trading business with whom they had previously succeeded in implementing two machine projects

– one of which was an investment in a Viva 340 from Codimag. This enabled the company to enter the field of dry UV offset printing, a move that was made eight years ago in order to meet the market requirements relating to offset quality labels. The resulting increase in demand led in 2010 to the installation of the first Codimag Viva 420 with short colour deck technology on the German market. The greater web width also enables the economical processing of larger print runs, for example.

Modern servo technology and more colour decks Klaus Sedlmayr, Area Manager at Chromos GmbH, introduced the Omet XFlex flexographic printing series to the latest project. The final configuration comprised eight printing units and numerous finishing options.

Knut Schulzke stated that one reason for this was the increasing number of orders the company now receives for which a total of six colour decks is no longer sufficient. He also noted that, as the configuration is equipped with a considerable number of additional units, this in turn is able to cater for the

numerous customer requests regarding special functions. Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten therefore offers finishing processes such as film embossing, spot varnishing, printing on adhesive and substrate, lamination, serial EAN numbering, adhesive neutralisation as a finger lift and special stamping. In addition, it was crucial for this to be equipped with a modern servo control in order to provide the necessary prerequisite for the production of multilayer labels.

More output for curing in the lowmigration range When the machine was ordered, it was clear to Erwin Oscar Mahl that it was essential to have UV equipment that was also state of the art. In the context of previous investments, considerable attention had been paid to the issue of energy management. The increases in efficiency subsequently ensured noticeable savings in energy consumption as well. On this occasion, however, there was a greater focus on production reliability. Since the introduction of the previous MBS generation, for which the company also acted as a field test user, there

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45 had been a considerable increase in the processing of low-migration inks and varnishes. The Schwäbisch Hallbased printing company and other label businesses alike determined that, when these were used at high printing speeds, the power reserves for secure hardening tended to be lacking. The same issue was also observed in certain application areas featuring very high coating weights of up to 20 g/m2 in some cases. It was therefore necessary for the UV unit to guarantee secure curing while simultaneously achieving an acceptable level of energy efficiency and productivity.

In light of this, IST METZ extended the 120 W/cm standard version of the new MBS system with a special version featuring 145 W/cm. This system, which takes account of the particular drying requirements of the low-migration inks, is also used

by Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten. As a large proportion of the orders comes from the food industry, the full-scale conversion to low-migration production in the area of flexographic printing was already implemented some time ago.

Thanks to the MBS system featuring the new drying technology, it is once again possible to achieve sufficiently high printing speeds when performing these applications. In the scope of tests using anilox rolls with an intake volume of up to 4 g/m2, the coat of ink was securely cured at a speed of 135 m/ min. As Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten commonly achieves production outputs between 90 and 100 m/min depending on the subject of an order and the geometry of the cutting die, the Omet machine from IST METZ that features UV technology provides additional scope for increased outputs. "Since we can be sure when commencing printing that the necessary hardening will be achieved", explains Knut Schulzke, "this provides us with process reliability." He also expects the relevant manufacturers of low-migration printing inks to deliver subsequent further developments in the future that will make it possible to tap into additional performance potential.

Ideal field test client He views the connection to the UV supplier IST METZ as having

advantages for both sides. In addition to the growing mutual relations with IST employees, the proximity to the town of Nürtingen is another positive. For Knut Schulzke, another significant aspect is the flexibility and competence in relation to individual requirements – one example of this is that, when integrating the UV unit into the press, the shutter opening times can be adjusted in jog mode according to customer needs.

On the other hand, IST METZ benefits from the diverse range of materials processed by Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten. As the delivery range for adhesive labels comprises a number of different films and papers including thermal paper, the company can provide specific practical feedback for a wide range of areas in its role as a field test client. For the UV supplier, this exchange of experience represents valuable feedback with regard to the areas that offer further potential for optimisation.

Keeping a grip on temperature and energy consumption The material mix at Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten also includes temperaturesensitive mono films. Temperature management plays an important role in this application area. The latest MBS generation makes use of various innovative technologies for this purpose, such as URS® Duo reflectors.

It is therefore even possible to process print carriers that are highly sensitive to heat. For example, this can be applied to a specific order relating to eight-colour printing performed on a 39 µm-thick plastic film. Problems such as wrinkle formation that are often observed in cases such as these do not occur with the new MBS generation at Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten.

Energy costs represent a significant factor in terms of the economic efficiency of a UV unit. It is therefore worth considering replacing the original UV equipment on a machine with that of the latest generation. In

Featuring servo control and eight printing units, the Omet XFlex X6 430 opens up possibilities for Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten such as the production of multilayer labels.

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46

the experience of Erwin Oscar Mahl, the savings on energy costs alone mean that an investment of this nature will pay off within four years.

systems but can still be converted to operation with UV LEDs at any time, they are a future-proof investment.

Prepared for the future To ensure an economical energy supply, the new MBS generation is fitted as standard with type ELC®-X electronic power supply devices. They can be used to continuously regulate the power range of the UV lamps. In addition, the piling concept means that the components have a low space requirement and guarantees good accessibility.

((Information box)) Key strategic changes ensuring longterm company prosperity In the graphic industry, there are few companies that can look back on almost 190 years of company history the way that Oscar Mahl GmbH & Co. KG can. Founded in 1828 by the typesetter Friedrich Haspel in Schwäbisch Hall, the company had various owners until it was taken over in 1919 by the book printer Oscar Mahl. The company is now run by the fourth generation of the family, with Erwin Oscar Mahl as Managing Director and his cousins Daniel and Florian Mahl as partners.

On more than one occasion in the long history of the company, changes in strategy were necessary in order to ensure future prosperity. One of these key strategic changes was implemented some 20 years ago when the company entered the adhesive label trade.

Beginning in the 1960s, the book and offset printing company profited from the booming market for business forms and forms for electronic data processing. When demand fell at the start of the 1990s, Erwin Oscar Mahl decided at an early stage to realign production in the direction of label printing.

The energy issue in particular is a strong argument in favour of the use of LED UV technology in the UV market. It stands to reason that Erwin Oscar Mahl is closely monitoring the advances made with this technology.

Once its development has matured to the extent that it also complies with the special requirements in the narrow-web segment, the company will perform tests using LED UV. The fact that IST METZ already has years of experience in this segment and offers LED UV systems for various application areas was a further reason behind the decision of Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten to opt for the Nürtingen-based UV supplier.

The new MBS UV units have already been prepared for the transition to LED UV. With the help of the quickchange cassette, which can be used to automatically couple all supply connections, the cassette with a UV lamp that is in use can easily be replaced with a UV LED module. The LED modules provided are air-cooled and therefore represent an innovation on the market. Pure air cooling further reduces the energy consumption as active and cost-intensive water cooling is not required.

Both UV lamps and UV LED units in the MBS series can be operated interchangeably with the same ELC power supply device. As the new MBS UV systems represent the latest development generation for UV lamp

The first flexographic printing press for the production of labels was installed in 1994. The range, which primarily featured labels with punched margins and laser sheet labels to begin with, has since been significantly expanded.

Self-adhesive labels of all kinds are produced under the name 'Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten'. This extends from simple blank labels for logistics through to eight-colour decorative labels that feature high-quality printing and are intended for product design; these are available on a roll, folded or in laser sheet format. Seven printing lines with a total of 11 offset printing units, 30 flexographic printing units and two dedicated stamping machines are used

to produce over one billion labels a year. This business unit now generates around three quarters of sales, with form prints and advertising prints the next biggest contributors. In order to further expand the segment of adhesive labels, the company – which now has around 80 employees – has invested a total of €6 million in new machines and buildings over the last eight years.

Schwäbisch Haller Etiketten serves more than 2,000 customers, predominantly small and mediumsized enterprises that are active in various market segments. This ranges from food and non-food goods to chemical products and care products, all the way through to electronic and technical components. The labels are used for product designation, in the area of logistics and for immediate identification of meat or glass products.

The large spread of applications and the absence of dealings with large customers makes the company less susceptible to crises. This was an advantage during the financial and economic crisis, which was overcome without any notable slump.

Erwin Oscar Mahl identifies one success factor as being the collaborative partnership that is maintained with customers and suppliers alike. The wide range of applications means that the business of adhesive labels is one in which very intensive consultation is required. "Therefore, in addition to product quality, we have a particular focus on service. Customer data is processed with care in the pre-print stage, regardless of whether this relates to a complete redesign or simply involves changes to the text. Welltrained advisers in our office and field service ensure that every printing job is performed on time, from on-site consultation through to order dispatch.

This also includes the storage of call orders for just-in-time delivery, which helps customers save on warehouse storage and provides benefits in terms of price."

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Achieve a high quality print with good run economy PrimeBlade Sweden AB is a fairly young company but we service printers worldwide with doctor blades, and are already a well-established brand on the market. Why the company has grown so fast is mainly because we have skilled personnel in steel development, doctor blade production and printing itself, and offer the printer a doctor blade range to achieve a high quality print with good run economy. Also the use of Swedish high quality steel in the products gives the advantages of longer blade life and cleaner print.

The range of doctor blades PrimeBlade offers are from our basic type 300 carbon steel blade for short runs, to the long life type 900 Nano III blade for very long runs and high abrasive types of inks. In between we can also offer plastic, high grade carbon, stainless and micro alloy tool steel blades.

Mr. Jonas Andersson Technical Sales Manager PrimeBlade Sweden AB

We can also offer the patented 900 Nano treated blade types, a unique way of producing a long life doctor blade without using a coating. Instead we treat into the base material and change the steel structure. The treatment method increase blade life and reduces friction, and is an environmental clean way of producing long life doctor blades since no toxic waste products are created.

The treatment procedure for the 900 Nano blades is a new process with vast possibilities, and the development is constantly ongoing, i.e. more products than todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 900 Nano I, II and III will be released.

More information can be found on our webpage primeblade.se.

It is a necessity to be able to offer a wide range of doctor blade types since the needs vary from printer to printer, and also between printing methods.

We also have to consider what inks are used, what type of product is printed and what substrates used when the best doctor blade choice is made. Another point to look at is the edge type, the choice of bevel, round, lamella or special edge. It is vital to choose the right one to achieve the optimal blade wipe and life time.

Steel for doctor blades are not just one thing, different grades of the steel raw material play a vital role in how fast the doctor blade wears down. If

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49 costly than the cost of a high quality doctor blade.

We also have to remember that a doctor blade can only perform optimal if the other parts in the print process are correct. A bad ink or anilox can only to a point be helped by a good quality doctor blade. A new or rough anilox surface will wear a blade faster and can create slivers. These slivers can then easily damage the anilox surface. Also a badly grinded or poorly wetted ink pigment will decrease the lifetime of a doctor blade. Then we have ink types like white, black, some red and blue and metallic inks that wear a doctor blade MUCH harder than inks for process colors etc. For these abrasive inks, in flexo printing, it can be a good idea to use a long life blade with thicker lamella or even a round edge.

For the gravure printer a thin doctor blade edge is necessary or other printing problems can occur like haze or lines. Here it is more important to use a thin edge and a correct height of the doctor blade angle (55-65 degrees) to the printing cylinder and use lowest possible blade pressure.

Also use filter and a magnet in your inking system; it helps saving both blades and aniloxes/cylinders. But that is common knowledge so I shouldn’t have to mention it, or?

the microstructure carbide particles are large, the blade wear is faster and worn particles go in the ink system and create a higher wear or damage to the anilox or gravure cylinder. Our choice is to use Swedish high quality steel that has small, large numbered and a dense distribution of carbides. This gives better wear resistance and less harmful contamination of the ink.

Unfortunately some printers look more on the blade price than the performance of the blade. This is strange since the “cheaper” blade can actually be more costly due to more frequent blade changes, and less performance print quality wise. And it is important to remember that one extra stop for blade changes in a production run is more

PrimeBlade Sweden is introducing the Ceramic Coated 700 series The PrimeBlade® 700 series is our ceramic coated doctor blade, developed by combining our unique surface grinding and special surface treatment technology. This improves the coating adhesive bond and wear resistance compared to existing coated products.

It can even be an alternative for PrimeBlade® 900 Nano I blade users, especially for rotogravure printers.

The high-grade steel together with the special ceramic particle surface coating technology gives a very low doctor blade tip contact friction, enhanced lifetime, and gives an extraordinarily clean wipe. It reduces the brittleness and cracking risk in the ceramic coating area, and lessens the risk of blade damage due to mechanical impact.

Also, due to the refined steel and extra fine ceramic particles used, it reduces

the ink contamination that causes higher wear on chrome cylinders.

PrimeBlade® Type 700 advantages: • Longer life wear resistance • Perfect for abrasive inks • Reduced friction between the blade and the cylinder • Optimized print quality • Less adjustments of the doctor blade • Reduced printing problems in gravure, such as lines, streaks and hazing • Wears down in smaller particles The future In the near future PrimeBlade is also looking into the possibilities to combine two different technologies, Nano treatment and the ceramic coating to optimize the doctor blade performance even further.

For flexo the idea is to optimize the quality and life time of the blades, together high quality end seals for longer life time.

This is a trend and demand in the market from many of the leading flexo printer’s world-wide, that now is focusing on productivity and increased print quality. PrimeBlade Sweden AB is a global manufacturer and supplier of Doctor Blades for flexo, gravure, offset printers, and coating applications.

Together with our Swedish raw material supplier and end users the doctor blade was produced to improve production quality, blade life, and to increase machine speeds.

PrimeBlade is investing for the future The Swedish established doctor blade company based in Sunne, is now investing for the future in new doctor blade technology, grinding machines and production facilities to meet the increased market demand for quality doctor blades. The focus is on productivity, developing of the next generation of doctor blades and in close cooperation with our partners and customers in different printing areas.

PrimeBlade is today active on approx.

105 markets world-wide and is growing during 2017 with approx. 35%.

Mr. Jonas Andersson Technical Sales Manager PrimeBlade Sweden AB

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Fully automated flexo plate mounting system BOBST has announced the introduction of a new version of its DigiMountTM fully automated flexo plate mounting system.

The latest Smart DigiMount , further improves efficiency on narrow- and mid-web inline flexo presses & multiprocess printing & converting lines that make use of sleeve technology.

TM

inaccurate plate mounting since the early days of the Digital Automation project.

This has revolutionized the way inline flexo presses for labels and packaging work by making all press operations fully digitally checked, adjusted and controlled. As part of the project, the first DigiMount flexo plate mounter with digital assisted operation was launched in 2015.

TM

TM

Automation .

The DigiMount system is easy, fast and effective: the operator only has to place the plate in the mounter and start the alignment sequence of the reference mark alignment from the touchscreen. An automatic quality check confirms that the plate has been mounted correctly or informs if the procedure needs to start over. This is all it takes to achieve a plate mounting accuracy of 0.02 +/- mm, repeatable and consistent on each print cylinder or print cylinder sleeve.

TM

TM

“Every concept within the BOBST Digital Automation programme is continuously upgraded or extended so as to keep pace with the equipment evolution and to always ensure new improved levels of integrated automation”, said Matteo Cardinotti, Managing Director of Bobst Firenze and Head of Narrow & mid-web multi-process Product Line. “This has led to the development of the Smart DigiMount version of the plate mounter in order to provide a solution for BOBST narrow- and midweb production lines dedicated to the production of labels, flexible packaging or carton packaging that use sleeve technology. This can accommodate larger formats and web widths, such as the M6 and the M8”.

TM

Smart DigiMount features advanced electronics for improved speed and accuracy of plate mounting. It handles sleeve repeats of 254 – 812.8 mm and optionally 1066.8 mm (10 – 32 in optionally 42 in). This extends its capabilities to accommodate larger web widths and formats. Also new is an enclosure to exclude ambient light, helping the positioning system to operate consistently whatever the environment. The original DigiMount version is also still available to suit print cylinder repeats of 139.7 - 609.6 mm (5.5 - 24 in).

TM

TM

BOBST has worked to eliminate the workflow issues that derive from

The market has since become very familiar with the Digital Automation program, comprising the Digital Flexo technology and the REVO 7-color Extended Color Gamut process, which automatically manage the whole printing and converting workflow from validation of the artwork to the final product.

TM

Flexo plates need to be mounted with accuracy and speed that cannot be performed manually by an operator.

In particular, when a press runs using the 7-color ECG process, any manual intervention by the operator should be avoided so as to provide total digital quality and productivity, effectively closing the loop of Digital

TM

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Simple operation as well as reliable, fast and reproducible results: Our extensive portfolio of measurement instruments offers diverse solutions for the requirements of the gravure printing industry.

Further information: Tel. +49 89 785 96 0, www.kwalter.de

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

52

Pack Print International 2017 records biggest turnout The international packaging and printing exhibition for Asia logs largest visitor numbers of 17,452 from 59 countries since it began. Sha Jumari reports.

The sixth edition of Pack Print International welcomed a recordbreaking 17,452 visitors from 59 countries this year from a wide range of end-user industries. Held at BITEC in Bangkok, Thailand, 300 exhibitors from 25 countries took part, alongside national pavilion groups from Germany, Taiwan, China, Thailand, and for the first time, Singapore.

“We’re very happy and proud that this show turned out to be as we’d hoped.

When we first started the show six events ago, we aimed to be a truly regional printing and packaging show, and we are getting very close to this aim,” said Gernot Ringling, managing director, Messe Dusseldorf Asia.

The show reported a strong turnout by international visiting delegations from China, India, Indonesia, Myanmar, Taiwan, and Vietnam as well as visits from 48 local printing and packaging groups.

“We had 23% foreign visitors, which was an increase from the 18% that

visited the previous show in 2015.

Most noteworthy was the increase in number of visitors from Malaysia, India, Myanmar and the Philippines. It feels good that we were able to deliver as promised,” Ringling continued.

This year’s visitor profile ranges from retail, creative agencies, labelling and corrugated packaging to various application sectors including cosmetics, food and beverage production, pharmaceuticals and multinational FMCG brands such as C.P. Intertrade, Merck, Siam Winery, Oishi, Dole, Reckitt Benckiser, Dutchmill, Friesland Campina, Ichitan, Malee, Taokaenoi, Osotspa, Monde Nissin, Nestle, Kao, Boncafé, among others.

As part of the trade show, concurrent conferences, seminars and forums were organized to provide insightful market information and trending developments in the industry. The sessions well-attended and led by field experts from international and local industry organisations, and paved the way for attendees to learn, network, gain industry insights and engage in topical discussions. A notable presentation was the SAVE FOOD Conference, ran by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

More Exhibitor Machinery Holding the theme of packaging and printing 4.0, the exhibition floor included international brand names as well as some of the best local players.

The trade fair was 25% bigger in size compared to its show in 2015, due to new exhibitors and increased booth

spaces.

The largest booths were occupied by HP Inc and Heidelberg.

“We’re very happy that exhibitors really put in a lot of effort for this show, not just in booth building and design, but with the inclusion of machinery,” Ringling explained. “What was amazing about the show was the amount of working machines onsite. It’s always an uphill battle to move the exhibitions in Southeast Asia away from being a paper-and-poster show. This was echoed by the visitors who are amazed that there were a lot of machinery to test out.”

Successful machine and equipment sales were made during the fourday exhibition with companies such as Fujifilm, BPS United, Cyber SM, Wanjin Trading, Guangzhou Yue An Import & Export and Sansin. HP Inc. announced the sealing of six new deals in Thailand across its Indigo and Latex range, including the installations of the first 2 units of Indigo 20000 and 1 unit of Latex 3600 in Southeast Asia.

Key Trends: Packaging and Digitalisation With a two-year frequency, the Pack Print International exhibition is modelled after drupa. Prominent trends

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

53 at drupa 2016 were packaging and digitalisation, and this was continued at Pack Print International, as the “same players showed similar things from drupa at this Asian show.”

“Key trends include package design, package printing, digitalisation of

package printing and digitalisation for smaller runs in general. Sheetfed is still there, but the trend is definitely moving towards digital,” added Ringling.

Thailand recently put forth its development plan, ‘Thailand 4.0’: “This came from ‘Industry 4.0’, which started as a megatrend at drupa. The trend relates back to automation and connectivity to every part of the production line, and Thailand has this out in their governmental framework and economic plan across all industries,” said Ringling.

To align with this, the full spectrum of the pack and print value chain came to life at Pack Print International 2017 with in-demand machinery and 4.0-driven solutions, together with Automation and Robotics pavilions.

“The upswing that we saw in drupa 2016 compared to drupa 2012, also continued on at Pack Print International. We were in the lower key in 2015, but we really came out with flying colours this time round, with a lot more happy faces,” said Ringling.

The upswing was credited to a renewed direction within the print and packaging industry: “The industry has become more trusting ins their own success and opportunities. In 2012, the industry globally didn’t know where they were heading. At drupa 2016, as key

trends emerged, the industry saw that there was a way for them to gain new strengths and for the market to gaining traction again with new opportunities.

The print and packaging saw that there is a way forward, and that this is what the industry needs to go towards.”

Tripartite Collaboration

between the three parties, which marks continued cooperation and enhanced editions of Pack Print International 2017. According to Ringling, the exhibition is an event for the industry by the industry; and the renewed partnership will see the next three editions expand even further.

The exhibition was in collaboration with The Thai Packaging Association and The Thai Printing Association.

The two associations manned the newly introduced One Stop Pack & Print Pavilion, which showcased top packaging solutions and achievements by their members over the last two years. Those who were interested to find out more about the end-to-end of a packaging supply chain, funding opportunities, or regulations for packaging in a Thailand context are able to seek complementary consultancy advice from experts on deck at the pavilion.

The Next PPi The next edition of Pack Print International will be held from 18 to 21 September 2019. Vendors that have already signed on for the 2019 edition include: Sansin Printing Machine Material (Thailand), Cyber SM, and Kurtz.

“In this region, Thailand is thriving in packaging design. A majority of local companies were showing stateof-the-art packaging solutions in the Packaging Material section. There were no machinery in this segment, but the visitor pull was strong. There were a lot of impressive booths that displayed the most attractive and compelling packaging materials and solutions,” observed Ringling.

The event highlight was a signing of an extended Partnership Agreement

“For the next show, we are aiming for more new and mind-boggling machinery. We will be accommodating longer build-up times to enable exhibitors to bring in even more complicated machinery,” said Ringling.

“This year we saw high-quality visitors and noticeably higher demand across all the application sectors with many deals secured on the show floor. We saw very encouraging uptakes and will continue to fine tune this winning formula to reflect industry trends and demand,” Ringling concluded.

For more information on Pack Print International 2019, visit: www.packprint.de

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Dual-shape labels: external and internal die-cutting shape OMET technology and innovation, in collaboration with the passion and enthusiasm of Grafiche Amadeo, managed to elevate the latest OMET installation on a higher performance level, with the production of special labels with double die-cutting shape, without backing removal. This specific configuration is applied on an 8-color XFlex X2 370.

label and the filmic substrate are coupled by mean of a nip roll, the UV lamp activates the glue and the removable shape sticks to the plastic film that strips it away. The following steps consist in traditional die-cutting process and matrix rewinding to obtain a special label with both internal and external die-cutting shapes.

Mr. Delfino continues: “Thanks to OMET technology implemented on XFlex X2 and to a wise substrate handling, the working speed of this press can reach 130 m/min”. The application of a layer of glue killer under the shape to be removed is a crucial step for the success of the entire job. When the adhesive material is separated from the backing, this particular substance is spread onto the area corresponding to the removable shape, weakening the strength of the glue in order to facilitate the stripping process. Without this special glue killer, the maximum printing speed would be dramatically slower.

Grafiche Amadeo entered the label business with the purchase of two OMET narrow-web flexo presses in 3 years. The second XFlex X2 was equipped with innovative technical solutions developed on the specific request of the customer. OMET designed a tailor-made solution for the production of dual-shape labels based on the addition of a die-cutting station in-between the flexo units and on an accurate use of the glues.

The machine was especially designed with a particular layout that enables the removal of the internal part of the label, by cutting and removing it before the stripping unit. The die-cutting unit installed in-between the last 2 printing groups cuts the shape meant to be removed, without touching the backing,

thus preventing the support from being punched, as it usually happens.

Andrea Delfino, Responsible for label sector at Grafiche Amadeo, explains: “After the cutting process, we use a Cold Foil and a flexo unit to apply a layer of UV glue on the shape already die-cut, to facilitate its removal. The

OMET had already integrated this special configuration with the diecutting unit in-between two printing groups on an XFlex X6, fully automatic and high-performance machine.

Yet, Grafiche Amadeo’s X2 is the first machine to implement this very application on a completely mechanical platform.

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200 Years of Growth “Koenig & Bauer is well-positioned for the future,” highlighted BolzaSchünemann, who is the sixth generation in the family to lead the company. He opened the press conference presenting on the company’s milestones over the last 200 years, paying special attention to acquisitions the company made between 2002 to 2013.

Traditionally analogue, the company previously targeted media-oriented markets such as newspaper, book, magazine and catalogue printing. Today, 90% of turnover from new press sales is accounted for by the growth markets digital and packaging printing and by securities printing.

Koenig & Bauer currently holds more than 80% world market share in banknote printing, and a 63% share

Bolza-Schünemann

in large format and package printing.

Only 30% is in commercial web and newspaper printing.

"From morning to evening, we meet printed products that were produced on Koenig & Bauer presses: from the directly printed perfume bottle in the bathroom in the morning, the newspaper at the breakfast table, banknotes, credit cards and a wide range of packaging when going shopping, to books or magazines in the evening.

The best thing about this is that most of these print products cannot be replaced by online media or computer screens, and the demand is continuing to rise. This makes us optimistic for our future,” said Bolza-Schünemann.

Asia to contribute largest growth in Packaging Koenig & Bauer is making ways to be the leading player in packaging printing; the company is already the market leader in the printing of cardboard, metal and glass bodies. Drivers within the packaging sector include the trend towards sophisticated packaging, growth of the world economy, world population, the number of singleperson households, and the rise of online commerce which has high returned-goods ratios.

This region will play a major role in the company’s packaging focus, as “80% of packaging is expected to come from Asia,” said Dr. Mathias Dähn, the company’s Chief Financial Officer.

The company also has 80% world market share in metal décor, glass and hollow container printing through the acquisition of German company Kammann Maschinenbau. Koenig & Bauer launched the MetalDecojet, a digital press for metal decorating at MetPark 2017 in Essen, Germany.

It announced its first sale of the first sale. The CS MetalCan, a 2-piece beverage can printing machine was also previewed. The CS MetalCan is expected to launch in 2018 following intensive field tests. Dähn added that the machine achieved a “very good initial reaction, and that the big can makers are interested.”

Koenig & Bauer is also looking to improve its market share in flexible packaging printing, corrugated board printing and the marking & coding sector. New products including the VariJet 106 digital hybrid press as well as digital, flexo and offset presses for corrugated board, metal sheets and beverage cans are intended to contribute to this.

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Within the industrial printing space, Koenig & Bauer introduced the RotaJET VL, which is up to 2.25 m wide and can serve applications such as decorative printing.

In order to make up for the drop in demand for web offset presses for newspaper and commercial printing, the company company now plans to expand its services to cover older presses. New services have been offered within the framework of digital transformation. The service turnover for sheetfed and web presses has grown significantly, and is expected to rise to 30% of group turnover.

The Zero Tolerance to Loss In 2016, Koenig & Bauer charted its best profitability, with an EBIT of 87.1 million euros. Dr. Dähn credited the increase in the share price from 10 euro at the beginning of 2015, to significantly over 60 Euro now, to Koenig & Bauer’s renewed strategy and development.

He further emphasised the company’s “zero tolerance to loss” policy, when it terminated and successfully redesigned all loss-making businesses in 2014.

The company also introduced strong corporate governance that enabled accountable management, and no cross-subsidies.

"After a decade of declining sales, growth has become the central pillar of our corporate strategy. All business units should contribute to this and work profitably," said Dr Dähn.

For 2017, Koenig & Bauer has set itself a goal with a group turnover of approximately 1.25 billion euro and an EBIT margin of around 6%.

The planning for the period up to 2021 provides for a growth in sales of 4% p.a. and - depending on the

development of the world economy an annual EBIT margin between 4% and 9%.

Jubilee Box Set For the company's birthday, Koenig & Bauer has produced a jubilee box set of commemorative publications entitled "People - Machines - Ideas". The almost 2 kg set consisted of a smallformat hardcover book, a collection of posters, and a magazine.

Presented by Koenig & Bauer’s marketing director, Klaus Schmidt, the three printed products differ greatly in terms of content and design, and are not a chronological enumeration of the events and achievements of the last 200 years.

"Our unusual commemorative publication is a printed declaration of love for the past, present and future of print,” said Schmidt.

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Entered into an exclusive partnership Xeikon to provide exclusive worldwide sales, service and support for EFI™ Jetrion® narrow web inkjet systems

with almost 30 years of experience in digital printing. With over 500 digital label presses installed worldwide, we are an acknowledged leader in the selfadhesive label market. Xeikon has the broadest digital label printing offering in the market, including workflow, presses, embellishment modules and converting equipment, and a worldwide service and support network that is unparalleled in the label market. All our customers are fully trained, serviced and supported through direct, first-line contact with Xeikon engineers, and this will be no different for the Jetrion customers.”

Electronics For Imaging, Inc. and Xeikon, a division of Flint Group, today announced they have entered into an exclusive partnership for the EFI™ Jetrion® digital label and narrow web inkjet printing systems. Under the partnership, Xeikon will service, support and supply the worldwide Jetrion customer base, and continue the direct sales of Jetrion digital label printing systems as part of the Xeikon portfolio of digital dry toner and UV inkjet presses for the self-adhesive label market.

“EFI Jetrion printing systems have helped to establish the market for industrial digital inkjet label production, and the numerous innovations developed for high-resolution Jetrion technology – including high-end, production-class LED imaging, superior opaque white ink and true all-in-one integrated print, varnish, cut and slit systems – have given EFI Jetrion the largest installed base of UV inkjet label presses in the world,” said Guy Gecht, EFI CEO. “As we expand our portfolio of industrial inkjet products, we prioritised our go

to market investment and resources.

It was a clear choice for us to pick Xeikon, one of the undisputed leaders in digital label printing, as the ideal partner to continue a trustworthy sales and service operation for the Jetrion product line.”

“Knowing that our label customers will be in excellent hands in this partnership, we are looking forward to working closely with Xeikon to continue to provide ink for our current and future customers,” Gecht continued, “as we look for opportunities to expand this partnership to Productivity Software and future innovation.”

Benoit Chatelard, President and CEO Digital Solutions, Flint Group, stated: “Xeikon is the perfect partner to market, service and support the EFI Jetrion product line as both companies share a common goal of delivering exceptional value, unparalleled service, consistent quality and continuous innovation – values we are committed to secure in the future for all Jetrion customers worldwide. Xeikon is a technology-agnostic solutions provider

Digital label and narrow web printing systems meet the growing demand for shorter runs, versioning, faster turnarounds and inventory reduction, while increasing customers’ margin potential on short-run label quantities of 100 or less up to runs of 50,000 or more.

Jetrion users will benefit from superior customer care focused on advanced digital production operations, thanks to a strong Xeikon field presence with more than 100 dedicated service and support personnel worldwide.

As part of the exclusive partnership, the Jetrion product line will complement Xeikon’s digital label press portfolio, which includes the high-end Xeikon Cheetah Series and entry-level Xeikon 3000 Series of dry toner label presses as well as the high-end Xeikon Panther Series of UV inkjet label presses.

Adding the Jetrion product line to its portfolio, Xeikon continues to expand its range of technology and digital label printing capabilities that address the very specific requirements of label printers and converters.

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BOBST’s most successful ever Labelexpo Europe participation Having chosen to build up to the show with a whisper on the innovations presented, BOBST ended Labelexpo Europe 2017 with a roar; a huge number of visitors and the announcement of multiple sales deals closed on stand during the show, crowned BOBST’s most successful participation to date.

“We presented the new M1 Press, an effective choice to produce self-adhesive labels: robust, fully performing to BOBST quality standards and showing the first level of BOBST Digital Automation (laser-pre-register and automatic register). The new M5X, for Labels and Packaging, performed the Second Level of Digital Automation, total automation in print pressure and register adjustment without any manual intervention.” comments Antonio Bellosi, Bobst Firenze R&D Director, who added: “Probably the most impressive demonstration was the Digital Flexo Challenge; an M6 UV Flexo press at a converter’s plant in Milan (www.acm-plastic.it) and a “twin” M6 press on the BOBST LabelExpo booth were challenging each other on set-up time of a food packaging job, filmed “Live”, with a split screen satellite video connection.

The 2 presses were filmed in detail, operating a job change-over “live” at almost 1.000 km apart, in front of hundreds of converters every day, twice a day. The 2 M6 presses have shown at LabelExpo “in real time” eight almost identical change-over times, proving that with the Third Level of Digital Automation (automated job exchange) any M6 Digital Flexo press, with any operator, in any site in the world, can

BOBST M6 Line

change from one job to a complete new job in one minute, with an unlimited number of Pantones.”.

The portfolio of BOBST Digital Automation products was completed by the world premiere of the new Smart DigiMount for fully automated digitally assisted flexo plates mounting, without manual intervention from the operator.

Matteo Cardinotti, MD of Bobst Firenze comments:” We believe in the self-adhesive label industry and in its creative hyper-flexible culture which is a distinctive bonus for the whole Labels and Packaging industry. M1, M5X and

M6 are excellent presses to produce Labels and Flexible Packaging.

We also introduced at LabelExpo an additional world premiere, the new M8 press Digital Flexo mid-web press for the production of Flexible Packaging or Folding Carton at high speed. This press is setting the new standards of our industry.” Mr. Cardinotti concludes:” In addition to our product advances, for almost 4 years, we have been fostering the successful implementation of the REVO Team for Extended Color Gamut “turn-key” solution, in cooperation with the industry leaders of the Flexo industry. New projects in cooperation with new partners are planned for the future. We are proud to be at the forefront of innovation, both in new technical solutions and in new industry visions.”

In terms of activities with brand owners and industry collaborations, BOBST,

BOBST M5X Line

being part of the recently created FoodSafeUV group, co-hosted with the Labelexpo organizers and fellow group members the Safe4You seminar on 28th September. The FoodSafeUV group has been set up to align the perceptions of the food packaging industry and to recognize the level of food safety achieved by the latest UV Flexo printing technologies in relation to the most stringent food safety laws (Swiss Ordinance, Nestlé standards, EU and US standards etc.). Among other scopes, the FoodSafeUV group will eventually help the industry to develop an “easy” certification system that enables converting companies that comply with the standards to be awarded certification which guarantee the full safety of their output printed using UV inks and varnishes for indirect food contact.

“Contrary to a common misconception that perpetuates from the UV migration issues that happened in the 1990s, and thanks to the advances of technology and ink formulations, printing with UV ink and varnishes has now developed into the safest technology for indirect food contact” explains Paul Stoudmann, Strategic Business Development, Bobst Mex, who led BOBST brand owner activities at Labelexpo “The combination of low migration inks and on-press UV-dose measuring devices, like our BOBST UVTrackTM, which incidentally was the very first such system available in the industry, enables the checking and certifying of the safety of every printed meter of substrate in real time during printing. This level of food safety is much higher compared to the hazard of random sampling, which is most common in solvent and water based ink printing processes”.

Showing the extent of the BOBST unique partnership approach with both customers and industry suppliers, the Solution corner on the stand drew crowds of visitors keen on discussing the technical aspects of the

application samples shown, as well as the opportunities that the BOBST equipment and the REVO Digital Process open up in terms of extending production capabilities or product differentiation.

“The exchanges invariably highlighted the importance for converters to be able to rely on the availability of process and technological support on an ongoing basis” comments Daragh Whelan, REVO Product Manager at Bobst Firenze “I always look forward to these question because I can make a fine show of the unique capabilities of the REVO Academy set up together with partners of the REVO Technology Team and their equipment in the Competence center of Bobst Firenze, in Italy. There we can provide a variety of services to the converting industry, from ROI and TCO calculations through to hands-on testing and full manufacturing cycle from file to plate to print.”

The island stand which housed the displays of BOBST benchmark services was also overrun with visitors, who alongside a very comprehensive range of products and assistance programs, were treated to live demonstrations of new and innovative connective services through augmented reality. David

Colombini, Service Director at Bobst Firenze comments:” After 126 years of Leadership in the Packaging industry, BOBST has developed advanced software, hardware and knowledge tools to support converters, through 24/7 services, global spare part availability at BOBST sites in all the continents and benchmarking procedures to measure the level of satisfaction of our customers. At LabelExpo, converters could observe a glimpse of the future, with the revolutionary Connected Glasses technology, to support the BOBST Service Team worldwide through virtual reality and “live” interconnectivity ”.

Maurizio Trecate, Sales Director at Bobst Firenze, takes stock of the LabelExpo participation in terms of commercial results at the show: “We have enjoyed a high number of closed deals at the show, this has been the most successful sales result ever in a LabelExpo show, supported by our product innovation and the successful cooperation of Bobst Firenze Label and Global BOBST Packaging Teams working together to provide the best opportunities to our converters worldwide.”

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Special press for large Indian packaging printing company Six Rapida sheetfed offset presses at three locations in production - Second long special press - High level of satisfaction with automation and productivity At the drupa, TCPL Packaging, one of the largest packaging printing companies in India, ordered three Rapida 106 presses from KBA-Sheetfed. One of them already started its journey to the TCPL Silvassa plant in autumn 2016. The second started production in the Guwahati plant at the end of August.

This is a special press with six inking units, coating tower, two intermediate drying units, each with a further inking unit and coating tower, and a threefold delivery extension. It has a UV function, pile logistics and has been set 450 mm higher for packaging production.

Now a total of six Rapida 106 highperformance presses are in operation at TCPL – two at each of the locations Haridwar, Silvassa and Guwahati. A

The long Rapida 106 with six inking units, coating tower, two intermediate drying towers, a further inking and coating unit as well as a delivery extension at the official commissioning with Saket Kanoria, Managing Director of TCPL (left) and Dietmar Heyduck, Sales Director KBA-Sheetfed seventh and thus the third from the drupa package is expected to arrive shortly.

automated pool of presses, TCPL produces economically and offers top quality.

Complex configurations The new Rapida 106 is already the company's second with a very special configuration. In Haridwar, a long Rapida 106 with eight inking units, coating tower and extended delivery, as well as a cold foil module, has been in production for two years. It has additional packages for printing cardboard and foils, is equipped for UV/mixed operation and, among other things, is automated with pile logistics, a non-stop automatic function and FAPC plate changing.

High level of customer satisfaction The most recent installations show that the management of TCPL is very satisfied with the automation and productivity of the Rapida presses as well as the service provided by the KBA sales partner Indo Polygraph Machinery.

For medium-format sheetfed offset presses, TCPL invested exclusively in Rapida technology in the last few years.

The six Rapida 106 presses at TCPL have a total of 50 printing and finishing units, including seven coating towers for conventional and UV production, a corona unit and many further details for high-quality inline finishing. They were all installed between 2012 and 2017. With this very modern and

The company was only established in 1990, and today employs a workforce of 1,200 employees. It has all of the standard certifications for quality management and the production of food packaging. In addition, TCPL produces a whole range of other packaging – through to cigarettes and premium packaging. Many of the products of TCPL have won international awards.

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Debunking Colour We speak to industry experts to demystify the world of colour management and paint a more vivid picture in this often-misunderstood process. By Sha Jumari.

A colour management system refers to a set of software tools that are designed to merge the different colour capabilities across all devices in a print production process. The ultimate aim of colour management is to ensure that a consistent reproduction of colours that the eye sees, in other words “what you see is what you get”. This system enables the colours that are displayed on all monitors are as representative of the colours of the final printed product.

Every device in a print production process, such as scanners, monitors, proofing printers, imagesetters and the pressrun machines, reproduces colour differently. An open colour

management system is needed to communicate colour reliably between devices.

Understanding the theory of colour management may not come as first priority for most companies in Asia, especially those who are just transitioning from analog to digital print systems. Yet it is one of the most essential pieces of the final printing puzzle to repeatedly produce accurate colours across devices.

Myth 1: We are traditional offset printers so we have no need for colour management.

There are many factors that impact

how colour looks and is reproduced, such as the environment (is it dry or humid?), materials used, ink/toner/ hardware brands, operation methods and human perception. To overcome and minimise these effects, colour management plays a critical role to ensure colour transformation to be as accurate as possible from one end to another.

To ensure colours are consistent and accurate in a digital press, the following is involved: a. Ensure that the machine is correct and set to the manufactory specification, paying attention to factors like density of ink/toner on paper, operation environment, maintenance, etc. b. Paper Calibration process to ensure correct density is reproduced on that specific paper. This is because different paper will absorb ink/toner differently due to its characteristics such as fibre, moisture and grain direction. c. Colour Profiling to bring the machine back to a known condition, as colour can drift from time to time due to environment effect and operation temperature. d. How does one describe the colour “Blue”? How can we have everyone agree that this is the colour “Blue”?

This is where standardisation comes to

Management Myths play. We want the colours to look the same in Shop A and Shop B. The only way to do that is to make both shops use the same Standard. A standard is one in which everyone agrees on, and not one that defined by the individual.

For example, ISO 12647-2 is an ISO standard for fffset while ISO 126478 is for digital presses. If both Shop A and Shop B are based on the same standard, then they can produce similar outcomes.

These are all part of Colour Management. The rules of colour management are the same, regardless of whether you are a traditional offset printer or a digital printer.

Some examples for colour management in practice includes: a. Adhering to an ISO standard means that Shop A and Shop B will get similar results, regardless of where the ink is made, and how they are made. b. Using software in a digital press to transform and map the printer’s colour to an ISO standard colour. After which, the colour can be reproduced as to what the source intended when printed on paper. c. Ensuring the monitors across devices should portray similar colours by profiling them towards a standard so that all monitors are able to output similar colours.

d. A can of paint needs to be the same shade as the last time it was purchased.

In order to get the same paint, the manufacturer will have to use devices to accurately mix and measure the colourant to ensure the same colour is being produced as before.

All of these are called colour management, in different forms and methods, but same ultimate purpose – consistent, repeatable colour that look the same. Colour management is an essential process that needs to be understood to achieve consistent colour.

-Colour Expert, Fuji Xerox Australia.

Myth 2: Colour management is difficult to understand.

The objective of colour management in printing is to obtain a good match across multiple print devices. This is so that the printer can accurately predict the colour that their press is able to produce, and thereby achieving that colour quickly with minimal waste and setup time.

For decades, the printer himself has been ‘managing’ colour, and there is a lingering perception that colour management is expensive and difficult to understand. Before even considering acquiring a colour management system, a process control must be in place. If the press is unable to print consistently, the whole effort on managing colour will be a frustrating exercise. The key point that is sometimes overlooked here

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

66 companies, it should work as an “inhouse standard”. However, when customers have a couple of other digital presses, or work with other companies, they realise there are many colour differences between these presses due to distinctions between print engine, ink technology, instrumental error even if they use same press models.

Therefore, digital presses should be colour managed correctly.

is consistency. Technology, however, has moved colour reproduction into the realm of science, where the right tools with automation and real time adjustment capabilities, making process control and colour management both easy and affordable.

-Soh Teck Yew, certified Digital Print Expert, Konica Minolta BSA. Myth 3: It is challenging to achieve rich and desirable colours through production inkjet printers.

We acknowledge that the variance in colour gamut can be significant depending on the type of print equipment, software and colour model.

While colour reproduction may differ across manufacturers’ devices and environmental conditions, accurate colour management can be achieved through modern inkjet solutions that are advanced and highly versatile.

Collaborate with print partners and calibrate your inkjet printers to create a preferred colour space profile, enabling a solid and reliable benchmark for consistent results across varied print jobs on paper media.

-By Chia Wee Yaw, head of Professional Printing Products Division, Canon Singapore.

Myth 4: The digitally-produced print will not match the conventional print run.

In producing packaging proofs, those in the production department especially, are skeptical that the quality of a digital proof might be “too nice”, and that the pressrun will not be able to produce the same colour quality. Should a pressrun print fall short in matching to the quality of the proof, they fear they might be in trouble since the proof is what the customer signs off on. This is a very common misconception that we hear when first introducing our ORIS Flex Pack Web solution to packaging printers in China.

However, having a colour management system in place meant that this is not possible since producing a digital proof can only start from simulating the pressrun, or a standard printing condition, as a first step. Colour management links digital printing and traditional printing functions to achieve the most accurate colour matching.

- By Arthur Kwok, sales director for Greater China, CGS. Myth 5: A digital press is already colour standardised so there is no need for colour management.

Most of the digital press users in Japan are satisfied with default colour settings on the DFE defined by press manufacturers, using industry standard ICC profiles – Fogra, GRACoL, or JapanColor in Japan. If they use a single digital press and there is no collaborative work with any other

Colour management means not only making ICC profiles and colour conversion, but also daily management with measurement and evaluation. To compensate colour differences between digital presses, customers would have to tweak profiles, change settings in the DFE or use external colour conversion software like Automation Engine Color Module. To maintain and ensure colour standardisation, daily measurement and calibration is required.

To ensure standardised colour results, Fogra provides Fogra ProsessStandard Digital certification that sets the colour standard and also standardizes work.

In Japan, the Japan Printing Machinery Association has also established the Japan Color Digital Press certification similar to FograCert.

There is also the misconception that a digital press cannot reproduce brand colours. This claim mainly from packaging converters is partly true.

Many digital presses are CMYK-based and their colour gamut is similar to process colours on an offset press.

Vivid brand colours like Coca-Cola Red is “out-of-gamut”, so it is not reproducible even with some colour management systems.

However, several digital presses in the market exceed the limit with higher chroma inks or additional colours.

For example, Konica Minolta’s C71hc has “High Chroma Toner” which covers saturated colours and the HP Indigo can be equipped with additional Orange/Green/Violet inks to extend its colour gamut. Esko’s Color Engine can manage these extended colour spaces efficiently to reproduce brand colours, solving the limitation.

-By John Winderam, Esko’s General Manager South East Asia & South Asia

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

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Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

68 Xeikon Introduces Four New Digital Label Presses Launched at Labelexpo Europe, the Dry toner Cheetah Series and UV inkjet Panther Series make Xeikon’s digital label printing portfolio the broadest in the industry.

At Labelexpo Europe, Xeikon announced new digital label presses in both the UV inkjet and dry toner segments that will extend its digital label printing portfolio, making it the broadest in the industry.

New product announcements included the Xeikon CX500 wide web digital label press in the company’s Cheetah Series, which is the first press based on

CX500

Xeikon Fusion a new generation dry toner platform that is ready for Industry 4.0.

For larger sized labels, labels requiring an opaque white or an extended colour gamut, the Xeikon CX500 outperforms all high-quality digital

label presses in terms of productivity, thanks to its web width of up to 520mm, full rotary printing technology and 30m/min printing speed. The wide web Xeikon CX500 is part of Xeikon dry toner Cheetah Series, serving the high-end self-adhesive label market, and it complements the narrow-web Xeikon CX3 which has been very successfully adopted since its introduction in 2015.

The company also introduced was the Xeikon Panther Series of UV inkjet digital label presses, including the high-end Xeikon PX3000 and the newly announced entry-level Xeikon PX2000, both to be made available on a 4-colour and a 5-colour configuration. The Panther series was first announced in May 2017 during a press conference.

The Panther Series now consists of the high-end Xeikon PX3000 with a web width of 330mm and the entry-level Xeikon PX2000 with a web width of 220 mm, both running at print speed of up to 50m/min for the ultimate in productivity and throughput on the most optimal web width. These Panther presses will be available in two colour configurations, with the 4-colour press field upgradable to a 5-color configuration to allow label converters to add white ink.

“We are proud to announce we have been able to rapidly grow our digital label printing portfolio, for both our Panther Series of UV inkjet presses, and our Cheetah Series of dry toner digital label presses. These Fast Felines are setting the pace for

digital label manufacturing and will open the door for a broader range of self-adhesive label converters to more readily take advantage of the benefits of digital label production.

These announcements reinforce our continued dedication to investment in dry toner technology, while we also continue to advance our presence in complementary UV inkjet solutions.

As a technology-agnostic total solutions partner with almost 25 years of experience in digital printing, Xeikon is ideally positioned to help label converters, now and in the future, choose the most optimal technology for their businesses based on the specific requirements of the end-user applications they produce,” said Benoit Chatelard, president and CEO for digital solutions, Flint Group.

On its stand at Labelexpo Europe, Xeikon demonstrated its complementary product portfolio with the Xeikon PX3000, the brandnew Xeikon CX500 and the Xeikon CX3 running live. Set-up of the latter includes the first commercial module of Fusion, an opaque white digital screen printing unit. Fusion Technology brings closer to reality the promise of fully automated label manufacturing, and combines printing with digital embellishment of labels and packaging in a single, one-pass and fully digital production process.

True to its continuous and forwardlooking development strategy, Xeikon confirms the commercial availability of Fusion.

Additionally, Xeikon presented the latest generation of its market-leading X-800 digital front-end, the beating heart of Xeikon’s entire line of dry toner and UV inkjet digital printing presses.

“The Xeikon X-800 is now even more intuitive and is differentiated by its open standards and modular set-up. It enables superior and consistent print quality in combination with second to none flexibility and variable data applications. XML-based automation and integration ensure that more jobs are processed faster with minimal human intervention, which improves accuracy, ensures repeatability, and reduces errors, resulting in industryleading productivity,” Chatelard

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

69 explained. “The latest generation of the Xeikon X-800 digital front-end is the result of continuous improvement and innovation based on direct feedback from our most successful customers.”

“Xeikon is dedicated to digitalize print manufacturing through continuous innovation and next-generation technology developments which are ready for the future. Visitors to our stand at Labelexpo Europe, where we are demonstrating no less than three presses including the brand-new Xeikon CX500, will clearly see the results of our efforts. And we look forward to sharing details on our unique customer services approach and aXelerate program. Our goal is to help customers start, manage and optimize their printing and converting businesses, and help them develop applications and build their business on Xeikon presses. Our customer service approach is application driven, and the market is reacting very positively to this all-encompassing approach.”

HP introduces solutions to enable converters to digitally print any label At Labelexpo Europe 2017, HP Inc. announced a new portfolio of solutions for digital printing and embellishment of labels in any quantity for any application, in another industry-leading move to transform labels and packaging printing from analog to digital, enabling converters to profitably grow their businesses into new markets.

HP used Labelexpo for the soft launch of the HP Indigo GEM, the breakthrough one-pass digital embellishments solution, is now available for pre-ordering. Integrated with the narrow-web press HP Indigo 6800, the GEM produces highly decorated labels simply and efficiently.

Any label for any job, printed digitally Inline with the HP Indigo WS6800, the HP Indigo GEM is a fully digital one-pass printing press for embellishing with foil, screen, tactile, varnish and other special effects, using one workflow, one operator, and one design file without the need for

tooling. The HP Indigo GEM utilizes GEM Coat and GEM Clear, sold by HP Indigo. Developed with JetFX, shipping of the GEM is expected to begin in the spring of 2018.

New opportunities with highresistance labels Pack Ready for Labels is a new solution supporting the production of high performance, high-resistance labels to help meet the industry’s highest standards, including for household and chemical products. It includes an upgraded Inline Priming Unit as an option on the HP Indigo WS6800 Digital Press and supplies including varnish and primer that will be sold by Michelman.

The new Inline Priming Unit also delivers enhanced press utilization, and better serviceability.

New tools for workflow and automation The HP Indigo WS6800 together with the HP Indigo GEM will be powered by the new HP Production Pro for Indigo Labels and Packaging.

With five times faster processing, HP Production Pro delivers higher productivity, scalability and simplicity for any job, including handling large volumes of variable data printing.

HP Production Pro enables converters for the first time to scale their business, and centrally manage fleets of HP Indigo label presses, while connecting the press to automation tools including HP PrintOS, MIS systems and the Esko Automation Engine QuickStart for Labels.

HP Indigo and Esko are beginning an enhanced cooperation following a successful 10-year relationship. HP and Esko have incorporated the Esko Color Engine into HP Production Pro and are extending the cooperation to resell the new Esko Automation Engine QuickStart for Labels, an entry-level solution that optimizes printing and allows converters to ramp up prepress productivity in a simple and cost-effective manner.

Secure print workflow with Hybrid Press Support within Automation Engine With Esko Hybrid Press Support, leading Swiss manufacturer of high-end packaging Permapack has been able to achieve flexibility and standardisation at the highest level.

The tool is a component of Esko Automation Engine, designed to automate the prepress workflow of jobs using different printing

Labels and Packaging Innovation Asia • Oct/Nov 2017

70 advertising agency, sales, work preparation, pre-press and production – are working with one and the same file. This means a high level of reliability in the correction and approval process. Via the Viewer, all parties involved have the opportunity to compare the versions optimally.

processes. This means that now only one production file is required for hybrid print jobs, containing the parameters for the various printing processes. These are recognised within the workflow and take their own individual, predetermined path in order to automatically obtain the specific print settings. With this solution, Esko has been nominated for this year's ‘Award for Innovation’ at the Label Industry Global Awards.

"Process reliability in comparison to manual production is disproportionately higher with the Automation Engine and Hybrid Press Support,” says Mark Lehmann, Chief Technical Officer at Permapack.

“Since implementing the solution, our packaging production speed has increased by 25%. As there are fewer manual settings required, the amount of operator errors has also decreased. This is an absolute must in our industry today.” Permapack took an important step towards process security and automation in its packaging production process a year ago, when it implemented Automation Engine and WebCenter for online approvals.

For Permapack the investment in automation solutions as a modern packaging manufacturer is essential, especially as the price situation is still critical at the Swiss production site due to the high exchange rate for the Franc. This means that solutions from Esko help to compensate for this disadvantage of location thanks to the benefits of automation. Permapack deploys Hybrid Press Support for flexo, screen, book and digital print jobs. This includes labels and sachets for food and cosmetics applications as well as laminate tubes for beauty care products. Simplifying its prepress workflow has led to significant standardisation and flexibility for hybrid print jobs at Permapack. Each printing process would otherwise require its own production file to be guided separately through the workflow. This has previously taken up precious time and been a source for errors, compromising the production flow, particularly for smaller runs and tight delivery deadlines.

Secure workflow for all parties with Automation Engine and WebCenter Permapack has installed a solutions package with Esko to cope with the rapid increase in print design work being carried out with the help of an automation software package. An important advantage for Permapack is that all internal and external parties involved in the project – customer,

Labels, tubular laminates, sachets, bags, films as well as wrap-around labels and much more are produced in the in-house print shop (77 conventional printing units and two digital printing systems from HP Indigo). The special challenges include data preparation for the sophisticated designs from the large range of customers with multiple individual versions as well as the varied finishing types that are possible on the 10-colour hybrid machines.

The database stores far in excess of 5000 cutting dies, as well as around one thousand format drawings for flexible packaging options. Once the SmartMarks have been created and approved, they can be retrieved over and over again without errors.

Automation Engine The core of the Esko prepress workflows is the Automation Engine, a modular workflow server that automates projects and processes in pre-press. It not only ensures a higher level of efficiency, greater throughput, but is designed in all aspects for the daily challenges that printing professionals are confronted with, by increasing quality, reducing the likelihood of errors and lowering process costs. The Automation Engine has a scalable and easy-to-operate client/server architecture. It can also be seamlessly integrated into any business system.

About Permapack Permapack is a successful Swiss production and supply firm under family ownership. Permapack, based in Rorschach, is multi-faceted: In the six application areas of non-food, food, cosmetics, construction, industry and retail, products such as self-adhesive labels, composite and packaging films, laminate tubes, adhesive tapes, sealants, DIY and garden items are produced and marketed. With 400 employees, Permapack achieved a turnover of around 112 million Swiss Francs in 2016.

THE PERFECT SYNTHESIS OF INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY

Frontal Dual trolley

Combi drying system

Fully encapsulated Fully automatic

HIGH PERFORMANCE. BEST PRINT. WWW.UTECO.COM

The NXS 300 is outlined by a modular ultra-compact design, suitable for very short-runs.

NXS 300 is equipped with unique and innovative solutions.

Combi drying system: Powerful compact energysaving system that allows a strong reduction of noise thanks to the combi technology.

Frontal Dual trolley: Versatile trolley for extremely fast job changes and trolley set-up. With this system you can change the cylinder, the inking system, or both at the same time.

Printing Units: the printing units are fully encapsulated to reduce VOC emissions and noise pollution.

Automatic positioning of the doctor blade and ink tray.

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