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Showing posts from July, 2011

Kodak to showcase entire packaging portfolio at Labelexpo 2011, Stand 9F46

It is not just expertise in labels that Kodak will be showcasing at Labelexpo Europe 2011 . Spanning two stand spaces (Hall 9 Stand 9F70), visitors will be able to see the company's entire range of solutions for the packaging world with a focus on the highly interdependent relationships between packaging production and the brand owner. “'What can your products do for my business?' is a question we are often asked and it is something that we set out to answer on our stand,” said David Croft, Packaging Segment manager for Kodak in Europe. “Of course the answer lies in who asks the question. A production manager wants to know about efficiency savings, time to colour, dot size, smoothness of vignettes and ink lay down whereas a brand manager is really interested in shelf impact, creative opportunities and consistency of his image – the Kodak portfolio provides solutions and answers to each of these customers and many in between.” A broad product portfolio on display at

FINAT to Showcase Label Community Programmes at Labelexpo Europe

Linking the global label community The association’s stand, P40 in Hall11, will serve as meeting point for members and prospective members and will feature a series of new and existing programmes aimed at the international self-adhesive label community. This year’s edition will see the release of the completely revised Educational Handbook , that will be made available in electronic pdf version edition to FINAT Members as part of the associations on-going education programme. The Handbook will be added to FINAT’s virtual library of educational, technical and marketing documentation that is available to (prospective) members from the associations new FINAT Website and Community that was launched recently. At the show, members and prospective members will be invited to (join and) complete their personal profile and become part of the on-line FINAT Community. Over the coming 12 months, new functionalities will be added to this community to allow members to network, obtain and share kno

Labelexpo Europe: Excitement Builds for Operators' Day

Excitement Builds for Operators' Day Operators’ Day is organised by FINAT and its affiliated national label associations in Europe, in association with Labelexpo. The event, that will be held on the Shows Closing Day, Saturday 1 October (tickets will be valid as of Friday afternoon 15.00 hrs.), is aimed at production personnel of label companies visiting Labelexpo: those workers involved in design and prepress, plate production, press operation (conventional or digital) and converting (including die cutting, slitting, rewinding). As the name suggests, it is dedicated exclusively to showing operators new solutions, processes and practices that will help them improve how they work.     The tailored programme will introduce operators to a special Show Trail featuring member companies exhibiting at the show, and will feature an educational competition with prizes awarded at the closing ceremony. The Operators Show Trail will include a variety of aspects associated with the

Atlantic Zeiser and Hugo Beck forge a technology partnership for high-end mailing solution VERSAMAIL

Atlantic Zeiser’s cost-effective finishing and mailing system is the ideal extension to card manufacturers’ personalization environments. VERSAMAIL offers running speeds of up to 28,000 products per hour – Hugo Beck is to become a development and production partner.   Atlantic Zeiser offers complete end-to-end systems for modular and highly secure card solutions and will in future be working even more closely together with Hugo Beck GmbH & Co. KG, based in Dettingen/Erms, Germany. Carl-Michael Heüveldop, Vice President of Card Systems at Atlantic Zeiser and Horst Heimann, Managing Director at Hugo Beck, have signed a comprehensive collaboration agreement on the ongoing development and production of high-end mailing solution, VERSAMAIL. Hugo Beck has been a supplier to Atlantic Zeiser for many years, and has outstanding expertise in the field of packaging machine construction. VERSAMAIL is part of the company’s portfolio of products for high-quality and cost-effective card pe

KODAK NEXPRESS SX Digital Production Color Platform now available and shipping worldwide

The new KODAK NEXPRESS SX Digital Production Color Platform with Print Genius is now available and shipping worldwide.  The platform offers exceptional quality and productivity, and has been designed to meet the needs of commercial printers, direct mail houses, in-plant printers, and data centers. New features include speeds up to 131 ppm, a longer sheet size (660 mm/26''), smaller ink particle size with the new KODAK NEXPRESS HD Dry Ink,  new Fifth Imaging Unit Solution Light Black, and a new matte printing effect option.   At 660mm/26'', the long sheet option delivers 27 percent more printable area. The benefits of this longer sheet include reduced waste and increased productivity, and enable new applications such as six-page brochures, posters, larger dust jackets for books, and a variety of labels. “The NEXPRESS SX Platform continues to build on the philosophy of doing more with one press; the technology innovations on the platform are backwards upgradeable

Cargo terror bomb spurs new Label Lock™ launch: tamper evident tape to assist shippers and screeners

      The by now infamous plot to detonate an ink cartridge bomb over the eastern seaboard of the USA has prompted a thorough review of aviation security, and particularly in the area of cargo, freight and parcel shipping.   In turn, this has prompted the latest Label Lock™ product launch.   With increasing calls for more comprehensive ‘known cargo’ screening, Security Labels International, the company manufacturing the famous Label Lock brand, have now launched their unique version of tamper evident security tape.   Hugo Gell, Sales Director, said this week: ‘Clearly there is a need to secure screened cargo between the point of screening and its delivery to airside. Known cargo shippers need to ensure nothing can be added to or removed from the consignments before take-off. Shrink film is just not enough. Regulatory bodies have been looking very closely at this as a matter of urgency, and all forms of international cargo, freight and parcel shippers have been revi

ROTOCONTROL Introducing Sensing and Verification System at Labelexpo Europe 2011

Four ROTOCONTROL Machines will be exhibited in Brussels 28 September - 1 October 2011 in Stand 7M105 .   ROTOCONTROL today announced the SVS (Sensing and Verification System) option will be introduced at Labelexpo Europe 2011 in Brussels, the world's largest event for the label, product decoration, web printing and converting industry. The SVS features powerful algorithms to detect repeated printed images on most material types including clear on clear, IML and butt-cut labels to provide missing label and matrix detection feedback to the machine. Secure sensing technology is key to providing customers with accurate counting.     In Stand 7M105 ROTOCONTROL will also demonstrate leading-edge Finishing technology including the flagship RSC Vertical Inspection Slitter/Rewinder, RSD Die Cutting, and the RSP Single Pass 100% Security Inspection. 100% servo drives from Bosch Rexroth assures precise, automatic tension control and high speed - trademarks of all ROTOCONTRO

PAGO wins Finat Label Award

Finat is the international association of the self-adhesive labelling industry and holds an annual label competition. The event took place for the 31st time this year. Nine Pago labels made it to the final category nominations. One label achieved first place in its category and was also distinguished as winner of one of the four major groups. This year the Finat label competition attracted a record participation level of 360 project entries, submitted by 50 companies from all over the world.   The extremely attractively designed and perfectly printed "Just Malve" label won first prize for Pago in the Printing Processes group. Here marks were particularly awarded for print quality, execution and design implementation. In this respect especially, the "Just Malve" labels achieved top marks, prevailing against other nominations. <<  Winner in the "Printing Processes" group of the Finat Label Competition 2011: "Just Malve" – Self-

Labelsprint Announces First Xeikon 3500 Purchase in UK

Labelsprint Ltd, Rhyl, North Wales, has announced the purchase of the UK’s first Xeikon 3500 digital colour label press. The machine, officially launched to the UK market at IPEX 2010, provides for a wider media width than other Xeikon label presses, offering Labelsprint significant opportunities to run both wider and longer label runs and to print smaller format products more efficiently and more cost effectively.     “I knew when we were being shown the Xeikon 3500 for the very first time at an industry demonstration in Belgium that it was the machine that we needed to rise above the rest of the digital market,” said Gary Lovell, Sales Director of Labelsprint.     “As the leader in the digital label printing sector we have to appreciate that our production solution is not simply about producing short runs at a lower cost than everybody else. That is not going to continue as a sustainable business for very long. Whilst other companies in the digital label market only covet

ProLiner PP30: French label printer Aset-Bidoit toasts the latest-generation liner

With an innovative outlook and respect for the environment, French label printer Aset-Bidoit is on the same wavelength as UPM Raflatac with ProLiner PP30. According to General Manager Eric Groshens , “It seemed an obvious thing for us to do: to innovate and come up with solutions that better responded to our clients’ productivity requirements.” Profitable, recyclable and recommended In addition to the productivity gains for printers and packers using a thinner labelstock – like more labels per roll, fewer roll changes and higher speeds – ProLiner PP 30 offers an environmentally sound alternative to siliconized glassine .    Says Marketing Manager at Aset-Bidoit, Christelle Dubois : “Nowadays our customers pay to dispose of their traditional backing material, but with ProLiner PP30 they can make good use of it. We believe in the value it adds for our customers – we started recommending it to them last year.”    Rather than paying for landfill, UPM Raflatac’s RafCycle ® program all

FINAT Congress 2011: a new President, an industry roundtable and leading label companies celebrated

The 2011 FINAT Congress proved a major success, with the appointment of a new President, a raft of awards handed out to top-performing label companies, and the hot topics of the label industry debated at a roundtable. The event was staged on June 8-10 in Giardini Naxos, Italy, and attracted around 380 delegates from 150 companies.   Rewarding success in the label industry  Delegates enjoyed the presentations made to the winners of the FINAT Label Awards and the Congress Logo Design Competition.   FINAT General Assembly Retiring President, Andrea Vimercati, highlighted the organization’s main achievements over the past 12 months, such as the new committee structure, the continuous success of FINAT’s Young Managers Club (now in its third year); the updated Educational Handbook, to be ready in digital format for Labelexpo in September;  the new FINAT Yearbook and, of course, the new 2.0 website and community – plus the upcoming ‘online association portal’ agreed with

ROTOCONTROL Secures First Order In GCC From Kimoha

Order received for an RSC Slitter/Rewinder Inspection Machine with a Nikka Research Vision System .   ROTOCONTROL today announced the receipt of the first purchase order in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) from Kimoha, a pioneer in the manufacturing and marketing of Self Adhesive Labels and Flexibles headquartered in Dubai.     Mr. Michael Aengenvoort, ROTOCONTROL Business Development Manager, met with Mr. Vinesh Bhimani, Managing Director and Mr. Wolfram Gruening, Executive Director on-site at Kimoha. Ordered was an RSC Slitter/Rewinder Inspection Machine with a fully integrated Vision System from Nikka Research.     Mr. Vinesh Bhimani, Managing Director of Kimoha commented: "I originally met with ROTOCONTROL at Labelexpo India. As a result of increase in production demand, we needed to expand our Finishing Machine capacity. We opted for the ROTOCONTROL RSC due to its integration with the Nikka Research Vision System, the Vacuum Splice Table option enhancing Ope

PepsiCo Beverages Canada Unveils the 7UP EcoGreen™ Bottle, Canada's First Soft Drink Bottle Made from 100 Percent Recycled PET Plastic

Building on its journey to become a leader in innovation and environmental sustainability, PepsiCo Beverages Canada today announced the introduction of the 7UP EcoGreen™ bottle, Canada's – and North America's – first soft drink bottle made from 100 percent recycled PET plastic.     The development of the 7UP EcoGreen bottle is a significant achievement for PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) and a breakthrough for the Canadian beverage sector because the company has identified a way to couple existing technology with the best sources of recycled PET plastic and best-in-class processing techniques to produce a 100 percent recycled PET, food-grade bottle that meets all regulatory requirements and is of the highest quality.  Creating a bottle made from 100 percent recycled plastic for soft drinks is more challenging than creating a bottle for non-carbonated beverages because of the stress on materials from carbonation pressure.      By introducing the 7UP EcoGreen bottle in Canada,

Daco SR330 Inspection Rewinder Installation Tver, Russia

Printing house “Laguna” specialises in producing both filmic and PSA labels.  The technical capability of Laguna allows it to produce labels of any complexity and to print on any self adhesive substrates.     During April 2011 UV Service engineers installed and trained the operators in the use of a Daco SR330 rewinder, manufactured by British company Daco Solutions at premises of Laguna.     Laguna`s head of production department, Igor Kargaltsev is highly satisfied with the choice of Daco equipment. The Daco SR label inspection / slitter rewinder provides flexible working capabilities combined with high productivity.     The construction includes quick-set rotary slitting unit with lateral adjustment and the BST electronic web guide provides flawless rewinding of the rolls.     Source: http://www.daco-solutions.com

Pepsico Central America goes for Sacmi-RFST technology

Worldwide beverage giant Pepsico – the producer of brands such as Pepsi Cola, Gatorade, Tropicana, etc – has put its trust in Sacmi to boost its labelling department at its plant in the Dominican Republic, a key production centre for the Central American market.     The installed machine is an automatic modular rotary labeller of the RFST (Roll Fed Sleeve Technology) type. One of the key features of this technology is the laser system: its outstanding shrink-wrap performance allows the wrap-around labels to be sealed starting directly from the on-roll film. With RFST, labels are created and applied directly on the bottles in a single process that significantly increases efficiency and saves on materials and energy.       More specifically, the machine installed at Pepsico – Frito Lay Dominicana S.A. applies heat-shrunk wrap-around plastic film labels on 591 ml Gatorade bottles, at rates of up to 36,000 bottles per hour. The model, an OPERA 400 33T RFST, successfully pa

Gravure solutions from Comexi Group

With the acquisition of Acom’s business, the well-known Italian company and expert in gravure presses manufacturing, Comexi Group has confirmed its dedication to becoming a global market player in the flexible packaging machines market. The company Comexi Converting Solutions, based in Italy, will design and commercialise gravure products under the Acom brand name.   Comexi Group’s new company Comexi Converting Solutions (CCS) continues Acom’s tradition of manufacturing top quality gravure presses with two lines: RG Platinum and RG Excel. Thanks to their flexibility, these two lines cover the needs of several different markets including food packaging, labels, security, pharmaceutical and wall paper.   In the last few months, top level customers, both in Europe and the USA, have reiterated their trust confirmed their confidence in Comexi Group by placing various orders which are already in production in the CCS factory in Piacenza (Italy). All Acom machines are designed a

ESP and Kodak Deliver True Partnership and Best in Class Workflow

ESP Colour states that KODAK Unified Workflow Solutions help deliver financial benefits and ROI ESP Colour credits increased sales of £11.6m in 2011 to KODAK PRINERGY Rules-Based Automation Software (RBA).  The company attributes the successful financials to its innovative KODAK Unified Workflow Solutions with rules-based automation and full integration. With 60 staff on its Swindon site and an average of 3.6 million impressions per week across a range of B2 and B1 presses, the leading commercial printer is utilising the full suite of integrated KODAK Unified Workflow Solutions.  Kodak’s support staff has supervised the integration and installation at ESP Colour of KODAK PRINERGY Workflow underpinning each and every process in the cycle from estimate to plate plus a KODAK INSITE Prepress Portal System for online job submission and remote soft proofing, KODAK PREPS 6.2 Imposition Software with JDF Certified and PRINERGY Rules-Based Automation Software templates for customized delive

Labelworld Dublin Invests in first Xeikon 3300 Label Press in Ireland

Labelworld Dublin has completed its latest investment with the purchase and installation of a new Xeikon 3300 digital label press. The new press which is currently being commissioned will give Labelworld the fastest and most productive digital label printing capability in Ireland.     Commenting on the sale of the press, Greg Neesham, Sales Director of Xeikon in the UK, said: “Labelworld has made a statement of confidence not only in the label printing market but also in the Irish economy by purchasing a high capacity, high speed Xeikon 3300 digital label press. This installation sends out a clear message that label printing in Ireland has a digital future, and a very bright future.”     Declan O’Rourke, Managing Director of Labelworld commented: “We are always striving to be at the forefront of business and technology with regard to label production solutions. Recently we have invested heavily in both a digital print department and also a graphics studio to help deliver

UAE Printers Capture New Markets Following KODAK NEXPRESS Digital Production Color Press Purchase

Increased ROI in two years and double-digit growth in digital print among benefits of Kodak investment     Diversification is the key to future success and that’s why United Arab Emirate operation Asiatic Printing Press chose to invest in a KODAK NEXPRESS SE3000 Digital Production Color Press .     “A lot of our work is book printing, but the print runs are gradually coming down,” explains Vipin Ramachandran, General Manager of Asiatic Printing Press, which installed the KODAK NEXPRESS Press. “We wanted to be able to produce shorter runs more cost effectively. With the digital and litho mix we have, we can be very flexible and that means we can help customers achieve whatever their jobs demand. We made a conscious decision for flexibility and quality. We looked at other solutions in the market, but the KODAK NEXPRESS SE3000 Press offered the most flexibility, which is a key element in our offering. It also very closely matches the color quality achieved on our KBA pres

RELEASE LINER AND THE PRESSURE-SENSITIVE LABEL INDUSTRY: The annual update on release liner’s largest market

The annual AWA Label Release Liner Industry Seminar 2010 takes place this year  in Europe, on 27th September 2011, at the Hotel NH du Grand Sablon, Brussels.   Continuing its established tradition of prefacing the label industry’s major exhibition, Labelexpo (this year also taking place in Brussels), the seminar is a key event for all associated with the release liner and pressure-sensitive label market as supplier, producer, or user.   Market status As the label industry emerges from the global financial crisis, raw material shortages and cost inflation are impacting both suppliers and converters, and margin pressures are becoming more and more intense across the value chain. With growth rates continuing to slow in mature markets, the business has become more challenging than ever before.   In-depth market analysis from AWA Alexander Watson Associates sets the seminar agenda in context, and the event brings together experts from all levels of the release liner value chai

EskoArtwork installs 100th Digital Flexo Suite at Miller Graphics in France

Powerful workflow automation tool helps to improve platemaking efficiency and reduce plate wastage.     Swedish group Miller Graphics has become the 100 th company to install the Digital Flexo Suite from EskoArtwork ( www.esko.com ) at its production site in Beauvais, France. The Digital Flexo Suite is installed in conjunction with a Kongsberg XL44 cutting table, which is specifically designed for cutting flexographic plates.     Specialized in image processing for packaging applications, Miller Graphics' Beauvais team decided to invest in the Digital Flexo Suite and Kongsberg XL44 to optimize their packaging prepress process for a variety of food and hygiene brands. “We use the Kongsberg cutting table, which was originally designed for cardboard box makers, for a variety of purposes,” explains Pascal Monsieur, Site Manager at Miller Graphics France. “It allows us to plot plans on polyester substrates, and to cut plates – in the standard way or with a bevel