With a great show of resourcefulness, a few days after the announcement of the cancellation of Labelexpo, Durst announced that from 26 to 29 April at its futuristic headquarters in Bressanone, there would be an event dedicated to customers organized with partner companies comparable to a small fair for the world of labels and flexible packaging
A winning format, the one launched by Durst and its partners, which was highly appreciated by the market, and which, as confirmed by Cristoph Gamper, CEO of the Durst Group and Thomas Macina, Global Sales Manager Label & flexible Packaging, was born as an opportunity to seize to fill the void left by a missed, and much awaited event, such as Labelexpo Europe, postponed to September 2023.
A format full of events within the event but fluid, as they say nowadays, with technical presentations of the technological solutions installed in the large Durst demo center. Here, in addition to the home technologies, and in particular the TAU RSC platform in its three versions, the ABG finishing machine was also presented, along with all the products and services provided by the event’s partners: Avery Dennison; Actega; Fedrigoni; Omet, which with Durst has developed in partnership a hybrid machine for the label sector; UPM Raflatac and Scribos.
Durst strategies for the Italian market
“We are fortunate to have a venue that allows us to be able to host an event like this”, tells us Alberto Bassanello, Durst’s Italian sales manager, who is personally deepening his knowledge of the label sector. Until last year, in fact, Durst had entrusted the marketing of technologies for this sector to LIRMAprint, with which the collaboration will continue but only as an agent.
“This choice derives from Durst’s desire to personally manage a market that has enormous potential. Already in the first meetings with Italian label makers and converters we had very positive feedback. Seeing customers happy to be able to speak directly with the manufacturer of the technology gave us enormous pleasure”, adds Bassanello, who, like the whole label world, was eagerly awaiting the Brussels event. “Despite the last minute cancellation of the Fair in Brussels with Durst Expo Label 2022 we were however able to welcome various label makers from both Italy and the rest of the world for a 4-day event focused on technologies, materials, trends, strategies and motivational aspects that made this event truly unique”, concludes Bassanello.
During the event, the participants had the opportunity to visit the production department. A journey behind the scenes that allowed us to better understand the value of the technologies that we usually often see presented at the fair or in the showroom. Durst space, in particular, is an environment under the banner of Kaizen philosophy: the heart of all the printing technologies proposed by the company is made directly thanks to an internal mechanical workshop and to the latest generation machinery, on which are manufactured the pieces considered strategic to guarantee the quality of Durst brand solutions.
Live demo and insights into technologies and materials for label printing
The protagonist of the beautiful Durst showroom, where all the printing technologies of the South Tyrolean manufacturer are present, undoubtedly the TAU 330 platform in the two RSC E versions, with low migration inks, and the RCSi hybrid, with flexo modules. Available in three web widths of 330, 420 or 510 mm, this machine allows not only the printing of labels but also of flexible packaging. During the event, the performances of TAU RSCi were presented by Martin Leitner, Product Manager Labels & Packaging Printing. TAU RSCi is ideal for medium to large runs thanks to a print speed of up to 100 meters per minute. It also allows the insertion of flexo stations online, both before and after the digital printing unit. The use of special materials with the addition of a primer or the combination of UV inkjet and flexo printing allow to expand the achievable applications, such as large white solids printed in flexo.
The added value of Durst printing technologies is also the possibility of exploiting the potential of the proprietary Workflow Label software and the Durst Analytics monitoring tool to manage and control the production flow at all stages. Among the software solutions engineered by Durst there are also several interesting options for business development, such as Durst Smart Shop dedicated to e-commerce. A software that allows the printer to enter the world of online sales with a modular system, based on the web, and ready to use.
Matt Burton of ABG International, a British manufacturer of technologies for the embellishment and finishing of labels and flexible packaging, presented the Digicon model, a bestseller for ABG which has installed over 1000 units worldwide, and which goes well with digital printing presses by Durst. The line presented in the showroom during Durst event allows semi-rotary die-cutting, but also embellishment effects such as lamination, decoration and perforation, and is ideal for both the world of labels, shrink sleeves but also flexible packaging.
Marco Panzeri, Digital Hybrid Product Manager at Omet, another technological partner of the event, presented the potential of the hybrid printing concept developed by the Lecco manufacturer. This is a system that sees the integration of the Durst RSCi digital printing module within its top-of-the-range XFlex platform. This integration gave birth to the range of hybrid printing machines of XJet series, a concentrate of high technology able to combine the best of digital printing with the best of traditional printing technologies (flexo, gravure, offset) and finishing and converting modules. The Omet XJet lines are also equipped with Durst Digital Label workflow. “Hybrid technology is undoubtedly ideal for companies that need flexibility, who do not want to foreclose on the possibility of development in the future, since today the potential of these machines is still to be discovered. In the design of the new hybrid machine we have included all the technological know-how at our disposal in the traditional printing modules, in the die-cutting and converting phases and also in quality control. In addition, we have developed some specific solutions for the world of digital printing”, says Panzeri.
Paolo Grasso presented Actega’s digital finishing solutions, in particular Ecoleaf dedicated to the label sector. Ecoleaf is a totally plastic-free process: a definitely disruptive solution on the market that is proposed as a replacement for traditional laminating systems. The Ecoleaf system is based on the use of a pigment that can be overprinted to obtain a rainbow effect of metallic colors, including gold. This solution can be integrated inline into analog and digital presses or finishing devices. EcoLeaf includes a printed trigger image and a metallization unit that applies only the exact amount of metal needed to the trigger image. The result is the total elimination of the foil, which offers significant economic and sustainability benefits.
Avery Dennison, Fedrigoni and UPM Raflatac, the three producers of self-adhesive materials that were partners of Durst Expo Label event, in addition to providing their substrates for the printing tests carried out in the showroom, presented their respective corporate visions on sustainability and strategies for the label sector. Also very interesting are the solutions for brand protection and anti-counterfeiting proposed by Scribos, a company of the Kurz group, which in the mix of printed technologies and digital platforms guarantees the protection of brands and their products from false reproductions.
Face to face with Alberto Bassanello director of the Italian sales division, Durst Group
What world did you discover thanks to the fact that you became direct distributors of your label printing machine?
“Labels is an extremely dynamic sector, with very competent customers who are able to understand the added value of digital UV inkjet printing. Therefore a market that shows a very interesting growth potential, especially as regards our TAU technology”.
Is the TAU in its various versions a machine that can also open up market horizons for sectors such as commercial or paper converting?
“Without a doubt Tau, thanks to the different models that make up the range, can meet the needs of customers entering the world of digital labels but also of industry. As far as paper converting is concerned, we have dedicated equipment with water-based inks, both multi and single pass”.
Why the choice to propose this event with your partners and not to exhibit at Print4All?
“This event was organized to offer an interesting alternative to all customers who had already decided to visit LabelExpo Europe to discover the technological innovations. Faced with the cancellation of the trade fair, with this event we offered them the opportunity to explore important issues regarding digital technological innovation. As far as Print4all is concerned, we had not planned our participation, thinking we were committed to organize our presence at Label Expo”.
An exceptional guest: when motivation fuels success!
National and international clients had the pleasure of witnessing the intervention of Tamara Lunger, a South Tyrolean mountaineer, protagonist of important conquests of world peaks, including several of the fourteen 8000m peaks in Nepal, who involved the public in her fascinating stories, rich of passion and adrenaline. These were also extremely challenging moments, which put Tamara in front of difficult decisions to make, providing the entrepreneurs present at the event with a parallelism with their activities by talking about successes and difficulties, joys and fears, which unite sport and doing business.
