If two clues make a proof, the latest extraordinary success of Scatolificio Ceriana at Best In Show FTA Europe Diamon Awards, is the testimony that the quality path developed together with the partners Carminati & Guizzardi and Xsys Italia, is the basis for obtaining important, repeatable results over time and of high quality
A deserved victory, the one obtained by Scatolificio Ceriana in Pescantina (Vr) at the latest edition of the FTA Europe Diamon Awards, where the company managed by brothers Giovanni and Marco Barichello, with about sixty collaborators, obtained first place in the category “Corrugated Post Print, Uncoated” but above all with great amazement but just as much happiness, it won the Best in Show, which rewards the excellence of flexo printing among all the competing categories.
A recognition of print quality at a European level, which however does not arrive by chance, far from it, but is the result of a path started some time ago and which saw the fundamental collaboration of Carminati & Guizzardi pre-press and the supplier of technologies and plates, Xsys Italy.
“For us, quality is not the result of chance but of a structured path, on which we have always believed and invested, asking our suppliers to pursue a continuous improvement, and which for this reason is always evolving”, begins Giovanni Barichello.
“Timeliness, quality and service are the cornerstones of our company, and our customers choose us precisely for this.
One of our strong points is also the runnability of our boxes, designed and built with great attention in every phase, not only printing and converting, but also considering the subsequent packaging operations at the customers’ premises, where automatic machines must never stop.
All these characteristics mean that those who rely on Scatolificio Ceriana can sleep peacefully with our products, and this is also recognized on the market, where the price of the box does not become the only discriminating element in choosing to rely on us” adds Giovanni Barichello.
Proven production system and high quality guarantee
For those like Scatolificio Ceriana, the reference point for printing quality is offset, a department that was present in the company in the past, it is clear that an increasingly standardized production process is an objective of primary importance. It is not possible to leave the success of a job to chance, to the manual skill of the operator, or to a luck stroke, which sometimes can also happen. All factors that contribute to production must play their role but within a team system. Everything must be at the top, from the initial graphic design to the last stage of production, passing through the printing and converting technologies, and prepress. “We have been collaborating with Carminati & Guizzardi service for years, and we are extremely satisfied. They are very active in research & development, certainly at the cutting edge of technology, but above all with specific know-how that in our opinion is unmatched in high quality jobs. Together we have carried out, and will continue to do so, numerous printing tests to perfect the setting up of the printing systems on our production machines. We never forget the human aspect, for us absolutely strategic, with first-rate operators that do their job with great passion. Back in the company with the European award, we immediately wanted to organize a moment of celebration internally to share the important milestone achieved with all our collaborators”, Barichello continues.
A complex and winning box!
The award-winning box is particularly large as it must contain the bike racks to be mounted on the roof of a car, consisting of a single sheet of uncoated corrugated cardboard, printed, and diecut in a single pass on the Gopfert High Board Line 6-color rotary die cutter of Scatolificio Ceriana. Particularly appreciated by the jury was the perfect print register, a very clean graphics, with a great yield despite a substrate that is not so easy to print, not very flat and extremely absorbent. “We also presented jobs in the coated cardboard category, but today without being presumptuous, we think that our quality level on kraft corrugated cardboard should be positioned at a high level and we are happy that the jury has noticed it”, says Giovanni Barichello.
The company also has a casemaker, again by Gopfert with high definition, 7 colors, equipped with the same anilox and the same configuration as the other machine, so as to be able to guarantee the same quality to the customer, regardless of the machine used. An aspect that emerged during the visit to the company was that many customers, especially in the wine sector, therefore traditionally accustomed to offset printing laminated with cardboard, are now the first to push and request flexo printing for their boxes, reflecting the level of quality reached, and then when the balance is drawn, with a final saving in the price of the box, this despite the cost of flexo plates is certainly higher than offset, but in the face of long runs, or repetitive batches, depreciation is guaranteed and flexo becomes competitive, already starting from 5000 pieces.
Carminati & Guizzardi, more than a service
The collaboration between Scatolificio Ceriana and Carminati & Guizzardi flexo plate service is the basis of the recognition obtained and the result of a partnership that sees the two companies collaborate in the research & development of new solutions. “I take this opportunity to thank Marco and Giovanni Barichello because when I need to test our systems, on which we invest heavily in research & development, they are always available to make their printing machines available to us, supporting us in this research path, helping us to grow”, tells us Carlo Carminati, owner of the flexo service in Antegnate (Bg), who has just installed the new Xsys ThermoFlexX WDLS 80 Catena for washing and finishing flexo photopolymers, characterized by an innovative cleaning system for the microcells of the plates which results in a sharper, cleaner, quality print. Research & Development have always been part of the DNA of this service, as well as a certain amount of courage and desire to accept new challenges, not only from customers, but also from partners, just as happened in the case of Xsys Italia. “The gamble in this case was that we were the first to believe in the potential of this technology, which we liked right away, but for which we were afraid of not being followed in the after-sales support by Cristian Marchesini, Technical service and sales support Xsys Italia who has always been excellent in every intervention. I must say that today the remote assistance service is very efficient and we feel supported in a timely manner. I particularly appreciated the software that manages the system, particularly advanced, and the availability of Xsys to also modify some mechanical parts to meet our needs and provide us with a system tailored to our needs”, says Carlo Carminati, announcing a possible second investment of a twin plant to the one just installed, and more.
The ThermoflexX Catena WDLS 80 chosen by Carminati & Guizzardi
“Xsys is a global supplier for all packaging sectors, from flexible to cardboard, and is the only player worldwide to produce both plate and photopolymer production systems, and our focus is to offer our customers constant and repeatable quality, with a very active R&D laboratory. We are happy with the growth prospects with important customers such as Carminati & Guizzardi where it is possible to pursue a quality path for mutual growth”, says Roberto Malagù, Sales Manager at Xsys Italia, who under the brands in which in the past the current Xsys operated, has always collaborated with Carminati & Guizzardi, a company with which the first sales contract in Italy for the WDLS plant was signed, also including the supply of consumables that will fully cover the needs of the Bergamo service, for a total collaboration also at Italian and European service level, and which should represent the basis for further developments.
“ThermoflexX Catena WDLS, consisting of washing, oven, finishing and stacker, represents the synthesis of the integration process of the various steps of the flexographic plate production process, with the aim of automating the process, reducing operator intervention to ensure maximum productivity”, intervenes Cristian Marchesini who took care of the installation of the system. The system chosen by Carminati & Guizzardi allows the plate to be washed, dried, finished and let rest automatically, where the only intervention of the operator is to place the plate at entrance belt, without the need to punch it externally, thanks to an internal perforation system through 3 pinbars that guarantee the movement in continuous mode. At the end of the process, the pinbars return to their initial position automatically and without the need for maintenance. The processing unit, completely closed, favors a clean working environment without releasing fumes, and coupled to the washing system (W-washer) we find the DLS part that allows you to dry, finish and store the plates, in the version chosen by Carminati & Guizzardi equipped with 14 drawers, up to 14 plates are processed at the same time (10 in the ovens and 4 in rest position). The machine is totally 4.0, remotely connected for assistance and any software updates, and most of the interventions are planned and performed directly by the assistance service of the parent company in Belgium.
