With any trade show, the first few days are crammed with press conferences, and Drupa was no exception. However, what became evident after listening to company executives promoting their exhibits to rooms packed with journalists was the repetition of two words – ‘packaging’ and ‘partnerships’.
For as long as I have been attending Drupa, the focus has been squarely on the graphic arts and commercial printing – indeed, in earlier years, it seemed that packaging printing wasn’t wholeheartedly embraced at Drupa. But that ethos has surely been changing and this year reached a crescendo when the word ‘packaging’ seemed to be on everybody’s lips.
The reason is easy to understand.
As commercial printing’s fortunes decline, many printers see packaging as a rising star; and their suppliers are meeting the challenge by designing, adapting, modifying – and, at Drupa, vigorously promoting – their products to suit this growing segment. Exhibitors were falling over themselves to pronounce the P word!
But if packaging printing was a hot topic, so too were partnerships, as vendors increasingly endeavour to bridge the gaps between their respective technologies through joint ventures. It sometimes results in rather unexpected bedfellows!
It all started on 2 May, the day before the show’s official opening, when a press conference hosted by the iconic Benny Landa unveiled his new Nanographic Printing process.
It was a case of ‘standing room only’ as an overwhelming number of journalists thronged the room – possibly witnessing the greatest stir in the printing sector since the launch of Landa’s original Indigo press at Ipex 1993!
While the spotlight at Landa’s show fell on the versatility of digital combined with the quality and speed of offset, using water-based inks, no fewer than three simultaneous headlines were equally attention-grabbing – ‘Heidelberg and Landa enter global strategic partnership to expand digital offerings’; ‘New partnership provides manroland’s offset customers with digital printing capabilities based on Landa Nanographic technology’; and ‘Komori’s next-generation digital presses employ Landa’s Nanographic technology’.
At press conferences on the same day, Bernhard Schreier, Heidelberg CEO, and Raphael Penuela, executive VP for manroland sheet-fed, both confirmed their commitments to this ground- breaking technology and underlined the way in which partnership with Landa will benefit their customers – and both were focusing on the packaging market.
“As market leader, innovator and integrator, we’re keenly aware of our customers’ needs for high-volume production, cost-effective printing of short runs and quick turnaround times,” Heidelberg’s Bernhard Schreier told journalists. “It’s those very needs that led us to develop our benchmark Anicolor systems and our successful partnership with Ricoh on dry toner-based digital presses [Ed’s note: the latter resulted in Heidelberg’s Linoprint digital technology seen at last year’s interpack]. And it’s those same needs that now lead us to embrace Landa’s nanography for a new generation of digital presses. Our customers need both offset and digital.”
Speaking on behalf of manroland sheet-fed, Raphael Penuela remarked: “Landa Nanographic Printing technology offers the versatility of digital printing together with the qualities and speed of offset printing. It’s a great strategic fit. Our goal will be to deliver new digital printing solutions by converting our customers’ existing offset presses to nanography.”
Yet more excitement occurred when Komori and Landa officially signed a global strategic partnership agreement on the Landa stand.
Commented Yoshiharu Komori, Komori CEO: “As a provider of printing systems for the commercial and packaging markets, we see growing demand for variable data printing and personalisation, especially for niche applications. However, there’s also ever-growing demand for shorter run lengths as well as very short turnaround times. To meet these needs, we’ve embraced Landa Nanographic Printing as a powerful solution for our next-generation sheet-fed and web-fed digital systems that use water-based inks.”
Bobst – One Group; One Brand
Not surprisingly, packaging was the topic of the day on the Bobst stand.
At its press conference, Bobst announced a series of enhancements to existing product lines and services, designed to bring packaging converters closer to a world of zero-faults, low waste and high productivity.
The focus also fell on the way Bobst is organised into three business units – sheet-fed, web-fed and services – and how these activities are now being united under one brand: Bobst. The move is seen as increasing clarity for customers and improving communication channels.
Among innovations announced at the show were quality control devices that check 100 per cent of production, whether it’s print on a carton or the density of a metallised film; colour matching systems that make setting a press an offline process, with consequent time savings; and new approaches for existing systems that reduce process waste, improve net production or cut make-ready times by 10 per cent or more.
In the arena of digital technology, Bobst shared the company’s vision for digital solutions in packaging: from digital printing to converting.
From its sheet-fed BU, Bobst displayed machines with enhancements that increase net outputs, reduce production costs and reduce setting times, along with new in-line processes that help ensure delivery of ‘zero-fault’ packaging.
Two of seven new features shown on a new-generation Expertcut 106 PER die-cutter, for instance, were the Smart Feeder II and a one-touch setting feature for the non-stop grid. Other developments reduce process waste and shorten recovery time following
a machine stop, improving net outputs. These improvements also reduce the number of over-runs required, substantially increasing converters’ profit margins.
In hot foil stamping, Bobst unveiled its new press, Expertfoil 142, the only dedicated foil stamping press available in size VI format.
Flexible packaging developments on show
On the flexo front, Bobst premièred the brand-new Fischer & Krecke 20SIX press equipped with the latest smartGPS. The machine on show is one of a platform of 20SIX presses that can be customised to meet flexible packaging requirements from long-run to very short-run jobs.
For gravure, Bobst showed the Rotomec MW (minimised waste) press in a new configuration with internal washing dedicated to ultra-short-run production, as well as the well-established high-speed Rotomec 4003HS press.
On the Windmöller & Hölscher (W&H) stand was the Miraflex flexographic press that has been hailed by this German manufacturer as ‘the most successful in the world today’. The claim is backed up by hard facts – almost 200 Miraflex presses are now in operation worldwide.
At Drupa, W&H introduced the new Miraflex CL as a ten-colour press running at 600m/min, with a maximum repeat length of 1130mm, addressing the needs of the growing wide-web packaging market.
As flexible packaging designs become increasingly colourful and diverse, the trend to shorter runs gains momentum. W&H’s Miraflex range answers these market demands, combining expertise from the production of hundreds of direct-drive sleeve CI presses with knowledge of machine operation, sleeve handling and ink and substrates logistics.
This portfolio meets more than 90 per cent of demands on performance, print width and repeat lengths in today’s flexible packaging market.
Easy operation, excellent efficiency and extensive automation options make the Miraflex an exceptionally economical flexographic printing press.
Comexi – committed to the planet
Comexi was also busy underlining its commitment to leading the flexible packaging converting industry into a sustainable and environmentally-friendly future, rooted in production efficiency and high-quality converting.
In conjunction with BASF, Comexi presented its Flexo F2 press. The two companies introduced the latest in water-based inks using BASF resins, offering improved sustainability and reduced costs while maintaining high quality print.
Also aimed at the flexible packaging sector, the Comexi Offset CI8 press was unveiled. It’s built on an arrangement of up to eight printing decks around a central impression (CI) drum. These can be eight offset EB print decks, or the first and/or last deck can be a flexo deck for applying background colours or varnishes. It’s suitable for printing on plastic materials such as PE, BOPP and PET.
This exhibit underlined the core of Comexi’s strategic principles – a reduction of costs per square metre of printed material, a reduction of environmental impact thanks to the use of EB offset solventless inks, impressive line screen and great print quality (in highlights, fine screens, micro text), plus overall energy efficiency.
And here Comexi’s partner Wikoff Color plays a role. These inks offer excellent print properties and stable performance in food-grade packaging applications, adhering well to paper, board or plastic films.
Starring the Roland 700 – packaging stalwart
A key element of manroland sheet-fed’s exhibit was aimed at the packaging market.
The company’s Drupa press conference was held exactly 100 days since its purchase by Britain’s Langley Holdings, which marked a new beginning after last year’s near bankruptcy.
Noting that the packaging market is manroland sheet-fed’s strongest base, in fact representing the company’s only growth area, the focus moved quickly to the Roland 700 press – as the ‘star of the show’.
The eight-colour Roland 700 HiPrint LV on show featured all the equipment needed for attaining high productivity in the packaging environment as well as numerous inline enhancements for fine print effects and added value printing. To mention just one, a new-generation indexed InlineFoiler system allows savings of up to 50 per cent of foil.
