After its first full year as an independent entity, XSYS examines the results of its value proposition for the global flexo prepress community and lifts the veil on what comes next.

Willstaett, Germany. 17 January 2023 – Over the past year, the central focus for XSYS has been on bringing more brilliance to the flexographic and letterpress prepress industries that it serves. While 2022 presented a turbulent and challenging climate for all businesses, XSYS continued to reinforce its position as a specialized total solutions provider with best-in-class innovations and value-adding services.

“Our relentless drive to support customers with brilliant products and first-class services that provide them with high-quality printing results certainly paid off in 2022. More than 80 new equipment installations have brought plenty of success stories from across the world, despite the many challenges caused by the severe disruptions in supply chains, the rising cost of materials and energy, and the skills shortages,” said Friedrich von Rechteren, Global Commercial Vice President of XSYS.

Driving innovation in flexo

XSYS’ innovations cover the widest gamut of any provider in this competitive space, from printing plates, plate imaging and processing equipment to sleeves and adapters. The ThermoFlexX portfolio of platemaking equipment and solutions delivers increased automation to customers, such as Kirk Group in Australia, who in 2022 boosted overall operating effectiveness with the installation of a ThermoFlexX imager combined with the full Catena+ line. This end-to-end automated solution, in combination with XSYS plates, drives efficiencies and reduces waste, taking platemaking to the next level.

The XSYS offering of printing plates for all packaging segments is also going from strength to strength. The nyloflex® FTM Digital flexo plate, developed recently to facilitate the switch from solvent- to water-based printing, was put into production by Saint André Plastique. The French flexible packaging printer immediately saw an excellent opportunity to take advantage of the plate’s superior built-in flat-top dot technology as it moved an additional part of its production to more sustainable paper-based substrates.

Another innovation that gives converters a competitive edge is the ThermoFlexX Woodpecker surface screening technology, which, in 2022, was further extended with the Nevis edition for printing with white inks on film-based substrates. The new Woodpecker Nevis screening improves overall brilliance and helps converters save on costly white inks while speeding up the imaging process.

Sustainability Mind-set

XSYS also used the year to reinforce its dedication to sustainability by introducing waste-saving products and services and developing more environmentally friendly solutions in collaboration with fellow suppliers. During a live webinar in December, the company was part of a group presenting greener solutions for central impression (CI) flexo operations enabled by next-generation technologies. Further proving this point, XSYS Germany GmbH received a silver medal rating in 2022 for its sustainability performance from EcoVadis, rated in the top 10% of manufacturing facilities.

 Adding value with services and support

Finding new ways to help customers in their daily lives is another fixed item on the agenda for XSYS. Several new value-adding initiatives were introduced in 2022, including the Flexo Solution Finder – a new online tool for faster troubleshooting and instant access to solutions to common issues in flexo print production. It was developed as part of the XSYS strategy to offer more flexibility and agility for customers, with less downtime and better quality.

To combat supply chain problems, XSYS implemented global solutions across its business to help customers succeed in the face of challenging market conditions. One example was in the US, where the manufacturing capabilities for rotec® Sleeves and Adapters in Asheville were expanded, meaning customers are now benefitting from more reliable delivery of high-quality products from the full rotec® range.

What’s next?

As we just started 2023, XSYS will continue its quest to support customers locally with innovations, solutions and services that allow them to stay ahead of the game. Over the coming months, new plates and plate processing equipment will come to market, geared towards introducing more flexibility and sustainability in flexo production while also delivering top-quality print at competitive cost levels.

Dagmar Schmidt, CEO of XSYS concluded, “First of all, I would like to thank all our customers across the globe for their trust in XSYS. The past year has proved that XSYS is a company in its own right, with solutions that are enabling customers to remain on a successful trajectory. As we kick off 2023, we look forward to launching new technologies, participating in more collaborations, and meeting the packaging community at trade shows and events. Together we can make 2023 a year of growth.”

ABOUT XSYS

Headquartered in Willstaett, Germany, XSYS operates globally and remains one of the largest suppliers offering both flexographic and letterpress prepress solutions, including plates, sleeves, processors, workflow solutions, and expert professional services, designed to help these industries move forward with increasing innovation, improved productivity and profitability, and a reduced environmental footprint.

In recognizing our endeavor to bring more brilliance into the packaging industry – into the lives of our customers and colleagues – XSYS has achieved a Silver Medal rating from EcoVadis for its sustainability. This distinction goes beyond our commitment to protecting the environment by also evaluating our dedication to social responsibility, diversity, and human rights.

The broad XSYS portfolio comprises some of the industry’s best-known brands of consumables (nyloflex® and nyloprint® plates), plate processing equipment (Xpress, ThermoFlexX, and Catena), surface screening software (Woodpecker), plate mounting (rotec®), and washout solvents (nylosolv®). Brilliant products and services for brilliant print results and business success.

Nam Viet Barcode has established a high-quality reputation in the Vietnamese market since it was created by its General Director, Mr Tran Hoai Nhan in 2008.  Located in Hi Chi Minh City, with additional offices in Thu Dau Mot City and Bac Ninh City, as well as Phnom Penh in Cambodia, the company started out as an import and trading company for barcode printing materials in both the industrial and non-industrial sectors. 

Through constant development and innovation in search of new markets, Nam Viet Barcode is now acknowledged as one of the top suppliers of TTR thermal transfer ink, TTO ink, Hot Foil, and Cold Foil labels in Vietnam.  Its current focus is on investment in technology for the label printing sector that uses modern flexo presses to meet the demand for high-quality printing products in market.

And it was this quest for top quality that first brought Vetaphone technology to the attention of Mr Nhan, whose Bobst narrow web press, installed in 2020, came with a Vetaphone corona treater as part of its original specification.  So well did the Vetaphone unit perform, that when the company began to encounter issues with an older corona unit on one of its other presses, it chose to replace it with a Vetaphone supplied by Mr Nguyễn Anh Tú of Song Song Co Ltd, Vetaphone’s agent in Vietnam.

Mr Nhan explained: “The Vetaphone unit has always performed well on the Bobst, and we cannot afford to have a press out of production because an ancillary process fails, which happened on our older machine.  It was an easy choice for us to make to replace the corona treater that was failing with a Vetaphone unit, and we can now produce top quality print products from both presses.”

With a variety of substrates being processed at Nam Viet Barcode, including OPP and PET, the company appreciates the fine control of corona treatment that the Vetaphone units and iCorona generators offer.  Holger Selenka, Vetaphone’s Sales Manager for Asia explained: “Far from setting and forgetting, a corona treater can be finely tuned for a variety of variables such as press speed, substrate thickness, and any downstream processing requirements, amongst others.  It’s Vetaphone’s unique and patented technology that gives it this unrivalled capability and offers its users a significant advantage over their competition.”

Today, Nam Viet Barcode is a flourishing business that employs more than 100 people in its 2,000sq/m headquarters and production facility.  With an ongoing commitment to improve quality and productivity to satisfy its customers’ demands, the choice of Vetaphone could not have come at a better time.  As the company looks to diversify its product portfolio it will be invaluable to know that this ancillary process can be relied upon.

www.vetaphone.com

GEW supplies Ukrainian commercial printer with a 4-lamp, 40″ UV & LED curing system for their Komori press, without charge

GEW has come to the aid of a commercial printing works in Ukraine with the contribution of a complete 40” UV & LED curing system for the company’s Komori L640+C sheetfed offset press, free of charge.

Mikhail Gluhovski, Managing Director of Pryvatna Drukarnya, contacted GEW in early 2022, to request a quotation for the supply of the system. The printing works, based in Khmelnytskyi in Western Ukraine, had been forced to halt production in February 2022 so that they could instead provide humanitarian support to some of the many refugees that were fleeing the conflict in the east of the country. This included using their two restaurants and a gymnasium, which were normally used by staff and customers, to prepare up to 1200 free meals every day for refugees, and to accommodate up to 500 people every night. These resolute and tireless efforts were carried out night and day for almost a month, while the refugees’ need was at its peak.

In the meantime, Pryvatna Drukarnya had an urgent need to get back into production in order to be able to continue as a viable business. At that point, many other printers and businesses had ceased trading. Gluhovski had considered installing a UV curing system for some time before the outbreak of the conflict, and the time then seemed right to give his company a competitive edge by increasing its production throughput and reducing waste.

Gluhovski’s original request to GEW was not for financial assistance; it was merely that the UV system could be supplied to Pryvatna Drukarnya on preferential payment terms to enable them to take on the risk of investment in such difficult business conditions. It was at this point that GEW’s family owners stepped in and offered to supply the entire UV system free of charge, in recognition of the valiant work the company had done under such difficult circumstances.

The bespoke design of the UV system was then carried out over a period of several weeks. GEW’s customary site visit to measure and inspect the press was not possible, so great care was taken to capture all of the necessary information by working closely with the customer through online video calls. Due to the very fast production speeds required from the Komori press, the UV system was designed with two high power mercury arc E4C lampheads in the machine delivery, and two GEW LeoLED lampheads in interdeck positions along the press. To mark the significance of this particular installation, the two RHINO cabinets that power the UV system have been designed and manufactured in the bold blue and yellow colours of the Ukrainian flag.

The UV system has recently been successfully installed by Pryvatna’s own engineers, who were again in close communication with GEW’s installation technicians by video link.

Gluhovski wrote to Robert Rae, Managing Director of Sales at GEW, to explain their plight and to express his gratitude: “Everyone in our region opened their doors for those who have no home any more. At one time I had 13 people from Kharkiv, with two pets, living in my apartment. Of course, business is very difficult, but we are sure about our future: we’ve never been so consolidated and so strong before. Thanks to the goodwill of our European partners, we found an appropriate way to buy cardboard and consumables for new orders and to pay off debts at the same time. We are thankful to GEW and everyone who supports our country and our economy. This will let us to return our normal production volume and to start producing UV-printed packaging.” He concludes: “It is difficult to find words to express our gratitude for such a decision.”

When GEW offered the UV system free of charge, Pryvatna Drukarnya immediately responded to say that they would in turn make a number of humanitarian donations to worthy causes in Ukraine. One beneficiary of their charitable activity was a family who had suffered particularly badly as a result of the conflict and had recently lost their home in the city of Adviivka in the Donetsk region of Eastern Ukraine, due to an enemy bombardment. They were forced to move in search of refuge and travelled over 1,000 kilometres west to the city of Khmelnytskyi, where they were rehomed through a local housing program and with financial sponsorship from Pryvatna.

Robert Rae comments: “All of us here at GEW were touched by the obvious generosity and dedication of the team at Pryvatna. It seemed a natural act that we should provide this system to them free of charge, to go some way to contribute and recognise their courageous efforts in the face of such adversity. It was also a pleasure to be able to help colleagues in our industry directly, rather than through an anonymous aid donation.”

Oleksander Bilyk, owner of Pryvatna Drukarnya, added his thoughts: “I was deeply touched and amazed by GEW’s proposal. My team and I are so grateful for this act of kindness, as not so many people in our times are willing to help not only by words, but by real action. From the whole staff of the company I say thank you GEW, for your generosity and kindness. God bless you.”

About GEW
GEW is the market-leading manufacturer of both UV Arc and LED systems for the labelling, narrow web and sheetfed printing industries. The company has world-class production facilities at its UK headquarters, subsidiaries in the USA & Germany, and an extensive network of worldwide distributors.

GEW specialises in the design and installation of UV LED systems, having introduced its latest UV LED product, AeroLED, in early 2022. Representing the next generation for UV LED curing, AeroLED eliminates the need for a chiller by air-cooling from a single remote fan to bring UV LED within affordable reach for all. LeoLED, released in 2019, is GEW’s water-cooled solution, delivering maximum power and UV dose for more demanding applications. LeoLED and AeroLED are compatible with GEW’s renowned ArcLED hybrid system.

www.gewuv.com

Local manufacturing company donates toys, clothes and more to 22 area children and young adults

Stow, OH – This holiday season, Mactac®, a Stow-based manufacturing company, is providing eight area families in need with clothes, toys, grocery and gas cards, diapers and more through the Akron Children’s Hospital ‘Adopt A Family’ program.

Mactac partnered with the hospital to identify families within the Stow and Cuyahoga Falls city limits who are in need of assistance to help make the holiday season brighter this year.

Among the Eight families, Mactac will be donating items to a total of 22 children and young adults who range in age from 13 months to 22 years old.

“Everyone deserves a memorable and enjoyable holiday – especially young children,” says Brittany Eppley, Corporate Marketing Communications Manager, Mactac. “We, like so many others in our community with kind and giving hearts, are happy to help spread a little extra joy to those who are going through a difficult time. Mactac has been headquartered in Stow since 1959 and supporting our community is extremely important to our employees.”

Mactac employees gathered items to donate throughout November and early December to deliver the donations prior to the Christmas holiday.

With 140 employees located at Stow headquarters, Mactac has been one of Stow’s largest businesses for over 60 years. The company manufactures a wide variety of adhesive film products that can be custom designed and applied to surfaces, like vehicles, walls, windows, floors, streets, sidewalks, and more.

For more information on Mactac products, partnerships or community involvement and volunteerism, call 800-762-2822, email mactac.americas@mactac.com or visit www.mactac.com.

Siegburg, Germany – Siegwerk, one of the leading global providers of printing inks and coatings for packaging applications and labels, today announced the introduction of a new UV offset ink series for the EMEA market for non-food packaging applications made of paper, board and plastic substrates: SICURA Litho Pack.

The new low odor product range follows the latest Siegwerk Exclusion Policy guidelines (based on the EuPIA Exclusion Policy) and thus is formulated without CMR Cat. 1 substances like Benzophenone. In addition, the new series is free of TMPTA (Carc. 2, not intentionally added) and PFAS/PTFE. “With the launch of our new SICURA Litho Pack series, we now offer customers in the EMEA region the next generation of UV offset inks and varnishes especially formulated for the use on cardboard and various synthetic substrates,” says Jerome Fumex, EMEA Customer Service & Product Manager Business Unit Sheetfed  at Siegwerk. From coated and metallized paper and board to aluminum and plastics, the new low odor UV series has a great versatility of use with outstanding adhesion properties also suitable for the complex substrates of the luxury industry. “Besides, SICURA Litho Pack has an excellent deinkability according to the INGEDE 11 method, and thus contributes to an easier recycling of UV-printed packaging,” adds Fumex. Therewith, SICURA Litho Pack offers the same good deinking properties as SICURA Litho Pack ECO, a recently launched sustainable UV offset ink series for non-food paper and board applications made of more than 40% of renewable and vegetable-based components.

First users confirm an excellent press run stability and a high color strength of SICURA Litho Pack. Next to a very good flowability and high ink transfer, Siegwerk’s new UV offset range showed a very stable ink/water balance even during long runs as well as a good film flexibility for post-processing. The series requires low damp settings and impresses with a very good and sharp print quality. The product range contains standard process colors according to ISO as well as a wide color set for mixing systems. In addition, the prints can be overprinted with UV varnishes or lamination, for example with the company’s newly developed range of TMPTA-free flexo and offset OPVs, which is also available now.

Due to increasing safety concerns of brand owners, leading to the strict exclusion of certain substances and raw materials used for their products and packaging, there is a need to also adjust related ink and coating formulations. With its new SICURA Litho Pack series, Siegwerk now offers its customers an enhanced UV solution based on state-of-the-art formulation technology, addressing the latest guidelines of brand owners worldwide. “The plan is that the new series will completely replace our previous UV offset series SICURA Plast SP by end of 2023 latest,” says Fumex. “Therefore, we paid attention to keep the exact same colorimetry on mixing bases to avoid any reformulation work for the existing recipes of our customers.” For all necessary process setups and calibrations, the company’s technical experts are available as usual to support a smooth changeover to the latest generation of Siegwerk UV inks.

As global leader in product safety, Siegwerk always takes all necessary actions to formulate its products based on the latest EuPIA exclusion policy guidelines (based on the EuPIA exclusion policy). Its experts dedicated to product safety and regulatory issues are continuously working on further enhancing the company’s formulations in terms of safety, health, and environmental protection. This also includes the substitution of substances and raw materials that are newly reclassified as CMR (Carcinogenic, Mutagenic and Reprotoxic).

About Siegwerk
Siegwerk, a sixth-generation family-owned company, is one of the leading international manufacturers of printing inks and individual solutions for packaging, labels, and catalogs. With more than 180 years of experience, the company has solid expertise in and knowledge of many printing procedures. A global manufacturing and service network ensures customers consistently high-quality products and services. In keeping with the company’s philosophy “Ink, Heart & Soul,” Siegwerk seeks long-term cooperation with its business partners. Siegwerk employs some 5,000 people worldwide in more than 30 country organizations and is headquartered in Siegburg near Cologne. Further information on Siegwerk can be found at www.siegwerk.com

Spencer, MA – FLEXcon Company, Inc., an innovator in adhesive coating and laminating, today announced Matthew Gardner as Chief Financial Officer of FLEXcon North America. Gardner will oversee finance, accounting, treasury, information technology, and business intelligence for the enterprise, including providing guidance to and ensuring alignment between FLEXcon’s executive leadership team, board members, and family shareholders. He will help continue the buildout of visibility into data, which will transform the company’s ability to provide transparent, timely and reliable information to customers, suppliers and employees

“We are thrilled to have Matt join the FLEXcon team. He is a very capable leader with a track record of building high-performing teams,” says Aimee Peacock, President of FLEXcon North America. “His experience will help keep FLEXcon moving forward on its path of digital transformation and resulting operational efficiencies.” 

Matt brings a breadth of knowledge and industry expertise, most recently serving as the Vice President of Finance for EFI’s Industrial Inkjet Division where he was tasked with strategic planning, new market penetration, process optimization, team building, and budgeting and forecasting. He is experienced in executing critical initiatives across multiple industries to drive and sustain profit and growth. He is a Lean Systems Green Belt and attended Six Sigma Black Belt training.

“Being part of an innovative organization that is highly focused on their customers and process improvements as a means to drive sustainable growth is very exciting,” says Gardner. “I look forward to drawing on my expertise to continue propelling the company forward.”

About FLEXcon
FLEXcon Company, Inc. is a global leader in coated and laminated films and adhesives used as functional components in manufactured goods and in graphics applications. A family-owned company for over 65 years, FLEXcon serves as a development partner to engineers and designers to bring their innovative ideas from concept to reality, for markets such as transportation, electronics, industrial, healthcare, and construction & energy, with a focus on improving human lives through emerging technology. Headquartered in Spencer, Mass., the company has operations throughout North America and Europe with distribution worldwide. For more information, visit FLEXcon.com, follow FLEXcon on LinkedIn, or call +1-508-885-8200.

Helen Mets is appointed President and CEO of Ahlstrom, effective January 1, 2023. With the company entering the next phase of growth and transformation, Helen will succeed current President and CEO Hans Sohlström, who has contributed greatly to Ahlstrom’s success since 2016. Hans will leave Ahlstrom at the end of December to pursue new opportunities outside the company. 

Helen Mets is an international business leader with over 30 years’ experience. She has a proven track record of building successful businesses and maximizing value for all stakeholders. She has held a range of senior executive leadership roles at Avery Dennison, the family company Pon, and at Royal DSM, where, as Executive Vice President of Materials, she led the successful growth transformation, carve-out and divestment of the Specialty Materials businesses. Since December 2021, she has also served on the Ahlstrom Board of Directors.  

Ivano Sessa, Chairman of the Board of Directors: “We are now starting the next phase of Ahlstrom’s transformation and the Board is excited with the nomination of Helen. Her track record of value creation in the specialty materials industry, her strong customer-focused mindset and her capabilities to drive large-scale growth and transformations through sustainable innovation make her a great fit for Ahlstrom.”  

Helen Mets: “I wish to thank the Board of Directors for its confidence in me. Ahlstrom is a company whose values and heritage I admire. I’m very much looking forward to work alongside Ahlstrom’s teams to lead our growth transformation, deliver on our purpose and strengthen the company’s position as a global leader in sustainable fiber-based specialty materials.” 

Ivano continues: “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Hans for his energetic and inspiring leadership. During his seven years at the helm of the company, first as Chairman of the Board, and then for last five years as President and CEO, Ahlstrom has more than tripled its net sales and increased fivefold its EBITDA. We wish him all the best in his future endeavors.” 

Hans Sohlström: “Ahlstrom has great culture, competences, and further growth potential. As I now hand over to Helen, I wish her and the entire Ahlstrom team the best of success.” 

Ahlstrom in brief
Ahlstrom is a global leader in combining fibers into sustainable specialty materials. Our purpose is to Purify and Protect, with Every Fiber, for a Sustainable World. Our vision is to be the Preferred Sustainable Specialty Materials Company for all our stakeholders. We serve five growing and distinctive end markets, which form the basis for our five divisions: Filtration, Food & Consumer Packaging, Healthcare, Building Materials, and Technical Materials. Our pro forma net sales 2021 for continuing operations amounted to EUR 2.6 billion and we employ some 7,000 people.

Read more at www.ahlstrom.com

One of the Czech Republic’s largest label converters Colognia press a.s. has continued its investment in Martin Automatic technology with an MBSF unwind splicer and LRD rewinder with slitting capability fitted to its new Gallus Labelmaster 440 press at Kolin, some 70km east of the country’s capital city, Prague.  The new equipment joins previous Martin nonstop unwind and rewind technology fitted to Colognia’s Gallus RCS 330 presses in 2010 and 2015.

Established in 1996 and still privately owned, Colognia press now employs 140 people and sells its labels, shrink sleeves, and flexible packaging to 18 different countries including the USA, Mexico, and Argentina.  But most of its business is in Central and Western Europe, with the strongest markets in the German speaking countries.  Major market sectors served include food and drink, chemical and cosmetic, and pharmaceutical, but the company also satisfies demand for its products from the automotive, electrotechnical and logistics areas.

According to Production Director, Dušan Převrátil: “Around 50% of our output by volume is self-adhesive labels, with blank labels and laminated tubes making up another 30% – flexible packaging, peel-off labels and shrink sleeves make up the rest.”  The company has seen turnover grow from under €10m in 2013 to more than €20m in 2021, and the graph continues upward, although there has been a degree of stagnation this year with material supply issues.

Colognia press is well equipped for self-sufficiency, with its own in-house DtP studio capable of making Asahi flexo plates (up to 174 lpi) and its own screens.  In addition to its four Gallus flexo presses, it has a digital print department that includes a Gallus Labelfire flexo/hybrid, an HP Indigo WS 8600 and an EFI Jetrion 4900 ML.  “As you can see, we have a machine for most requirements and an extensive product portfolio that embraces a variety of different substrates.  The key to it all is single-pass production inline, and for that to be most effective we need to automate roll handling,” he added.

The first Martin Automatic equipment installed at Colognia was back in 2010, when an MBS non-stop unwind/splicer and twin-spindle LRD rewinder with auto-transfer capability were installed to work with the company’s newly acquired Gallus RCS 330 combination flexo/screen servo-driven press.  The Martin machines allowed non-stop production on the highly sophisticated Gallus press, which was essential for the pharmaceutical market where point sizes were small, and characters needed to be reproduced accurately.

With a rapid payback on the Martin investment of less than two years, it was a simple decision to make in 2015 when Colognia press installed a second RCS 330 press.  This time, with less floorspace to work with, Martin’s compact MBSC and STR models offered the perfect solution.  By replicating non-stop capability on its Gallus presses, Colognia was able to offer the all-important back-up capability that many of its customers demand and improve the overall quality of its printed products.  Speaking for Martin Automatic, European Sales Manager Bernd Schopferer commented: “With their compact dimensions and full features, our MBSC (C for Compact) and STR are specially designed for smaller production environments, but they still offer fully automated roll handling for continuous running.  This is another example of Martin’s tailor-made engineering.”

And it is this capability of Martin to adapt its technology to any situation that came to the fore when the latest investment was put in place.  Already tight for space and actively seeking larger premises, Dušan Převrátil had no option but to install the new Labelmaster with its operator side close to an external wall.  The problem was that this left insufficient space at the infeed end of the press for the operator to bring the blank rolls into the Martin MBSF unit on the same side.  The solution was simple.  Martin supplied a reverse direction unwind/splicer that allows the rolls to be loaded from the opposite side.  However, this posed another problem for single-person operation, because while the new roll was being loaded, the operator could not see what was happening on the press.  This solution was simple too, with a camera fitted at the delivery end of the press feeding a monitor on the opposite side at the Martin MBSF unit.

The result dovetails well with Colognia’s declared business model that is based on Lean Manufacturing, Automation, Smooth B2B Processes, and Continuous Performance Improvement.  The company is proud of its internationally accredited standards that include ISO 9001, EMS 14001, ISO 45001, DPG, and FSC.  Its awards include ‘Packaging Company of the Year’ on three occasions – for Braille on Laminate Tubes in 2010, for Shrink Vinyl Labels in 2018, and for Laminate Tube printing in 2020.  It was also voted a ‘Responsible Company of the Year in the Czech Republic 2018’.

There is no doubt that Colognia press has one of the most diverse production capabilities in the narrow web sector, both in terms of printing techniques and converting options, all offered on various web widths.  This has been fundamental to its success and development, along with its location in central Europe with potential markets at all points of the compass.  Its flexibility and innovation are obvious from its product portfolio – what is less visible is its dedication towards process optimisation – something in which Martin Automatic technology has played a strategic part.  Concluding, Dušan Převrátil said: “It’s no wonder Martin is the industry’s preferred choice for nonstop automation – it’s reliable, easy to use, and makes an immediate difference to productivity and profitability – I believe our working partnership has been good for both companies!”

Responding for Martin Automatic, Bernd Schopferer commented: “Colognia press is a perfect example of customer and supplier working together to achieve the best solution.  All three Martin installations are different.  The first was a straightforward MBS/LRD, the second was an MBSC/STR because a lack of floorspace, and the most recent is an MBSF working in reverse to facilitate roll loading, and an LRD with inline slitting capabilities for multiple ribbons and edge trim.  Good business for both companies!”

www.martinautomatic.com

One of Poland’s leading label converters, Wiking Graf, has ordered a Mark Andy Evolution Series E5 flexo press for its new and high-tech production facility in Lodz. The family-owned and managed business, which primarily serves the pharmaceutical market, is a long-term Mark Andy user with three of the US manufacturer’s presses already operating on a triple-shift pattern.

With demand for pharma packaging continuing to rise, the new Mark Andy is part of a major investment programme that saw the company move from its downtown location to a new purpose-built facility on the outskirts of Lodz in April 2022. Speaking for Wiking Graf, owner and CEO Marek Jakubowski explained: “Our new HQ gives us more than three times the space we had before and has provided us with the opportunity to organise production in a more logical workflow. We need the new press to fulfil a growing order list that now sees our innovative products used in many European countries.”

When the new 17” (430mm) Mark Andy E5 is installed early in 2023 it will have the high-specification needed for Wiking’s work including a Vetaphone corona treater, 12 flexo print stations with GEW UV curing, chill drums, twin die-cutting stations, two compact parallel web translators, cold foil capability, a screen-printing unit, constant tension laminator, and web turn bars. The E5 also has automatic and pre-register as well as a short web path to keep set-up and job-change waste to a minimum.

A tour of the Wiking Graf production floor is unlike that of most label converters. With such a high proportion of its work dedicated to the pharmaceutical sector, Wiking’s plant list includes a variety of technology from sheet fed offset presses to folding machines, guillotines, and collators, all required to produce the printed paper instructions that form an integral part of drug packaging. With accuracy and security being two essential bywords in this market sector, Wiking has invested heavily in technology for 100% inspection across all printed products leaving the plant.

Concluding for Mark Andy Poland, Director Przemyslaw Polkowski commented: “Wiking Graf is one of our most valued Polish customers and we are looking forward to installing another high-spec Mark Andy press – this time into their new factory. It will highlight the all-round capability of the Evolution Series on specialised products like ‘peel-off’ and ‘booklet labels’, as well as Braille printing.” When the new E5 is fully commissioned and in commercial production it will ease the pressure on Wiking’s three existing Mark Andy presses, the earliest of which dates from 2008.

About Mark Andy Inc.
Mark Andy is a pioneer of the graphic arts and printing industry. As the world’s leading manufacturer of narrow- and mid-web printing and finishing equipment, it supplies leading global brands, including Mark Andy and Presstek printing presses, Rotoflex finishing solutions, as well as a complete line of Mark Andy Print Products consumables and pressroom supplies. All products are backed by the largest customer support team in the industry, minimizing downtime and helping customers be profitable, efficient and at the forefront of innovation. Mark Andy does what it takes to understand each customer’s unique business, the challenges they face and the pressures they feel. It strives to provide products and services that help customers solve their problems and solutions that go a step further, allowing them to excel in their day-to-day operations, ultimately increasing productivity and reaching their full potential.

For more information, visit www.markandy.com.