The show, held at Brussels Expo, runs from Tuesday to Friday this week, with some 600 exhibiting companies showcasing their wares.
Key themes around the show included sustainability initiatives including materials and waste reduction, automation, colour matching, and added-value embellishments. Digital and hybrid label printing also featured in many exhibits.
The overall theme of the show is ‘move your business forward’.
Biggest exhibitor HP announced the 200th sale of its HP Indigo 20000 web press, to Slovenian digitally printed label specialist LabelProfi.
HP Indigo general manager Alon Bar-Shany said that Indigo was now the largest hardware vendor in the label industry “analogue or digital”.
The firm’s Digital Pouch Factory was drawing crowds on day one, and HP also announced a new alliance with Agfa for brand protection and security printing. ‘HP Secure Studio powered by Agfa’ made its debut at the show, initially targeted at the labels and packaging market to create variable security features embedded in the package design.
Other news from the show included:
Heidelberg’s Gallus business launched a 430mm-wide single-colour Digital Printbar, which uses Ricoh Gen5 recirculating printheads and can print “highly opaque” white up to 10microns thick. The Digital Printbar will be available early next year, it was shown on a Gallus Labelmaster but can also be integrated with the Labelfire hybrid inkjet press. A new quick-change rotary die-cutting unit for the Labelmaster was also on show.
Epson launched a new range of ColorWorks printers with the C6000 industrial series of 4in and 8in models, including what Epson claimed was “the world’s first” colour printer of this type equipped with an auto-peeler for print and apply applications. The new Surepress L-6534 VW label press, which prints at up to 50m/min, was on show for the first time in Europe.
Flint Group is working with GEW to boost adoption of LED printing technology by making it easier for customers to invest. Flint will invest in the lamps, and then be paid back over time through its ink supply contract.
Also at the show, Dublin-headquartered Watershed Group chief executive Liz Waters officially signed up for Flint’s Vivo Colour Solutions colour management system at the show. Vivo gives customers access to 180,0000 spot colour ink formulations and associated aniloxes, and promises rapid ROI with a range of annual tariffs available, depending on usage.
Durst launched the Tau RSCi, a new design of press able to produce up to 3,060sqm/hr. It is available in three widths: 330mm, 420mm and 510mm and Durst described it has having industrial scaleability and “flexo-like” production capacity.
Konica Minolta marked the 450th installation of its AccurioLabel presses at the show, and showcased the latest model on its booth: an AccurioLabel 230 featuring a flexo station for printing white inline.
Xeikon has launched its FleXflow digital pouch production process – as pioneered by CS Labels in the UK – for the production of runs from one to 20,000 pouches, and the firm also announced a new integration with UPM Raflatac and ‘internet of packaging’ company Magic Add for the production of smart labels with unique identifiers in runs up to millions.
