MAY 2017
Issue 14
CONTENTS 3
Dimitris Alexiou
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APIVITA chooses ARGO
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New PET series 24/410 FARCOM – Echo Hand Cream
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ISIMAT – Investing in the future
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New FITERMAN creams in ARGO’s printed tubes
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KORRES - Maximum brand impact
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FREZYDERM “Second Skin” SEPTONA – Baby and Woman care
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No more skin irritations PVC replacement
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“4lt Canisters” Igloo Commitment to Quality
Dimitris Alexiou and I met at the end of year 1977. A graduate of the University of Stuttgart, with a degree on Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, Dimitris began at a very early stage a successful career in Greece by taking up high positions in big industrial units in the fields of plastics and rubber. His collaboration with ARGO started as a technical consultant in matters of production organization, but further on he also undertook the electrical and mechanical study of our factory in Koropi. In 1982 he was elected on the Board of Directors of ARGO and also became a shareholder of the company. In the year 1986 he fully joined the organizational and administrative structure of the company, initially as General Manager and shortly after, as Managing Director. In 2006, he retired, however remained on the Board of Directors almost to the end, undertaking from time to time various projects, amongst others the supervision of the construction of our new plant in Romania. Over the years, our cooperation had been excellent. With outstanding administrative and technical abilities, being always righteous in his decision making, rigorous where needed, prudent, creative, and a prominent negotiator. Particularly respected amongst the employees, associates, customers and suppliers, Dimitris was a teacher and a leader to the company’s new executives. His creativity, nevertheless, was never limited to the professional arena. Devoted to his hometown, with wide social activity, he supported his family and friends, and was an excellent speaker and listener. A charismatic man who we lost very early and suddenly. An unfulfilled loss. Dimitris you are missed. ARGO’s President Dimitra Mitrogiannopoulou 3
A P I V I TA C H O O S E S A R G O APIVITA chooses ARGO for its new Sun Care and Hair Care product range.
This summer APIVITA presents its new Sun Care products for the face and body, offering natural, effective and holistic protection of the skin against the sun. With these new products, APIVITA protects the young look of the skin at any age thanks to the new, innovative complex 3D PROALGAE, a cutting edge technological outcome of a 6-year scientific endeavor within the frame of the European research program ALGAE-COM. The new APIVITA sun creams are packed in bright yellow, orange and pearly white ARGO monolayer plastic tubes, with matching silk-screen printing and matte varnish, promoting the premium nature of the product and resulting in increased visibility at the point of sale. Additionally, APIVITA has selected ARGO‘s packaging materials, from plastic tubes in a striking color range, to PET bottles for its new Holistic Hair Care product series. These products, containing a high percentage of natural ingre-dients (up to 100%), are enriched with more Greek organic extracts and all of them are 100% silicone free. The effectiveness of the new APIVITA Hair Care range is proven through 9 clinical studies while there is also a complete treatment with a combination of products for each need, not just shampoo: Pre Shampoo and After Shampoo oils, lotions, a night serum, masks, conditioners.
Being loyal to its values APIVITA is committed to the natural environment, therefore has collaborated with ARGO to offer eco-friendly and recyclable packaging materials. ARGO has been producing plastic packaging for almost 50 years and is continuously looking for innovative and environmentally responsive solutions that result in minimal impact on the environment.
N E W P E T S E R I E S 2 4 /4 1 0 New PET series 24/410 for cosmetic products
Since the 80’s ARGO has been cooperating with many Greek and multinational cosmetic companies, supplying them with a variety of packaging materials. Some of these are standard models, however there are many customized solutions offered as well. Following the current market trends, we launched a new series of bottles for personal care products. The material of choice is PET, showcasing with its transparency the filled formulas, whereas the standard neck dimensions 24/410 allow our customers to choose their cap or pump from a wide pool of available options. Our new series includes oval and round bottles of different filling volumes (oval 100ml, 150ml & 200ml / round 150ml, 200ml & 250ml), which are offered in transparent, white or amber brown colors.
FA RCO M - EC H O HAND CREAM FARCOM and ARGO expanded recently their collaboration with the Echo Hand Cream tube 75ml. Echo Hand Cream is a product with natural hydrating anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory ingredients that leaves hands soft and smooth. It is packed in a green 40mm diameter tube, with a snap on flip top cap of an equivalent color shade. FARCOM always gives emphasis on the excellent packaging of their final product and ARGO has once again proven to be a supplier that meets customer’s expectation.
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I S I M AT INVESTING IN THE FUTURE
An in line unit of flexography, silk-screen and foil by ISIMAT A closure unit by HINTERKOPF An automated supply of tubes on the machine and packaging on trays, by IWK and TEXA respectively.
ARGO, responding to the demands of today’s business evolution and following the trends of the tube’s decoration, proceeded to a new investment of € 2.5 million for the Department of printed plastic tubes. The investment comprises the supply and installation of a new state of the art automated tube printing line consisting of :
The investment was completed in March 2017, doubling the total production capacity of the department. Like this, ARGO is now in a prime position amongst the top European tube suppliers, while remaining firmly committed to the customers’ satisfaction and the continuous improvement of its products and services.
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NEW FITERMAN CREAMS IN ARGO’S PRINTED TUBES Along with the acquisition of the new ISIMAT machine for printing flexible tubes, ARGO’s tube decorating capabilities have increased significantly.
and to meet the highest quality standards FITERMAN PHARMA trusted ARGO’s tubes to meet these requirements.
FITERMAN PHARMA, one of the largest Romanian pharmaceutical manufacturers, with more than 20 years of experience in the field of Food Supplements, Personal Care and Healthcare, has recently launched several ranges of cosmetic creams on the market.
The design of the new range of tubes perfectly combines flexography printing with gold foil for an impressive look. Some of these tubes are paired with ARGO’s gold caps, expressing refinement, while others are paired with white caps, all of them having a unique design. The pure white of both the tube and the cap inspires the pharmaceutical rigors under which these creams have been created.
Always investing in technology, performance and research to create innovative therapeutic solutions
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KO R R E S - M A X I M U M B R A N D I M PA C T KORRES: Packaging Solutions of High Quality for Maximum Brand Impact
With a wide range of manufacturing technologies employed and the use of different raw materials and printing methods, ARGO has been KORRES’ choice for all the packaging materials of its new ‘Eau de Cologne’ collection. KORRES Eau de Cologne collection is destined to tone and revitalize through colorful blossoms, fresh citrus, and refreshing herbs. The new line is completed by a perfume body line scented with the notes of its Eau de Colognes; from moisturizing & perfuming shower gels to a lightweight body milk, ideal for those who wish to make their selected scent last longer. With a natural content of up to 90%, KORRES Eau de Cologne formulas contain alcohol of natural origin, while being free of synthetic compounds and phthalates. The clossure of the series, decorated with vertical stripes and an engraved KORRES logo, seals the glass bottle together with the spray pump to “lock” the freshness of the new Eau de Cologne collection. This product is accompanied on the shelf by the well known PET round amber brown 250ml bottle with the flip top cap and also a practical and friendly to the end user plastic tube for body milk, printed with dry offset technology. ARGO’s capability to offer “total brand solutions” with the advantage to choose among different packaging materials is the safe choice for the launch of a new product range. Our flexibility, the speed during development, the close communication and the fast response towards our customers’ requirements, lead to a successful result and add value to each new brand.
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FREZYDERM “SECOND SKIN” ‘Second Skin’. The ideal sun protection can be found in FREZYDERM tubes For more than 20 years, one of ARGO’s activities, is the production and printing of collapsible PE tubes. The tubes represent the perfect packaging solution for various products and needs. They can be found at home, in our purse, over the desk, as they are user friendly and one of the most common packaging for many products used daily. FREZYDERM has chosen ARGO tubes for most of its successful products. One of those is Sun Screen Velvet Body SPF 50+, is an innovative product that has won many awards due to the transparent shade leaving a velvet texture on the body. Thanks to the innovation “Second Skin Technology” the user has the feeling of a new transparent “second skin” that additionally prevents the first signs of photo aging and protects the discoloration of the skin from the sun exposure. The tube, printed with one pass from the new ARGO’s hybrid printing machine, combines flexography, silk screen and in line foiling in gold color. The most common feature for all products of the series is the gold cap with a perfect match to the tube’s foil shade.
SE PTONA - BABY AND WOMAN CARE SEPTONA, having a long experience on personal hygiene products, designed and successfully launched 2 new product ranges for baby and woman care, and trusted ARGO’s experience on the production and printing of tubes. The complete SEPTONA ‘Calm n’ Care’ baby product range with hypericum and natural extracts, includes a moisturising cream, a liquid talc as well as a protective nappy rash cream. For these 3 products SEPTONA selected ARGO’s 150ml and 100ml white tubes to emphasize the formulas’ purity, combined with white flip-top caps. The SEPTONA daily clean advanced face cleansing product range, includes a cleansing gel for all skin types with orchid and caviar as basic ingredients. For this product SEPTONA has once again collaborated with ARGO using a 150ml transparent tube with a transparent flip-top cap to make the formula visible to consumers. Moreover, the impressive and demanding offset printing on the transparent tube visualizes the formula’s basic ingredients.
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NO MORE SKIN IRRITATIONS A great Summer with fewer skin irritations In the market of Healthcare, ARGO has a long and successful history. Apart from a wide range of bottles in several shapes, volumes and materials and a diverse range of caps, ARGO has invested in the production of printed monolayer tubes in LDPE, HDPE & MDPE (50% LDPE + 50% HDPE). One category of tubes that has shown great growth in recent years, are ointments and lotions to prevent bites on humans as well as soothing products after being bitten by insects, jellyfish andor any other way. For easy use and flexibility to transfer the products in the bag or purse, at work or in the countryside, such products are mainly packed in small diameter tubes (19mm up to 35mm diameter, with or without a nozzle) and matched with a simple screw on cap or flip top in the respective diameter. Have a great Summer............... with fewer skin irritation!!
PVC REPLACEMENT PVC Replacement - Building product loyalty Therefore, last year, the already existing PET 28mm range was enriched with 2 new bottles of 25ml and 50ml that would meet our customers’ needs and expectations. The smaller capacities of 25ml and 50ml are mostly used by customers that are active as distributors in the Healthcare sector. They are distributing ARGO bottles to pharmacies that use them to pack their own formulas. With their exquisite mimic of glass and protective properties against UV rays, ARGO’s PET series with capacities ranging from 25ml to 250ml have been a success story amongst our customers that see them as an upgrade in both image and utility. Moreover, the new PET bottles of 25ml and 50ml were very well received by our customers in the crop protection market, a segment that was not previously covered by our PVC bottles.
Last year ARGO successfully completed an important change at its product portfolio, the replacement of PVC with PET bottles with a standard 28mm neck. This transition began a few years back due to reasons related to the availability of PVC as raw material, as well as several production factors. When the decision to discontinue the PVC range was taken, ARGO’s biggest challenge was finding an alternative for the 25ml and 50ml PVC bottles. 10
“4LT CANISTERS” IGLOO 4lt Canisters as construction material for an IGLOO ARGO, always sensitive to children and their education, donated 4lt canisters 38TE along with their respective caps to ACS Athens’ kindergarten for the construction of an igloo house! As the kindergarten teacher mentions:
We envisioned a reading area that travels each student out of the classroom, and becomes a warm shelter during the day. Our vision took the form of an igloo, which accommodates our reading center!
COMMITMENT TO QUALITY The recertification of ARGO according to the new version of the International Standard ISO 15378: 2015 was successfully completed in March 2017. The audit was performed by the recognized certification body SQS (Swiss Association for Quality and Management Systems).
ISO 15378: 2015 refers to the implementation of good manufacturing practice (GMP) specialized in the design, production and distribution of primary packaging material for medicinal products. ARGO has once again supported its commitment to the quality of its products and to the increased demands of its customers and markets.
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ARGO S.A.
1st km Koropiou - Varis str., P.0.BOX 87, 19400 Koropi, Greece Tel. 0030 216 4003100 Fax: 0030 210 6625500 e-mail: sales@argo-sa.gr
GREECE
ARGOROM PLASTICS S.A 211 - 249 Drumul Dealul Bradului str., Sect. 4 Bucharest, Romania Tel. 0040 215 393262 - 7 Fax: 0040 215 393264 e-mail: argorom@argo-sa.gr
ROMANIA
packaging solutions for successful products w w w.argo -sa.gr