Packaging Europe Issue 11.2

VOLUME 11.2 – 2016

EFFICIENCY DATA AND THE CHANGING FACE OF AUTOMATION EFFICIENT DESIGN Laminated with Cosmo Films’s Velvet Thermal Lamination Film

PHARMINTECH PREVIEW

Contents

VOLUME 11.2 – 2016

The cover of this edition has been laminated with a BOPP-based velvet film supplied by India based global group, Cosmo Films Ltd. which is a leading provider of lamination solutions & polypropylene films. The film with velvet fabric touch is one of the many premium lamination films with luxe touch that the company offers. Thermal lamination of this film is possible on all kinds of printed and non-printed paper and film is extensively used on perfume, liquor & cosmetic mono cartons; manuals; shopping bags and diaries. Various decoration printing techniques can be performed on the surface post lamination. For further info, write to enquiry@cosmofilms.com.

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Editorial Tim Sykes

4 9 10 18 20 22 24

Comments & Reports Interview Rockwell’s Hans Nilsson on automation and efficiency Design The (R)evolution in wine packaging Efficiency From big data to structural design Sustainability The environmental gains of efficiency Cutting downtime High availability vs always on Eliminating rejections The problem of static Events Pharmintech: New events and special initiatives

30 34 40 46 50 52 54 58

Industry Profiles Rexam Rexam can SP Group Ahead of the game Squid Ink A true solutions provider Samuel Grant Packaging 125 years of innovation DataLase Touch the future of digital printing with DataLase at Drupa 2016 DataLase DataLase secures new patents for revolutionary inline digital technology Rexnord Setting new standards LeanLogistics A game changer for logistics

62 65 66 68 74 76 80 84 88 91 94 98 102 106 109 112 117 120 123

Polyplast Müller Group Old master, new opportunities Polyart The synthetic paper BW Container Systems Robotic rotary table case palletisation solution Recard A global name in tissue processing Marubeni Europe Advancing packaging film technology Uflex Delivering ‘flexible’ success E Ink Electronic ink and smart packaging: A perfect match Optel Vision Pioneering track & tract technology Valspar Pioneering next-generation coating systems Petainer Pioneers in plastic packaging Sentega Delivering advanced laser-print label PACE Pacing ahead Madern International A cut above Convectra Delivering serialisation prime solutions ERCA Innovation for the dairy industry Engel Austria Innovative injection moulding Schawk Making brands shine Fatra Celebrating 80 years of plastics Alphasonics The next level of ultrasonic cleaning

Advertisers Index A Asahi Kasei ATS-Tanner Banding Systems

M 75 21

Mario Cotta Moba Eurotubi Movomech

29 23 15 67

O

73 21 114

B Baumer HHS Bericap Branson BW Container Systems

OMC Collareda Optima Packaging Group

71 7

P C Cosmo Films Custom Special Tools CZL Tilburg

17 105 105

PakTech Polyart Prisma Industriale

15 97 29

R D DataLase Dow Europe

53 13

E EKB Emerson

104 15

64

G GEA Food Solutions Gew Gruppo Fomat

114 57 5

S

F Farrel Pomini

Reiloy Metall Rexnord FlatTop Rockwell Automation

Samuel Grant Packaging Schawk SP Group Squid Ink Starlinger

49 119 39 45 101

T 13 11 73

Tec. Mec. Tema Sinergie

70 27

V I Iscar

105

J Jiffy

ii

K Kuka robotiics

115

L Laetus LeanLogistics Legnobotti Lindauer Dornier

26 126 122 79

Valmatic Viscotec

23 101

Editor Tim Sykes

Art Editor Paul Abbott

Deputy Editor Victoria Hattersley

Designers Rob Czerwinski Leon Esterhuizen

News Editor Elisabeth Skoda Journalists Libby White Profile Writers Emma-Jane Batey Alessandra Lacaita Felicity Landon Romana Moares Barbara Rossi Piotr Sadowski Abigail Saltmarsh Marco Siebel Julia Snow Vanja Svacko Philip Yorke Art Director Gareth Harrey

IT Support James D’More Web Development Neil Robertson Production Manager Tania Balderson Administration Amber Dawson Kayleigh Harvey Senior Account Managers Kevin Gambrill Jesse Roberts Features Managers Mauro Berini Clayton Green Matthew Howe Dominic Kurkowski

Packaging Europe

Alkmaar House, Alkmaar Way, Norwich, Norfolk, NR6 6BF, UK Telephone: +44 (0)1603 414444 Fax: +44 (0)1603 779850 Email: Editorial: editor@packagingeurope.com Studio: adcopy@packagingeurope.com Advertising: jr@packagingeurope.com kg@packagingeurope.com Website: www.packagingeurope.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/PackagingEurope Twitter: www.twitter.com/PackagingEurope

© Packaging Europe 2016 No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form for any purpose, other than short sections for the purpose of review, without prior consent of the publisher.

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Tim Sykes

EDITOR

AS

we publish the second 2016 edition of Packaging Europe magazine, the EU’s second largest economy begins to debate whether its future remains within the European Union. This question is of profound interest and concern to our publication. We launched ten years ago determined to establish ourselves as a pan-European voice for an increasingly international packaging supply chain. Moreover, of course, we happen to be headquartered in the UK. Packaging has been influenced perhaps more than any other segment by the regulatory activities of the EU – from the Packaging and packaging waste directive 94/62/EC to regulation redefining labelling rules and traceability. This positions our industry uniquely to explain the EU to a public that doesn’t interact with Brussels on a daily basis. Where many ‘Brexit’ advocates worry about the erosion of national sovereignty when so many trivial laws are ‘imposed’ on the country, we can point out that much of this regulation focusses on harmonising the common market, reducing complexity, knocking down trade barriers, and thereby boosting trade, prosperity and jobs across the Union. We know that EU involvement has restricted protectionism masquerading as environmentalism, while simultaneously driving up recycling rates across the country. We can list the research projects sponsored by the EU that have helped keep European materials science and engineering at the forefront of global innovation. Many of us have also individually benefitted from business connections, and subsequently enjoyed cultural and personal connections, thanks to open borders of the European Union.

Those arguing for an independent UK maintain that the country can continue to trade with the EU from outside – basking in the advantages of access to the free market without the restrictions of so-called ‘red tape’. This is an unrealistic scenario. In the event of a vote to leave the EU, broadly speaking the UK would have two options. The first would be to travel in the direction of the Brexit logic, opting out of EU regulations and restricting migration.

The further the UK progressed down this path, the more barriers to trade it would erect.

The second option would be to recognise that the rules of the EU (imperfect, yes, and often derived from messy compromises) are primarily in place to support the efficiency of the single market, to understand they are in the UK’s economic self-interest, and to voluntarily adhere to them rather as Norway and Switzerland do today. In which case, what’s the point?

Efficiency happens to be the theme of this edition. We take an in-depth look at the way automation and the Industrial Internet of Things is creating efficiencies for consumer packaged goods, with an exclusive interview with Rockwell Automation’s Hans Nilsson and reporting from Chicago’s Automation Fair. In addition we present perspectives from across the supply chain – from materials to robotics to structural design – on the innovations and decision-making processes that deliver efficiencies in environmental performance, productivity and cost.

We’ll be back in May with our special drupa edition, exploring the hot trends in print and previewing the most groundbreaking innovations that will be on display in Düsseldorf this springtime. In the meantime, please check out our dedicated microsite drupa2016.packagingeurope.com and feel free to share your news and opinions on print, the EU and packaging.

Tim Sykes ts@packagingeurope.com @PackEuropeTim Packaging Europe | 3 |

Interview

Automation and Efficiency Automation technology has been perhaps the greatest driver of efficiencies in the consumer packaged goods supply chain over the last ten years – a process that gathers speed and takes on new dimensions as automation in engineering is coupled with the possibilities of the digital revolution. Hans Nilsson, Business Development Manager EMEA - Information Software at Rockwell Automation, a business at the epicentre of innovation in automation, talks to Tim Sykes about the ongoing journey into greater efficiency.

TS

When we talk about achieving efficiencies in packaging and CPG, automation is one of the central areas to consider. As a starting point, could you summarise the ways in which automation technologies make the supply chain more efficient?

HN

If you look across the supply chain, automation not only facilitates repeatable, secure and efficient task execution, it can also create visibility, which in turn creates options. If you automate on the production site, you have better uptime, higher quality and more efficient production. That makes it easier to deliver on time but also creates possibilities for people in the supply chain to make better decisions. If you open up the ‘black box’ and analyse the information, you can make your production more repeatable and you can make more informed decisions about your plant and your supply chain: where to produce, what to produce, how much.

For CPG one of the challenges is smaller batch sizes, because brands want to customise for a more segmented market. To make that a more efficient process you need a lot of information. Automation, through the Connected Enterprise, makes this possible.

| 4 | Packaging Europe

TS HN

What is your impression of the level of adoption of automation within CPG in Europe? Is it a leader or follower in relation to other industries?

CPG hasn’t in general automated to the same degree as the automotive industry, which is an early adopter. However, within CPGs and packaging there is a very wide spectrum. Some companies and sectors have been driving take-up of automation, while in some segments comparable pressures don’t exist and they lag behind. Geographically speaking, European industry is more automated than North America. This is partly driven by the fact that human resources are more scarce and expensive in Europe.

Speaking about the level of automation, CPG is such a broad entity that we can’t generalise about the figures. Efficiency savings also depend, of course, on the efficiency levels you start at. However, we can say that customers often achieve five to ten per cent savings in the metrics they are most interested in. Even companies that have been at the forefront of automation can still take steps to become more efficient. In particular, having done the basic things in terms of installing the hardware, a lot of companies can do much more with the analysis of data.

Packaging Europe | 5 |

Another question to consider is how valuable efficiency savings are to a business: sometimes attaining the last two percentage points of achievable doesn’t represent a valid return on investment relative to the costs of getting there.

TS HN

When you referred to the ‘metrics people are most interested in’, do you find that KPIs vary from context to context?

There is a wide spectrum of KPIs organisations are interested in. Some countries or market segments can be particularly attuned to environmental metrics such as energy efficiency, carbon footprint or water footprint. Meanwhile, some CPG industries have to live with very low profit margins per SKU and are consequently very focussed on stabilising or growing that margin.

Or internally within production, there is always an interest in keeping machine efficiency high. Analysing the data correctly might lead a business to discover that hitting high productivity targets means repairing the machinery more often: so often there is a trade-off to be considered.

TS

In what ways can packaging and CPG companies which have already adopted automation technologies further raise the efficiencies of their businesses using the latest advances? …are we at a stage where the next gains are primarily to be made via data and connectivity as opposed to innovations in engineering?

If we take the examples of 3D printing in engineering or spatially aware robots, I think there’s still a lot more that will happen on the machinery side, which will change things in ways we can’t yet fully anticipate. Engineering development is happening right now at a fairly rapid pace.

However, this is going to take place in parallel with the improvements in the informational sphere to which your question alludes. With the level of automation we have today many companies have the ability to generate a lot of data. Yet they don’t always have their smart assets connected. Once they do this, and providing they attend properly to data

HN

| 6 | Packaging Europe

security, they will be able to utilise that information in novel ways. They can share this information across their supply chain and perhaps even across their extended supply chain, all the way up to us as consumers.

Realising this step requires a certain amount of engineering and data infrastructure but also of course new capabilities in information management.

TS HN

What are the opportunities for a company like Rockwell Automation to fit into this increasingly data-orientated landscape?

Outside its traditional hardware side, Rockwell is very strong in terms of connectivity and security. We are one of the generators of this Big Data – we can ensure that it is collected, secured and available to our customers. We also work on the visualisation of the data: How do I get to it? How do I organise it? Another area in which we are active is securing data integrity across the supply chain. This is something that is slowly creeping into CPG: there’s a need to guarantee there is no breach in the supply chain for the goods we consume.

Rockwell is at the centre of an ecosystem of technologies. With regard to hardware we make sure our platform is easy to use and based upon open standards. So if there is a rapid technological progress in the future, we believe that our open architecture will be compatible with it and customers will be able to use our systems in these new constellations.

TS

Would you say that industry has not yet realised the full potential of the Connected Enterprise? In what ways do you see the smart machines and Internet of Things (IoT) creating value for CPGs?

HN

One of the things we’ve been discussing for a while in relation to smart machines and the IoT is the maintenance process: that is, the opportunity of supporting machines at different points in the supply chain. Here I believe there is much more to come.

Interview

Aside from that, there’s likely to be more and more use of modern interfaces. Perhaps the most familiar and ubiquitous object in the Internet of Things is the smart phone, which in an industrial setting all sorts of stakeholders can use to access information. More broadly, people can drive a range of business processes through new types of interfaces.

The IoT will also make it possible for the CPG industry to interact with the end user in a different way. In this context Rockwell’s automation platform is the origin of production information and makes it available within the production systems (through smart phones for example), but the brand owner will be able to take that information and integrate it with data from the end users – and this is a key part of how the IoT will transform things.

TS

Is there a relationship to be explored and a synergy to be exploited between the potential created by the Connected Enterprise and the possibilities presented by digital retail and digital print?

HN

One of the key attributes of the Connected Enterprise is its capability for agility. You know what is happening in your production line and are therefore able to control it better and take more informed decisions. For example, a connected supply chain facilitates shorter lead times with smaller batches. If we’re making smaller batches or even single, customised items more cost-effective, this seems to me an enhancer of something like digital print.

Meanwhile, digital retail promises to support the customer better and makes it possible to detect and respond to changing demand much faster. If you have an agile production site and supply chain, those demands can be realised faster and more cost-effectively. But this is only possible if you have good visibility. As visibility shrinks, lead times and price will grow. Of course, it depends on the particular market conditions and economics whether there is the demand to drive that visibility. It may be that a particular retailer drives adoption.

In any case, automation and the Connected Enterprise will support these kinds of activities to make them cost-efficient.

TS

If you gaze into the crystal ball, how do you envisage the clusters of technologies associated with Rockwell Automation and its partners continuing to develop into the mid-term future? What are the next set of problems and potential efficiencies to be addressed?

HN

It’s not a case of some exciting new technology round the corner, but rather much more of a journey. The industry is working on incremental gains and improvements, and working out how to better realise the potential of available technology.

From a Rockwell perspective, the integrated architecture – the capability to have an agile platform – is an important area in which we will continue to work. There will be new, unforeseeable requirements, faster machines, for which current systems will have to update or upgrade. Ensuring a connection that integrates the OT (operational technology) with the IT side is something we will see grow.

There are also new business models emerging that might touch on CPG in the future.

For instance, in the automotive industry 3D printing is making it possible for car manufacturers to select suppliers who print components of the car. At some point if this trend continues, perhaps today’s car manufacturer will look after the design while other plants produce them. Perhaps we will see similar trends within the CPG industry. A better understanding of a supply chain that has to be more agile could drive a trend toward smaller plants using more raw material closer to the factory and a smaller environmental footprint.

At the same time, as we discussed before, there are existing technologies that are on the verge of changing the industry. On the packaging side, robotics is already used extensively and will continue to take over certain jobs that we currently do manually. What is interesting is the emergence of situation-aware robots, which can safely work among a human workforce, stopping when someone moves within a certain distance. There will be robots that work with people and help optimise patterns of how we move around in a plant.

Another important area is opening up – that is, making space for collaboration. For instance, Rockwell works closely with Cisco and Microsoft to achieve shared value in meeting the demands of our customers. This philosophy already exists in CPG but Packaging Europe | 7 |

Interview

we will see becoming more prevalent. And this is facilitated by automation, smart machines and the information they yield. A business might find that it is using some equipment only 60 per cent of the time. Allowing that equipment to exist within an ecosystem, where it is available to a partner at other times, of course drives up utilisation of that machinery. That might happen ad hoc today, but will be easier to achieve when matters are more visible and under better control. Utilising ones capi-

| 8 | Packaging Europe

tal investments as much as possible is important to any business model – as long as this is paired with supply chain security (which is particularly important in CPG).

In the future I think we’ll see companies that are still agile in their supply chains and meeting customer demands, but which are also ready to open up, realising they do not have to own all of the portions of the supply chain. That isn’t possible unless you have a Connected Enterprise.

Design Opinion

Delivering highpower precision Universal Cables is a global market leader in the design and manufacture of power cables and high-voltage capacitors.

Philip Yorke talked to Amitava Bose, the company’s chief operating officer, about its latest extra-high-voltage insulated cables and the strong growth in infrastructure projects.

U

niversal Cables Ltd (UCL) was founded in India in 1962 by Shri Biria who began by building a modern plant for the manufacture of paper-insulated cables. Since then the company has achieved world-class status and is at the forefront of modern cable technology.

An important milestone was reached in 1977 following collaboration with Asea Cables AB of Sweden (now known as ABB Cables), when the company brought the first XLPE cable technology to India. As a result, UCL became a leader in the Indian cable industry with the widest product range and the most advanced cable technology. The company’s comprehensive product range includes low voltage, medium voltage and extra high-voltage XLPE power cables up to 500kV. UCL also produce PVC and rubber insulated power cables up to 11kV grade, designed to contain any number of cores.

In addition, the company manufactures speciality rubber cables for trailing and flexible specifications to suit individual customer requirements. UCL’s precision cables and capacitors are marketed under the well-known global brand: ‘Unistar’.

Complete solutions provider In order to meet the growing demand for ‘extra high-voltage’ cables of 220kV and above, the company has invested heavily in new technology that involves the VCV process at its flagship, Satna Plant. This technological advance was achieved in association with the world leader in high-voltage cable technology: Furukawa Electric Co of Japan. This strategic collaboration covered cable designing, manufacturing, laying, jointing, testing and installation.

In addition to manufacturing a broad spectrum of high quality cables for a wide variety of applications, the company has a fully operational EPC division to facilitate turnkey contracts for utilities and government projects alike.

Today UCL is able to offer a complete solutions package for its customers, especially for underground power transmission projects. Bose said, “As the foremost electrical cable provider in India, we supply a very broad customer base that includes utilities, shipyards, mining and infrastructure projects as well as many others. We are more flexible and more comprehensive in our product and service offerings than anyone else and are able to produce cables with voltages from as little as 1.1kV to over 400kV. Our CVC process for ultra-high voltage cables is something that very few others can offer.

“We have installed two CVC lines and produce speciality cables in polymer or rubber that employ PLCV processes (Pressurised Liquid Salt Vulcanising). Our flagship cable is our XLM extra high voltage cable which is now in great demand, especially since overhead cables are no longer an option and underground is the only way forward, for this application our XLM cables are the optimal choice.”

Bose added, “We are currently in a very strong position as all the principal cities in India are expanding fast and as a result there is strong growth in the infrastructure sector. Over 60 per cent of our contracts are from government sources with around 40 per cent coming from the private sector. In the last few years there has been a lot of privatisation of government projects and facilities. As far as our growth is concerned we plan to continue to grow organically because we are in the high-tech, high-end segment. We are not in a position to buy other companies as we are the technology leaders, therefore other companies have nothing to offer us.

“Today we are a world class company with quality certifications such as ISO14001 for environmental management, ISO 9001 for business administration, SA8000 for social accountability and OHSAS certification for health and safety issues. As part of the Birla group we are also involved in the manufacture of optical fibre cables and communication cables.

“Currently we are seeing a boom in infrastructure projects across the Indian sub-continent and we are able to offer a turnkey service for every conceivable contract, including testing and installation.”

Smart cable monitoring Unlike most of its competitors, UCL can provide a cable monitoring system on demand using its ‘Distributed Monitoring System’ and its own Distributed Temperature Sensor (DTS).

The DTS system uses Optic Fibre Cables and is recognised worldwide as the most reliable technology for monitoring optional power transmission and distribution in power cable systems, This advanced system enables the user to monitor and record the real-time temperature profile of the entire power route to avoid the development of hot-spots and situations leading to possible ’thermal runaway’ of cables and their joints.

ULC also produces power and control cables to international standards up to 11kV. Both utilities and domestic users find them ideal for power distribution, control systems, utility networks, switching stations, textile mills, chemical plants and machine shops etc. The company’s normal PVC insulated cables are suitable for an operating conductor of 700C and HR PVC insulated cables for an operating conductor of 850C. Visit: www.unistar.co.in

Packaging Europe | 9 |

Efficiency

The Age of Efficiency Packaging innovation has always been intertwined with a quest for efficiencies of some sort: meeting a need in a way that costs less in terms of environmental impact, downtime, labour, energy, materials – and in most cases the bottom line. In today’s highly competitive world of constant pressure on margins amid ever growing demands on quality, functionality and security, packaging producers and machinery manufacturers are always on the lookout for incremental improvements, for ‘efficiencies’ to be realised. Tim Sykes surveys the trends driving this quest and the areas where innovation is responding.

T

he automation trend, as explored in our interview with Hans Nilsson, is perhaps the most powerful dynamo raising efficiency levels within packaging and CPG (and indeed manufacturing in general) at the moment. Visiting Rockwell Automation’s gigantic 2015 Automation Fair in Chicago starkly illustrated the scale of the segment. A broad ecosystem of complementary technologies and services revolves around the platforms of solutions developed in partnership between Rockwell Automation, Cisco and Microsoft, helping realise the opportunities of the Connected Enterprise.

| 10 | Packaging Europe

Information Increasingly, businesses are coming to understand that automation means more than installing more efficient machinery, but gaining increased information and therefore control over it. A smart device eliminates the need for quality checks and secondary systems. The ability to get connected to one’s product line and obtain real information is arguably the foremost development taking place in the industry.

However, the key challenge is to extract actionable ‘information’ rather than just

Packaging Europe | 11 |

Efficiency

‘data’. Speaking to Packaging Europe, Mike Wagner (Rockwell Automation’s director Packaging Segment, Global OEM team) cited a major brand in the print space which was generating a terabyte of data per day and was fast running out of space to store it. His advice was: “don’t collect data – fix problems”. At the Automation Fair there was much discussion about the need for manufacturers to acquire the expertise necessary to interpret and leverage data from a production line. Meanwhile, the exhibition floor features suppliers offering consultancy services and software solutions which ease this journey.

Once production data is properly harnessed, the opportunities to achieve efficiencies are exciting. With greater understanding and real-time control of the production process a business can cut inputs and downtime, and identify quality problems or security breaches before they snowball into disastrously expensive and brand-damaging product recalls. The benefits are such that models and calculations are beginning to shift: is it equipment that is being paid for or is it uptime?

It should be acknowledged that this is a fast developing arena in which many are inevitably racing against learning curves. Alongside the challenge of acquiring the expertise to exploit the IoT to the full, businesses must ensure their systems are rigorously protected so that efficiency is not gained at the price of data security.

More generally, in a world of collaboration along the supply chain and cloud-based solutions, we need to take a considered view on what information is shared and what is protected. | 12 | Packaging Europe

Automation drivers While the adoption of automation technology has been slower in the packaged goods market than in some others, Mike Wagner argues that in other respects it is already a leader.

“Packaging is a highly variable industry – one reason why uptake has been slow,” he said. “However, there has been a lot of consolidation among OEMs, and that is changing the picture. When it comes to speed and precision we’re further ahead than automotive.

Cutting a label, fold-forming it and applying it at 800 products a minute is pretty impressive. Or flow-wrapping at 3000 per minute. Assembling a packet of cigarettes means handling multiple elements, inspecting each unit, means performing tasks in microseconds. You don’t see that in automotive.”

This is reflected in Rockwell Automation’s numbers. At one point the company’s sales were 80 per cent in the automotive market. Now CPG has overtaken automotive. This is partly a function of CPG’s appetite for speed, but also driven by the complexity of the packaging market.

“With packaging there are far more demands to deal with – from allergies to crosscontamination,” said Mr Wagner. “If a few years ago in CPG sustainability used to be the buzzword, more recently innovation has been driven by a wider range of pressures.

Sustainability is still important, though customers tend to break it down to more specific requirements, such as recycling or energy. Aside from this, issues such as regulatory compliance and food safety are incredibly important, and are driving fundamental changes to machinery design.”

Packaging Europe | 13 |

Efficiency

Moving the needle Without a doubt the most significant event in recent times for the world of automation, and the biggest advance since the introduction of servo technology, was Rockwell’s launch of iTRAK® at interpack in 2014. As most readers are already aware, this intelligent tracking technology enables independent control of multiple movers on straight and curved paths.

It’s highly innovative capabilities combine both linear and rotary motion, resulting in a flexible, fully integrated solution. It can increase throughput of production, reduce maintenance and help reduce overall machine size. Highly flexible, iTRAK® can be configured and orientated to suit specific application needs.

Since then, Rockwell has certainly not rested on its laurels, as a stroll around the Innovation Zone at Automation Fair confirms. Another needle mover is the Kinetix 5700 EtherNet/ IP Servo Drive – a productivity tool that gives you the ability to conduct risk assessments and slow down a section makes it possible to adjust production without totally shutting down the line.

“A big trend for the industry is increased power density,” remarked Mike Wagner. “For anybody using motion control footprint size is decreasing. Sometimes this even means eliminating cabinets completely. If you are working food products and having to clean the machinery, it’s advantageous to remove wiring from the line.”

Another area of innovation is driven by the increased use of cooperative robotics. These in turn necessitate a range of safety and productivity tools to synchronise and track in a continuous process.

Meanwhile, we are seeing an evolution in controller technologies and AC drives, exemplified by the new Allen-Bradley Powerflex 527. This drive is designed to help reduce machine complexity and simplify how you design, develop and deliver your machines.

It is the first AC drive completely integrated with Allen-Bradley Logix controllers and the Rockwell Software Studio 5000 environment. Using a single software tool, this combination of products makes it possible to drive down cost, reduce engineering and delivery times and engineer a more competitive machine. | 14 | Packaging Europe

Another area of efficiency facilitated by the PowerFlex 527 drive is the provision of a low-cost solution for machine parts and applications – such as pumps, fans, infeed and outfeed conveyors – that need simple speed control for induction motors. The servo drives handle the more precise control operations involving speed, torque and position control.

In addition, the PowerFlex 527 AC drive offers integrated safety which helps to reduce the hardware, wiring and labour costs associated with implementing a SIL 3/Ple safety solution. It also allows access to more diagnostic data on machine faults and causes, helping to reduce commissioning and troubleshooting time.

Space efficiency Floor space is another metric that manufacturers like to control. Space is always tight at the end of the packaging line and a machine with a smaller footprint leaves space for other activities and provides a safer working environment. A great example of innovation driven by this pressure is the CSi i-Pal robot palletiser family developed by Netherlands-based CSi. Although the footprint of the standard CSi i-Pal is already quite small, with the Panenka infeed/outfeed mechanism (patent pending) even more space is saved in the palletising cell. The footprint of the new CSi i-Pal Panenka is no more than 2.36 m wide by 5.76 m long as it needs only one pallet position.

This is achieved by lifting the full pallet and transporting the empty pallet underneath.

Thus infeed and outfeed conveyors are in the same place, reducing the necessary space for pallet conveying by 50 per cent. It also does not jeopardise other important features of the robotic palletiser such as fully automatic pallet infeed and outfeed, capacities of up to 30 cases per minute, use of layer sheets and integrated labelling.

Working with materials Of course, efficiency isn’t solely to be found in machinery solutions, but a prime consideration in the stages of packaging development. We are all familiar with examples of ingenious

Packaging Europe | 15 |

Efficiency

structural design that has made it possible to stack more units on a pallet and fit more in a truck, saving storage and fuel costs. Just as familiar is the way in which shelf-ready packaging has single-handedly eliminated a layer of tertiary packaging while reducing the work involved in dispensing products on the retail floor.

Meanwhile, the trend toward lightweighting – creating efficiencies in material and energy usage – continues at a rapid pace. These, of course, are manifestations at another point of the value chain of many of the same cost and environmental drivers that are pushing automation and machinery technology forward.

The most salient lightweighting phenomenon is of course the migration of CPG products from rigid to flexible containers. The rise of pouches has been one of the most striking packaging trends on our supermarket shelves over the last two or three years. However, a great deal of effort is going into getting more performance out of less fibre or polymer across the principal material groups.

In PET, for instance, Packaging Europe recently reported on the successful introduction of extremely lightweight bottles for still water in South America. These were thanks to Bottles & Shapes™ lightweighting expertise from KHS, which made 0.5-litre PET bottles weighing just 8.9 grams and 1.5-litre PET containers at 22 grams are now available in Brazilian stores for the first time ever.

The new containers weigh significantly less than the bottles usually found in the region, where a 0.5-litre PET bottle normally weighs 13 grams, with the 1.5-liter PET bottle notching up 26 grams on the scales. In both sizes of bottle material is specifically saved by the bottle thread being much lighter. This now weighs in at 1.9 grams only for bottles with a neck diameter of 26 mm. KHS also makes sizable material savings in the bottle body. “Despite this much lower use of resources our lightweight PET bottles still boast undiminished high stability,” commented Arne Wiese, product manager for Bottles & Shapes™. This refers to the processing of bottles on the line, storage, shipping and finally handling in store.

International Paper, meanwhile, last year introduced Alaska Plus: a drastically lighter weight GC2 product that combines excellent product performance in packaging produc| 16 | Packaging Europe

tion and packing process with a notably lower weight. It is designed for pharmaceutical, healthcare and beauty packaging, as well as chocolate and dry-food applications. Using the latest technology in cartonboard manufacturing, International Paper has been able to lower the basis weight of its GC2 board by five to seven per cent, while keeping all other technical parameters stable. High stiffness and bulk ensure strength of the packaging in transport, on the shelf and in use.

Context is key Ultimately, packaging choices involve careful consideration of function across a product’s lifespan. The devil tends to be in the detail – which is why such a variety of feasible packaging approaches thrive on today’s market.

Take the example of the relatively simple format of bulk bags. On the face of it, reusable bags are the most cost efficient. “At five trips, the saving is around 30 per cent,” David Dawber, MD, Cliffe Packaging, told Packaging Europe. “On this basis, the multi-trip bag breaks even during the second trip, which is a very quick return. Not only would the multitrip option save money, it has a positive impact on the environment, reducing packaging waste by 80 per cent.”

If the bulk bags are being used internally in a closed loop system, the savings can be even greater. However, the issue is not as straightforward as that.

“The multi-trip option is not suitable for every application,” Mr Dawber points out.

“When food or cross-contamination is an issue, the single trip bag is the only viable option.

This also applies to deep sea exports, where retrieving the bag is impossible. If the product you are carrying is of low value, or needs to be stored for many months before shipment, then the better option is a single trip bag.”

As ever in packaging, if an efficiency brings about a solution that doesn’t do its job, or falls short on delivering a return on investment, it’s an efficiency not worth having. Such are the calculations directing investment in R&D and procurement throughout the supply chain, from hardware to finished product.

Cosmo Films Established in 1981, Cosmo Films Limited is one of the leading global manufacturers and marketers of BOPP (Bi-oxially Oriented Poly Propylene) and thermal lamination films based out of India. These films find their way into flexible packaging, labeling and lamination applications. Company’s product portfolio comprises a good mix of commodity and speciality films. Speciality films for packaging applications comprises of the following products.

1. Barrier Films High Moisture Barrier Films: These are metalized films used for sandwich lamination in shampoo sachets, dry milk powder, powdered drinks sachets/packs and snack foods, where loss of moisture is a concern.

Aroma Barrier Films: These are transparent barrier films typically used for coffee/tea, spices, chewing gum and perfume boxes overwrapping.

High Oxygen barrier Films: These films have both excellent oxygen and gas barrier properties and are used for packaging of cream biscuits, chocolates, chips and snacks.

Anti-fog Films: These transparent films extend the shelf life of fresh cut vegetables/fruits and meat that need to be refrigerated, by an additional 4 to 7 days.

2. Films for cold seal applications: Used for packs where heat sealing is bound to interfere with the food content inside the pack. This includes chocolates, ice-creams etc. The film has its surface modified for the cold seal glue (HMPSA/Solution Acrylic PSA) application.

3. Films with Low SIT (Seal Initiation Temperature): Used for printed pouches and overwraps where the sealing is required at a low temperature and/or to improve productivity on high speed machines. The sealing temperature of these films can be brought down to even upto 80 degrees and therefore have a broad heat seal range.

4. Films with stable slip / COF: Used for food packaging done on VFFS/HFFS machines where consistent COF is (Kinetic: 0.25 - 0.35) is a pre-requisite. Ensures smooth machinability and better productivity.

5. Overwraps: High Shrink Tight Wrap film is the flagship product of this category which includes a variety of overwrap applications ranging from general overwrap applications to speciality applications requiring high shrinkage and tight wrapping (e.g. cigarette overwraps). These films have excellent transparency & clarity and high shrinkage attributes and do not develop wrinkles while packing. They also run extremely smoothly on high speed machines.

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The Environmental Gains of Efficiency Packaging plays a key role in a sustainable and efficient supply chain, impacting upon every stage from the sourcing of materials to the delivery of goods to the consumer and beyond. Within this process, packaging provides value not only to the customer, but also to the environment through increased sustainability and efficiency. Steps have been taken by companies across the world to meet this demand of sustainability. The question now is how can standards of quality and design be maintained with less material? By Jack Smithson, content editor of Davpack, a leading European mail order packaging suppliers and part of the global business equipment group TAKKT. Consumer behaviour and the sustainable supply chain A Cone Communications survey showed that more than 80 per cent of consumers consider sustainability an important factor in their purchasing decisions, so using sustainable packaging throughout the supply chain simply makes good business sense in today’s market.

To this end, packaging companies and retailers should adopt a strategy involving life cycle thinking. That is, they should not view packaging as an isolated component. Instead, consider its contribution to increased sustainability throughout the supply chain, from raw material, via warehousing, distribution and retail, to disposal.

Sourcing raw materials and manufacturing packaging Packaging’s first stage in the supply chain is its manufacture. To increase sustainability, implementing an environmental management system, geared towards compliance with environmental legislation and the reduction of waste, should be a consideration for all companies. Less fossil fuel will be used, reducing emissions in the process. Savings on operational costs will also be made, which can be passed on to clients.

One obvious way to reduce costs and emissions is to use recycled raw material. Manufacturing cans from recycled aluminium, for example, saves 95 per cent of the energy that would be required if aluminium were extracted from bauxite — its ore. Making drinks bottles from recycled PET, rather than new PET manufactured from ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid (both petroleum-based chemicals), cuts energy demand by half.

In each case, because energy demand is reduced, emissions are reduced, and because virgin feedstock is not required, costs are also cut.

Storage and distribution When products have been manufactured and packaged in primary packaging (such as PET bottles) for retail, they are placed in secondary packaging and tertiary packaging for storage in warehouses before being distributed. | 18 | Packaging Europe

During the transit phase, goods are stored, loaded, transported, and unloaded at the product’s destination. This movement of goods means that there is the potential for damage, so secondary (stronger cardboard boxes) and tertiary packaging (pallets) must offer protection, yet still sustainability fit in with sustainable demands.

Here, the design of secondary and tertiary packaging has a direct effect. At this stage, the key concern is the use of fuel, and this is affected by the space occupied in the lorry and the weight of the load being transported. Optimising space and cutting weight leads to less fuel being used, thereby reducing emissions. Weight may be reduced by using single wall instead of double wall cardboard boxes, for example. The strength of these boxes may be perfectly adequate, and less fuel will be used when goods are transported in them.

Additionally, using consistent cartons across different products for instance, can optimise your pallet storage — saving costs on the amount of trucks you use. Less transportation: less environmental impact.

An alternative to the cardboard box is the plastic crate, whose design may also facilitate space optimisation. Consequently, more crates per lorry can be returned to the warehouse, saving fuel, and they occupy less space in the warehouse.

Ensuring that pack dimensions are modified to fit pallets closely, also enables more goods to be distributed. Pallets, therefore, play a crucial role in distribution and sustainable gains can be made in how they are designed for ease of use — easy storage, for example, allows for less time on the road. These little things can make all the world of difference.

Retailing When goods have been transported from the warehouse to the shop, they will be displayed on shelves, so they must be in perfect condition. Up to this point, the secondary and tertiary packaging has protected the goods and their primary packaging.

Ideally, secondary packaging will be easy to open, easy to display, attractive to the consumer, and consistent with branding. Balancing these demands with the need to reduce environmental impact is not easy, but companies are making increased use of shelf ready

Sustainability

packaging, also known as retail ready packaging. This is a form of secondary packaging that enables goods to be easily placed on shelves. Minimal material is used, so weight is reduced and, consequently, emissions are cut.

Retail ready packaging is widely used in the food industry to contain goods such as chocolate bars on shelves and margarine tubs in chiller cabinets — therefore implementing a recycling strategy for all retail ready packaging is worth thinking about.

Consumption and disposal The point at which the goods reach the consumer has a major impact on packaging sustainability. Consider, for example, ready meals, and individual portions of food and drink, which involve the use of a greater amount of packaging per unit.

Lightweighting primary packaging is important, because less material can be used per unit. The weight of a PET water bottle, for example, reduced by almost half between 2000 and 2014, resulting in a saving of more than six billion pounds of raw material.

Another way to increase sustainability is to use alternative materials. Consider, for instance, Dell’s inserts for cushioning computer monitors, made of moulded paper pulp instead of foam. Dell’s goal is to use waste-free packaging by 2020 and, to this end, a range of different raw materials are used — including bamboo, wheat straw, and carbon-negative plastic.

At the consumption phase, optimising packaging for sustainability is difficult, because companies will have to spend more on research and development. These increased costs may affect the consumer in the form of a rise in a product’s retail price. However, the subsequent reduction in packaging means there will be less resource wastage. Consequently, in the long term, the economic and environmental impacts will be lessened.

When packaging needs to be discarded, control of the packaging supply chain is lost. How consumers dispose of packaging depends on their local authority’s kerbside household waste collection. Separate collections of paper and plastic are not always made, so consumers may experience difficulty in disposing of their waste in an environmentally friendly way.

When systems are in place to enable reuse, packaging is returned to the packing plant and refilled with more product before going through the supply chain again. People who have their milk delivered participate in this process every day when they put out their empty milk bottles for collection.

Recycling plays a key role in sustainability by cutting the demand for virgin raw materials, and at the end of the day, primary, secondary, and tertiary packaging can all be recycled. It is difficult to optimise every single aspect of the supply chain to become sustainable and environmentally friendly, yet once achieved, the environmental impact will be lessened by an incredible amount.

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Stratus Technologies

High Availability vs Always On: the Battle to Reduce Downtime

Andy Bailey, availability architect, Stratus Technologies

As machines and systems become more connected in the age of the industrial internet of things (IIoT) more and more information becomes available. We’re all familiar with how data is changing manufacturing and the trend means that operational technology becomes ever more reliant on the IT infrastructure. Keeping applications online is now a direct, and importantly, measurable quotient of productivity – according to Andy Bailey, availability architect, Stratus Technologies.

B

eing able to measure the negative effect of downtime is helpful in understanding how best to manage maintenance and how best to approach the risk and economic impact of unplanned downtime in the factory. Information about real-time usage of, for example, a packaging line, can help operators see if it needs attention before something goes wrong, as well as discover ways of making it more efficient.

Maintenance downtime becomes something that can be scheduled and managed more efficiently.

But as industrial applications come to rely on IT for their control and operation, the IT platform itself becomes a potential point of production failure. Increasingly, when the IT server goes down, production stops. Sometimes data can be lost and in some industries, such as pharmaceutical production, batches must be destroyed causing tens of thousands of pounds of losses and potential knock-on issues with meeting delivery demands.

None of this is new. It’s becoming more prevalent as manufacturing modernises, but advanced manufacturers have been aware of these issues for as long as 15-20 years.

And there are solutions out there to help reduce the risk. Back-up and disaster recovery systems can help recover that important application data and get things back up and running after a failure. High Availability (HA) solutions can reduce unplanned downtime to as little as 0.05 per cent per year. That 99.95 per cent uptime sounds exceptional and is certainly good enough for many applications.

It translates to a little over four hours of unplanned downtime per year. Not bad. Many applications can make that up without huge expense by adding an extra shift, for example. It’s important to note, even here, that the total cost of downtime should include the labour costs, the product cost and any maintenance costs to come back online.

But there are applications that require more than 99.95 per cent uptime per year. Consider a bank which has thousands of transactions per minute handling millions of pounds.

They can’t afford hours of unplanned downtime a year. Think of the reputational damage, apart from anything else. Or what about emergency services – if their call handling went down for hours a year, what would be the cost in life? They can’t afford hours of unplanned downtime a year either, every call matters.

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And what about manufacturers?

Well, increasingly, using downtime cost analytics, it’s clear that manufacturing (and many industrial) applications would benefit from the level of fault tolerance required by banks and emergency services. The raw acquisition cost of such systems is often more than HA solutions, but when the downtime can easily be calculated, a return on that investment can also be quickly worked out. From this it is also simple to calculate a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) over a budgeted period.

Though leading fault-tolerant solutions providers will underwrite a guarantee on a specific technology specification (the platform and the hypervisor) it’s not possible to include the application stack. It’s impossible, therefore, to guarantee 100 per cent uptime, even from an alwayson application with fault tolerance. But it’s well worth digging into the numbers a little more.

A leading fault tolerant (always-on) solution can offer 99.9999 per cent annual uptime or more. So what do the extra nines equate to? Well, rather than over four hours, we’re looking at just over half a minute.

Let’s take an example where unplanned downtime costs a single independent dairy producer £3000 an hour. That’s a fairly small figure compared to bigger operations or those handling more expensive product. The cost of downtime at that rate, with a HA solution in place offering 99.95 per cent annual availability might be as much as £13,150 per year. And this is where we see the value of those extra nines after the decimal place.

An always-on solution operating at 99.9999 per cent annual availability would reduce that cost to around £26.33.

Even a relatively small application then, would be looking at a short ROI followed by annual savings on the bottom line for its investment in an always-on solution.

The case becomes even stronger as the cost of downtime grows. If the cost of downtime is £10,000 per hour, the annual downtime cost of a HA solution might be as much as £43,000 while the always-on system would incur annual downtime costs of £87.77.

In short, the difference between high availability IT systems and always-on fault tolerant systems may seem tiny, but it’s not. The difference between 0.05 per cent annual unplanned downtime due to IT server errors and 0.00001 per cent means that for many manufacturers, it’s high time to look at an always-on solution.

Visit: www.stratus.com

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Eliminating Rejections

Combatting Problems with Static in Flexibles Achieving output efficiencies can sometimes boil down to installing relatively simple ancillary solutions that can eliminate wasteful losses. Stewart Gordon Smith, business development manager at Meech International talks through the issues created by static in flexible packaging and the potential advantages of using static control solutions such as ionising bars.

Stewart Gordon Smith, business development manager

T

he elimination of static charges should be a fundamental part of the quality control measures adopted in flexible packaging. Cleanliness is a critical issue in a wide number of industries – especially food, medical and pharmaceutical – with customer demands constantly increasing the required standards. The manufacturers that fail to meet these standards risk losing out to more pre-emptive competitors in a progressively driven market.

With no static control solution in place during production, the more issues the charged material is likely to cause. First of all, the presence of static will attract contamination onto the film from machine frames and from the process environment. This can lead to the disposal of tainted products, as well as high rejection rates that can have an effect on customer loyalty. Static can also cause tension and web alignment problems during printing and rewinding processes. Other issues instead raise a number of health and safety issues, such as operator shocks or, where solvent based inks are adopted, the risk of ignition of flammable gasses and substances. | 22 | Packaging Europe

In the flexible packaging process, filmic substrates require corona treatment to allow the ink to adhere to the material’s surface. However, the treatment is likely to produce multiple electrostatic charges as a result of the creation of the curtain of corona plasma, which is generated by applying high voltage to a sharp-tipped electrode.

Blown/cast film will produce electrostatic charges on the material’s surface as the product cools to ambient temperature. When the corona treatment is applied, the static charges are magnified as the material passes through the high voltage plasma field. These charges can result in an increase in web tension, as the material tries to bond to path rollers and nip drive rollers, further adding to the charges present on the film. The last point of generation occurs when the film is wound into rolls, with each stratum of film adding another layer of statically charged material, as the roll increases in dimension.

The prevention and elimination of these charges can be easily achieved by installing an ionising bar (also referred to as an anti-static system) that will ensure the material’s surface remains void of any contamination, ensuring print quality is maintained and health & safety is observed.

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Pharmintech: New Events and Special Initiatives

P

harmintech, the triennial trade fair dedicated to the technology supply chain for the pharmaceutical, parapharmaceutical, nutraceutical and cosmeceutical industry organised by BolognaFiere in partnership with UCIMA, anticipates some themes, content, events and special initiatives that will characterize the trade fair in Bologna, April 13 to 15, in 2016. The entire supply chain will meet in Bologna for the Pharma Week, April 13 to 17, thanks to the conjunction between Pharmintech and the 20th edition of Cosmofarma Exhibition.

“Pharmintech confirms its role as a hub of international reference for the pharmaceutical industry,” says Dino Tavazzi, Managing Director of Pharmintech Srl, “enriching its exhibition with initiatives to increase business opportunities for exhibiting companies and professionals of the sector. The prestigious patronage of UCIMA, of the Ministry of Economic Development, and ICE, the agency for the promotion abroad and the internationalization of Italian businesses, also defines the international profile of the event, and offers the exhibiting companies the opportunity to enrich the network of relationships in key markets for the pharmaceutical, parapharmaceutical, nutraceutical and cosmeceutical industry.”

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“Pharmintech is the only Italian exhibition specifically directed to technology for the wrapping and packaging and it is therefore an important asset of the strategy fair in our industry,” says Giuseppe Lesce, President of Ucima. “That’s why we chose to support this event and contribute to its international growth both through the expertise of our operating structure as through the direct involvement of our companies, which will be attending the event with technological innovations and inviting their international costumers to make this fair the center of the pharmaceutical industry worldwide.”

“Even for this edition the partnership between ISPE Italy affiliates and Pharmintech is renewed, a lasting partnership now, aiming at creating synergies and projects for the pharmaceutical industry,” says Sonia Ricci ISPE - International Society for Pharmaceutical Engeneering. “We are part of the Steering Committee of Pharmintech since the launch of the event, and always support the event with our patronage and with the expertise of our associates, contributing to the international growth of an event that provides new incentives to Italian pharmaceutical industry.

EVENTS

Pharmintech is the ideal stage for us to investigate issues outstanding for the pharmaceutical business and develop innovative solutions to meet the challenges of the future.�

Alberto Vacchi, Chairman and Managing Director of IMA - Packaging Machinery Industry SPA, said: “The pharmaceutical sector is crucial for human life on the planet.

Pharmintech is an international event specifically addressed to this strategic sector.

IMA will be present at the 2016 edition, which promises to be rich in content and news with a focus on technological innovation, an issue to which our company is strongly committed as a service to our customers. At the next edition of Pharmintech, IMA will present new solutions for the processing and packaging of pharmaceuticals products. The high-precision technology of the machines and the complete lines of IMA will also be revealed in minute detail thanks to innovative solutions such as the jumbo screen videowall.�

Drug Supply Chain: The Workroom. Thinking the future!

See first-hand how the evolution of worldwide regulations and the innovation introduced by the new technologies are reshaping the future of the pharmaceutical supply chain.

This is the purpose of the new Pharmintech project: The workroom, a demonstration area in the trade fair, open to all visitors and conceived as a place to

reflect on a collaborative model through new and familiar themes: Serialization, Track & Trace, Cold Chain, Visibility, Custom Drugs, Digital Economy, Emerging Markets, Hub Regulators. The anti-counterfeiting will be a central theme of Pharmintech 2016: it will be possible to analyse and understand the opportunities offered by the new regulations, the GDP (Good Distribution Practices), the new technologies, by outlining the future scenario of the whole pharmaceutical supply chain.

All trade visitors will have the opportunity to interact with the most innovative technology solutions designed by the partners of Pharmintech, and represented with the collaboration of selected exhibitors chosen by Pharmintech, to better address the changes and opportunities that the pharmaceutical supply chain will experience in the upcoming years.

The Workroom will be focus on the future of the supply chain as a result of the combination of the implementation of new technologies. The goal is to present its complexity and constraints, but also opportunities, arising from the changes taking place in the whole supply chain in the near future: from the manufacturing to the distribution of the product, up to the pharmacy and data management.

These themes will be presented through a program of workshops and thematic sessions and live demos that will walk visitos through the steps of production and distribution along the chain.

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IBP - International Buyer Program

Pharmintech Observatory

Pharmintech 2016 presents for the first time a project specifically dedicated to international operators of the pharmaceutical, parapharmaceutical, cosmeceutical and nutraceutical industry. The International Buyer Program will encourage meetings between buyers from the major areas of interest for the sector and the exhibiting companies, to facilitate concrete business opportunities for exhibitors and visitors of the fair. The project was developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Economic Development and ITA Italian Trade Agency and built on the basis of the information collected by the exhibitors of Pharmintech. In addition to the major European markets of Germany, France, UK, Spain and Switzerland, also South Africa and Mediterranean countries (Algeria, Israel, Morocco, Turkey), Asia, in particular China, India and Vietnam, the Middle East with Iran and Lebanon, the US, Colombia and Russia. An intense campaign to promote internationally will ensure further impetus to this project as well as ensuring a major awareness of the event worldwide.

Alongside the event a research project of great importance for the productive sector: the Pharmintech Observatory, which for the 2016 edition will be collaborating with the Research Department of UCIMA. Established with the support of the leading associations of the pharmaceutical supply chain, the Pharmintech Observatory aims to profile the performance of the pharmaceutical industries, through a careful qualitative and quantitative analysis.

Besides economic analysis on the spin-off of the pharmaceutical sector, for the first time it will be presented an ad hoc fund of Italian pharmaceutical manufacturers and some studies focused on countries with high potential for the industry.

The activity of international promotion of Pharmintech continues, with presence at major industry events in Europe and worldwide.

Pharmintech confirms itself as the appointment of reference for the pharmaceutical industry globally.

Visit: www.pharmintech.it

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EVENTS

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Rexam Can A 30-month journey for Rexam culminated on Wednesday 25th November 2015 with the inauguration of an impressive 17,600m² plant in Widnau, Switzerland. Libby White was invited along to witness the remarkable start-up of the operations, galvanised into action by the push of a red button. Mr Iain Percival, Sector Director, Rexam Beverage Cans Europe, was also on hand to explain the process involved in completing the project and how it will affect future Rexam operations.

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Graham Chipchase - Chief Executive

Iain Percival - Sector Director, Europe

“IN

Europe we are typically witnessing growth of between two to five per cent on the beverage can market, depending on the year. As the market leader with around 40 per cent of the European market, it is important for Rexam to continue investing to meet the capacity demands and needs of our customers, which the Widnau plant will address,” comments Mr Percival who, in tandem with his position at Rexam, is also chairman of the Beverage Can Makers Europe trade body.

An investment of £115 million has been made into constructing the plant. Rexam has crucially succeeded in completing the project on time and on budget, starting up at the beginning of Q4 as intended. 2016 will witness the complete installation of the second and third manufacturing lines. All three high-speed production lines will be running in the second half of 2016, producing a capacity of 2.2 billion cans per year.

Mr Percival remarks, “Today marks the celebration and culmination of a 30-month journey. Back in March 2014 I was here for the ground-breaking ceremony and I’m absolutely thrilled to see the project come to fruition.”

Providing significant environmental, efficiency and quality benefits, the innovative facility can be appreciated as the ultimate supply chain solution. Significantly, it is a wall-to-wall operation: the can making plant is situated alongside the Rauch Trading can filling plant, with a connecting bridge transporting empty cans directly to the bottling area. Thanks to this, transport will be substantially reduced, with an

estimated 7.5 tonnes of CO2 saved compared to other plants when Widnau is fully operational and produces all planned cans sizes. This is equivalent to taking 10,000 trucks off the road annually.

Collaboration on all fronts To realise the facility, Rexam has encouraged collaboration on all levels to achieve an optimum result. “We have worked together with our partners Rauch Trading, our customer who will benefit from the plant, the local St. Gallen region, and so on,” Mr Percival shares. As well as significant collaboration with these partners, he adds, “Internally we have also nurtured a very broad cross-functional team since day one.

Representatives across every single function have been at the project meetings, from start to finish.”

Truly this has been one of the major strengths of delivering this complex and major project on time. Furthermore, Rexam has not only drawn heavily on its European knowledge, but also globally on the learning points and best practises established over the years from its colleagues in North America, South America and AMEA. The Widnau plant is an amalgamation of Rexam’s defining qualities and wealth of experience.

To give just one of many examples: Rexam has reduced plant energy use by 10 per cent over the past 10 years across its manufacturing network worldwide. The Widnau facility is expected to be more energy efficient than existing plants owing

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to the incorporation of energy efficiency technologies such as heat recovery systems and sensors to control lights.

Mr Percival gives another example, “Typically in most plants the bodymakers have a raised platform, meaning the operator is constantly up and down. One of the biggest safety hazards in a plant is a slip or a trip. We have changed the layout and design of the body makers so there is no need for a raised platform, taking safety and efficiency to a new level.”

Rexam will safeguard emission control through an oxidiser for the exhaust gases of the drying ovens, ensuring all emissions will be far below the current emission limit values. In terms of energy recovery, heat exchangers will feed surplus energy, for example from the thermal post-combustion system, back into the production process. The waste water treatment will use reverse osmosis, and once the plant is fully operational no waste will be sent to landfill. Mr Percival underlines, “We have brought together knowledge gleaned from Rexam globally, and we will benefit from learning from this plant as a template for future operations.”

Slim and Sleek® The strength of Rexam is not only reflected by this new facility, but also by the cans it will produce. Running at 1800 cans/min per line, the Widnau plant will manufacture 200ml, 250ml and 355ml can sizes across its ranges of Slim and Sleek®. “We are extremely proud at Rexam to be the leading player with the widest range of cans on the market to meet the needs and demands of our customers,” Mr Percival explains. “We also work to address the needs of the consumer, and consumers like choice. We see a growth in the popularity of our Slim and Sleek® ranges as they offer differentiation.”

In 2015, Rexam expanded its current range of Sleek® cans with two new sizes – the 400ml Super Sleek® with 202 End, and the 473ml Super Sleek® with 202 End.

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“Both these sizes are already generating a lot of excitement from our customers and the consumer alike. As attractive packages, our cans allow brand owners to position their products in innovative packaging that can bring excitement to the consumer experience,” Mr Percival is proud to say.

Pushing boundaries Rexam manufactures close to 65 billion cans each year at its 55 can and end making plants across the world, and sales from ongoing operations in 2014 were in the region of £3.8 billion.

One of the major trends within the can industry is a continuous focus on lightweighting. Rexam is very proud of its sustainability credentials and has reduced the weight of a 355ml can by 38 per cent since 1972. “But we can still do more,” says Mr Percival.

“Every year we continue to push the boundaries of lightweighting, while still respecting the quality and integrity of the can as a package. We are currently working on innovative new technologies that will help us continue over the long term to make the can ever more attractive from a sustainable and lightweight perspective.”

Rexam is flourishing in all of its key segments, and expects to see continued growth across the beer and soft drinks segments, as systems move from returnable glass into one-way packaging. “We see this as an opportunity for the can, which is very well positioned in modern retail due to multi packs etc.,” says Mr Percival.

He concludes, “The European industry is very healthy at the moment with positive growth. We are also seeing significant developments in the use of cans in new beverage categories, including juices, dairy, functional drinks and waters – untapped opportunities for us to expand the beverage can further than the close to 65 billion we already produce.”

For more information, visit www.rexam.com

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Ahead of the Game SP Group offers a complete variety of films that meet the needs of the industrial sector and of consumers. Since the time of its constitution in the year 1985 the company has experienced notable growth. Currently in Europe, the SP Group holds an important position with continuous growth in the plastic packaging for food products sector. Libby White spoke with Maria Eugenia Gonzalez Alvarez, marketing manager, about what sets the company apart and its success in the flexible packaging market.

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SP

Group is dedicated to the manufacturing, printing (flexography, rotogravure, offset and digital) and lamination of flexible plastic films for use in food wrapping, or rather, all flexible packaging that can be seen today in supermarkets covering products such as legumes, frozen foods, snacks, confectionary products, etc. It also offers thermoforming films for semi rigid/rigid trays.

Meeting increasing demands SP Group is one of the few providers of films for flexible packaging that extrudes part of the raw materials that it uses. Thus, it manufactures all the polyethylene (PE) among others it uses to guarantee suitable transparency and improve its production process.

Furthermore, the base film for thermoforming is extruded in the SP Group installations, which ensures its suitability for stamping with superior cover film also manufactured. SP Group works with all the materials available in the market to guarantee the barrier and technical properties the client needs.

On top of this cornerstone, SP Group looks to address the trends of the market with innovative solutions. “Technological innovation and development in the food industry has been constant and extremely important in recent years in an aim to meet the needs of increasingly discerning customers who are becoming more aware of the importance of quality food products,” Maria González comments.

She continues, “There are now many countries where the consumption per capita of pre-packaged foods is increasing. Shoppers are far more likely to put these products in their trolleys now the category is becoming less and less associated with high-calorie, less-healthy foods. Along these lines, SP Group feels that we have a responsibility both to our clients and the end consumer.” To address new consumer trends, and even to enter new sectors, SP Group benefits from its own R&D and innovation department which has allowed it to update its range of products in line with the market demands.

The trends in the sector are many and varied, including packaging materials that lengthen the shelf life of the product and methods to help maintain its organoleptic qualities. The optimum solutions for fresh products, such as vegetables, incorporate laser microperforations to prevent high concentrations of CO2 inside the packaging, thereby guaranteeing the product maintains its visual properties and its components are well preserved. There is also the inclusion of paper in the packaging to provide a certain look and feel to it that evokes traditional values, a sense of particular care taken in production, etc.

Maria González adds, “We even offer scented films, to which we can add either standard or personalised scents. These scents can be applied to both the inside and outside of the film, as they are suitable for food contact. This allows us to avoid having to include cardboard cards in the packaging.”

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Eco-efficiency Reductions in thickness and cost have been a major factor for most manufacturers in recent years. In order to adapt to these new requirements, SP Group has invested in developing solutions that provide an effective response in this area, and continue to do so.

These requirements led to SP Group developing its range of eco-efficient materials with a triple objective: to save on manufacturing costs, transport costs and eco-tax; to reduce the consumption of resources; and to reuse part of the waste materials to create a circular economy.

“We can highlight SPG SOL EFFICIENT, which is a film that meets all these objectives. It is a packaging solution with high-barrier properties that guarantees the safe preservation of food products,” Maria González shares. It is a minimum-thickness film with unbeatable technical specifications, such as easy peelability, flatness and excellent laminate stability. It is recyclable and/or recoverable. This film is also compatible with MAP for use with many different refrigerated or dry products.

The SPG R CLOSING EFFICIENT solution has similar characteristics but incorporates a re-closing system for the packaging that guarantees the freshness of the product for several days after the packet has been opened.

As well as being resealable, the R-Closing Efficient laminate can now be welded directly onto polyester at lesser thicknesses than other products on the market. This solution guarantees the packaging can be opened and closed up to 12 times.

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The new material is a response to the increasing demand for more efficient packaging that helps reduce food and packaging waste. The R-Closing Efficient laminate ensures the packaging is perfectly airtight and the food stays fresher longer once in the consumer’s home.

If this film is also used in conjunction with an APET Efficient base, you are not only guaranteed better performance during manufacture, but also the remnants and all the base material are fully recyclable. It is also possible to add a high barrier.

Initiating projects “Our R&D and Innovation department is constantly working on improvements and new solutions that not only adapt to current trends, but also ensure we are ahead of the game,” comments Maria González.

Along these lines, one of the projects that SP Group has recently undertaken is the Goldenfood project. The aim of this project is to design and develop nutritionally balanced, attractive and easy-to-manage food products for the elderly. The project is funded by the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) through the FEDER INNTERCONECTA program (ITC 20151270 Project), supported by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness and it has financing from the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER), in accordance with the definitive resolution made last December.

Goldenfood aims to develop a new range of products, foods and ingredients that provide added value and adapt to current realities and trends among elderly consumers.

Through the analysis of nutritional needs, the ability to handle the packaging, and the consumer habits of this target group, food solutions will be proposed that combine and integrate new transformation, packaging and preservation processes as well as solutions to ensure ease-of-use for the end user. In addition, the basic technical requirements for functionality, use and ease-of-use of the packaging will be identified in order to develop a design for packaging adapted to the needs of the target group in this project.

Bearing in mind that by 2020, 30% of the population in the EU-27 member countries will be over 65, this project aims to provide food and packaging for this large target group.

Latest printing technology During 2015, SP Group equipped itself with the very latest in printing technology for flexible materials. “This allows us to continue to provide the highest quality service and be the first operator in Europe with this advantage in the market and which can offer four printing techniques,” Maria González is proud to share. SP Group can offer rotogravure, flexography, central-drum Offset with EB (electron beam) ink, and digital printing.

In 2015 the first state-of-the-art Comexi Offset CI 8 printer was installed in SP Group’s principal factory in Spain. This revolutionary technology in the plastic packaging sector has advantages over existing technology and completes the range of options it has created with its clients in mind, allowing them to choose which of the four options best suits their needs (print quality, length of run, speed, etc.).

Offset printing provides advantages such as the almost inexistent cost of the plates (which is so important for short runs), print quality, and the use of EB inks (Electron Beam drying) that are 100% solvent-free.

Strategic aims One of SP Group’s strategic aims for 2015/2016 was to continue increasing its manufacturing quota of rigid and semi-rigid co-extruded materials. Although these materials are principally used for food packaging, they are also used by other markets such as the agricultural, automotive and pharmaceutical markets. In many cases, they are used in place of other materials and as more innovative alternatives. In response to the increasing demand for these materials, it made investments during 2014 and 2015 totalling 11M euros, which have mostly been aimed at incorporating new machinery and expanding facilities. Its manufacturing plant for these materials now covers more than 20,000 m2, and houses different production lines for rigid laminates (PET co-extrusions), semi-rigid laminates (PE and PP cast co-extrusions, among others) and material storage areas, which allows us to keep an average stock of € 2M to ensure it can always meet customers’ needs as quickly as possible.

For the agricultural sector, SP Group has created seed and fruit trays, tree coverings, etc. A wide range of products are also being developed for the horticultural and ornamental plant sectors. It also manufactures adhesive insect traps.

For the pharmaceutical sector, the SP Group manufactures sterilisable and pasteurisable packaging (packaging for medical instruments, medical devices, etc.). On an

Packaging Europe | 37 |

international level it supplies companies that pack blood-transfusion equipment. These companies have special requirements for sterilisation, sealing and peelability, in order to maintain the valuable contents in perfect condition. SP Group’s aim is to continue advancing with materials of this type and with new challenges that its clients wish it to take on. The feasibility of these new challenges and the search for new solutions requires the involvement of its R&D department in each project.

Expansion plans SP Group has two production sites in Spain – in Villarrubia, near Cordoba, and in Espiel, both in the south of Spain. A third production facility is situated in Arras, in the north of France. SP Group’s headquarters are situated in Villarrubia.

As part of its continuing process of expansion into Central and Eastern European countries and Scandinavia, SP Group has begun construction of a new manufacturing plant in Poland, where it now has 30,000 m2 of land in the ‘Pomeranian special economic zone’ (PSEZ), of which 4,000 m2 corresponds to a covered area and 700 m2 to offices.

“Located in Stargard Szczeniski (in the city of Szczecin), in the northeast of the country, we expect to start introducing machinery at the beginning of 2016 to begin production in April 2016,” comments Maria González. “Our aim is to enter new markets where there is a great demand for innovative packing of a high quality.”

As in its other plants in Spain and France, the new factory will also initially have the following machinery in its initial phase: one Offset printing machine, one laminator (without solvents), one cutter, one Doypack pouch production machine and one blown extrusion machine.

| 38 | Packaging Europe

SP Group has been investing constantly for several years now. The new factory in Poland, the new offset and digital printers, and the constant improvements and extensions to the offices and storage areas represent the Group’s current investments and its investments for the near future.

The SP Group also has plans as a main commercial objective to reach the meat and processed-meat producers in Germany, through attendance at the IFFA trade fair.

“This year we will be attending two trade fairs in Europe. The first, from the 8th to the 10th March in Rennes France, is Cfiaexpo, a fair we have been attending for many years. The other is the IFFA in Frankfurt from the 7th to the 12th April, which we will be attending for the first time,” says Maria González.

Continuous growth SP Group is currently very well positioned on a national and international level as a benchmark company in the food packaging sector. However, Maria González comments, “Our objective is to increase our manufacturing quota for the agricultural, pharmaceutical and automotive industries. We are also exploring other channels for marketing our products for the chemical, cosmetics, hardware, IT and electronic industries, as well as for providing packaging for other accessories of a general nature.”

The company’s growth has to be gradual, as it has been in recent years, and Maria González concludes, “We foresee that the commissioning of the plant in Poland will allow us to consolidate our position in countries where we are already present, as well as to enter new markets.”

Visit: www.spg-pack.com

Packaging Europe | 39 |

A true

solutions

provider

Minnesota-based Squid Ink Manufacturing, Inc. is a leading manufacturer of industrial coding and marking systems and superior quality inks. Elisabeth Skoda spoke to the company’s president and CEO Bill Hoagland about its upcoming appearance at Empack in Utrecht, fuelling the company’s push towards expansion in Europe, and finds out more about what makes Squid Ink stand apart from its competitors. | 40 | Packaging Europe

W

ith its head office and manufacturing facilities located in Minnesota, Squid Ink is a key part of the Engage Technologies family and is a long-term member of PMMI. Squid Ink recently celebrated a milestone, 25 years of being in the inkjet, coding and marking business. Originally focused on providing water-based inks for dot matrix printers, the company moved into the high-resolution and marking sector, both for primary and secondary product markets. The company grew and expanded to include printing systems as well as replacement inks. Squid Ink’s printers and ink are designed to print the highest quality bar codes, batch numbers, date codes, logos and large or small character text, directly onto corrugated cases, plastics, metals, glass, wood and other substrates.

Comprehensive product range Squid Ink’s product range includes high resolution printers, thermal transfer overprinters (TTO), UV LED curing systems, ink jet fluids, ink delivery systems, coding and marking systems and material handling.

“We also manufacture 250 formulations of ink, which means that in the coding, marking and packaging industries, we can address printing on everything from glass, metal, plastics, to corrugated boxes and gloss stock boxes,” Mr. Hoagland adds.

Squid Ink’s technology meets the needs of a wide variety of printing applications.

Mr. Hoagland is proud to point out one of Squid Ink’s major USPs.

Packaging Europe | 41 |

“Our competitors in the marketplace have really narrowed the scope of available inks, some departments used to have 15 or 20 chemists or developers and reduced it down to four or five, so they are really not ink developers any more. We still focus very much on ink development, and our customers benefit from the results.”

Innovation at Empack Squid Ink will focus on its new CoPilot range, which was launched successfully last year, at Empack in Utrecht, in the Netherlands in April 2016. CoPilot printing systems are designed to print superior quality hi-resolution characters of either porous or non-porous surfaces.

| 42 | Packaging Europe

CoPilot uses proven Xaar piezo technology to print up to 0.7” of hi-resolution characters, razor-sharp text, scannable bar codes, and great looking logos at 185 dpi. A 4.3” full colour touchscreen provides access to the system’s internal messages and print functions.

Messages are created and edited on Squid Ink’s easy-to-use Orion™ PC Software and transferred via Ethernet or USB device. For larger applications, multiple CoPilot printing systems can be connected via Ethernet or wirelessly and controlled through one central Orion print station.

Mr. Hoagland lists some characteristics of the different models: “With up to 2.1” of print height per print head and the ability to run up to two print heads from one controller, the CoPilot 382 offers a versatile, yet cost effective solution

for a wide range of coding and marking applications. Furthermore, the CoPilot 256 is designed to work as an integral part of a day-to-day packaging operation, and offers up to 2.8” of total print height and the ability to print on both sides of the substrate in a single pass. Finally, the CoPilot 128 ink jet printing system offers the highest durability, versatility and productivity for printing lot codes on coated cartons, bar codes on corrugated cases, or product information and logos on PVC pipe.” All of the CoPilot printing systems are CE certified and approved.

Also on show will be the company’s TTO (thermal transfer overprinter) range and its UV curable systems, which eliminate the need for solvents while lowering maintenance of the print systems.

“There have been a lot of technical difficulties with solvent based inks, which still dominate the market, especially with VOCs (volatile organic compounds). Our UV curable inkjet solution puts the ink on without VOCs. We developed UV curing systems that go with the print systems to give complete integration and lower maintenance costs.

Because there are no solvents, our solution allows for less opening time. We have released this option both into the US and Asian markets, where it has been greatly successful, and it will be introduced to Europe at Empack,” Mr. Hoagland points out.

“Squid Ink’s new UV system is versatile and can print on metal, competing with continuous inkjet printers with no volatile organic compounds, making them safer for human interface and environments.”

Packaging Europe | 43 |

Focus on Europe Squid Ink has been selling inks and ink jet printing systems in Europe since 2000. Last year, the company set up a new sales support and warehousing facility in The Hague in the Netherlands, with space for ink, printer, and parts storage, technical and sales support, as well as office space. The location allows Squid Ink to better support a growing list of distributors and large end users in Europe.

“Having a warehouse in The Hague allows us to provide quicker response times when people need our products, rather than waiting for products to be transported from a distance. The new site has opened up technical support for expanding distribution throughout Europe,” Mr. Hoagland explains.

“We have enlarged the facility and included training facilities, which is crucial to our expansion. We now have a fully certified logistics company to handle hazardous materials. We have seen a very positive response from our European customers thanks to reducing costs and response times in technical support.”

International presence Squid Ink has three facilities in Minnesota, where the company’s headquarters are also situated, and one in California. In addition, there are two facilities in Shanghai, one technical support and sales facility and one assembly facility.

“We are trying to keep our cost competitive edge in the Asian market, and we are in the process of setting up a joint venture in Bangkok, Thailand, expecting first batches of ink to be ready by the middle of the year,” Mr. Hoagland adds.

Since opening its distribution facility in The Hague, Squid Ink has expanded its reach to 17 European countries thanks to various distribution agreements.

“We have reached solid market penetration and great expansion in a short time, in countries such as Germany, Italy, France, the UK, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Switzerland and Russia, and we just recently signed a distribution agreement in Romania. We also just recently signed a major OEM agreement to manufacture inks for a major company in Europe, so it has been quite a year for us,” Mr. Hoagland is happy to report.

Growth Squid Ink expects to grow organically in the coming years thanks to ongoing product developments.

“We have expanded our distribution in a little over 60 countries globally, and are able to provide our customers with the solutions they need. R&D is of crucial importance.

Our R&D lab is staffed with 15 engineers, and we are planning on expanding this

| 44 | Packaging Europe

further in order to provide our customers with even more cutting edge solutions,” Mr. Hoagland says.

Squid Ink currently has around 120 fulltime employees excluding its Asian operations, and achieved a growth rate of 12.5% in 2015.

“Of course it is an unknown how fast the market will grow, but we have what it takes to support our customers and distribution base, and this is our main driver for growth,” he adds.

In conclusion, Mr. Hoagland is keen to point out Squid Ink’s credentials as an ink developer and complete solutions provider.

“A lot of people make statements about being solution providers, but really cannot offer anything much beyond standard ink. On the contrary, our ink and software development allows us to be a true solutions provider to the market place. I believe it comes down to being able to help the customer. We will take on a project and we don’t have to go out and purchase any ink, we will manufacture and develop it. For example, one of our customers in the continuous inkjet field wanted a very specific green ink, which nobody in the world makes. It took us seven or eight months of development to create a green ink for them, and the customer was very satisfied. We work with our customers to help them achieve exactly what they need.”

Visit: www.squidink.com

Packaging Europe | 45 |

Samuel Grant

Packaging – 125 years of Innovation In 2016 Samuel Grant Packaging celebrate 125 years at the forefront of the packaging industry in the UK. We caught up with the current Managing Directors, the great-grandsons of the founder, Andrew and Matthew Grant.

Matthew and Andrew Grant, Managing Directors

Q: So how did the company start?

A: In 1891, our great-grandfather, Samuel Grant, started his self-named company as a ‘School Furnisher’ – he provided slates and paper for schools in the Leeds area.

He had a stroke of luck in that a former employer went bankrupt and he was able to purchase stock at a vastly reduced rate, which boosted the start of the business.

Q: What was his first most successful product?

A: In approximately 1900, Samuel Grant was approached by esteemed tailor Montegue Burton to provide him with ‘brown wrapping paper’ in which to pack his suits. This was to be the start of an ongoing supplier relationship of paper products to Burton’s that would last for 90 years, including pattern paper. This became so successful that in 1932, Samuel Grant trademarked his pattern paper “Grancut”. This continued to be Samuel Grant’s best-selling product until the demise of the British textile industry in the latter 20th century.

Q: But you can’t just have sold pattern paper….

A: From the 1930s and beyond, Yorkshire produced 90% of the world’s rhubarb.

In a war-torn world that was suffering under rationing, rhubarb was extremely

| 46 | Packaging Europe

popular, and provided well-needed nutrients, as well as relief from constipation.

Grant’s provided most of the purple tissue paper and rubber bands which were used to wrap it.

Q: What other key products were introduced in the early stages?

A: We have continued to innovate throughout the years – our Grandfather introduced chipboard, boxboard, corrugated paper and waxed craft papers to the range, as well as purchasing the company’s first vehicles in the 1940s. Our father, David Grant, introduced the sale of cellulose tape, and invested hugely in paper machinery, which allowed the company to become competitive in the printing industry.

Q: How did you move into plastic packaging – this seems to be the mainstay of the business at the moment.

A: In the late 1970s, Samuel Grant’s bought CL Plastics, which enabled us to take the next step in polythene manufacturing. The company invested heavily in newer and more sophisticated machines, which enabled us to offer bespoke ‘polymer recipes’ designed to customers’ own specific requirements. By the early 1980s we were officially the largest Paper, Polythene and Packaging Merchant in the North of England.

Packaging Europe | 47 |

David Grant standing next to a framed photograph of Samuel Grant, the founder

Bespoke 10m very narrow aisle racking

New warehouse, completed 2015

Q: How has the company innovated with its processes?

Q: So what’s next for Samuel Grant Packaging?

A: In 1981 we bought one of the first ever Telex machines – it looks old now, but it was cutting edge technology at the time. We have continued as a company to invest in technology and in making sure that we are at the forefront of not only the industry, but in communications and business processes that make things as efficient as possible for our customers nationwide.

A: In late 2015 we moved into our brand new premises, a bespoke-built 50,000 square foot warehouse in Leeds, with Very Narrow Aisle technology. This allows us to store more goods for our clients, as well as grow into the future.

We continue to listen, advise and deliver optimum packaging solutions on time every time. We consult with our clients to create the best possible solutions for their businesses, and work with them to ensure absolute packaging efficiency. We will continue to be knowledgeable about every aspect of the packaging process. The key to our future success will be to be customer focussed team players, and continue to be as trustworthy and reliable as our many customers know us to be.

Q: So innovation is key to the company’s success – what other key developments have there been?

A: We developed peelable paper for the foam industry in the 1970s, as well as interleaving papers for the printing plate industry. In the mid 1980s we were able to print personalised adhesive tapes in house which proved hugely popular – indeed demand outstripped supply initially. In 1988 we made ‘Crop Cover’ a heavy guage polythene which was formulated to cover crops and force them to grow quicker. In the 1990s we developed light proof polythene bags for the photographic industry, and the 2000s saw us create laminated film specifically for carpet underlay.

Visit: www.samuelgrant.co.uk

Q: Plastics constantly come under scrutiny for their impact on the environment – how has the company addressed this?

A: In 1998, we purchased Marmax Recycled Products. Marmax produce recycled plastic produce containers which are supplied to growers and processors, as well as manufacture quality outdoor furniture. All of Marmax’s products are made from recycled plastic bottles. Marmax allows our customers to recycle their plastics into durable everyday items which have very little maintenance and have won numerous awards thanks to their environmental credentials.

The bespoke creation of the revolutionary Samson Nano pallet wrapping machine in 2013 has addressed the amount of film which is used in wrapping pallets – the film stretches further than competitors’ and therefore clients are able to use less film for the same if not better quality of pallet wrap. One of our first customers for the Samson Nano system, Taylors of Harrogate, saved themselves 10 tonnes of C02 emissions in their first year alone.

| 48 | Packaging Europe

Marmax Recycled Products – A Samuel Grant Group company

Packaging Europe | 49 |

TOUCH THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL PRINTING WITH DATALASE AT DRUPA 2016 Leading inline digital printing materials technology company, DataLase, is gearing up for Drupa with the launch of its new Variprint™ monochrome digital printing solution.

H

istorically, the technology has only been seen in product coding and marking applications, in white, clear and black. Now, the company has extended its intellectual property portfolio and is bringing to market, at Drupa 2016, the ability to deliver true real time messaging and variable data on pack with a new selection of monochrome colours – a breakthrough in laser inline digital printing.

Dr Chris Wyres, CEO of DataLase, said: “It’s a really exciting time for the business.

We’ve built up a network of strategic partners, including SpeciaLase, our new joint venture with Sato Group in the Asia Pacific region, delivering the laser, ink and coating systems required to grow our technology on a global basis. We’re now in a position to truly enable real-time marketing value on pack to brand owners and retailers.

“Whether it’s seasonal events, promotions or simple nutritional or language changes driving the need for a graphics amendment to a pack, brand owners and retailers need to react quickly to market movements to protect value and grow sales.

“Hybrid digital and pre-printing systems still require a degree of pre-planning to respond effectively and can result in supply chain waste when forecasts are inaccurate. The DataLase inline digital printing solution maintains data flexibility right up to the point of packing, avoiding the need to pre-order printed materials, minimising costs and maximising the sales impact. A win: win for everyone in the supply chain.” | 50 | Packaging Europe

DS Smith’s UK packaging division, a leading corrugated packaging producer, has incorporated the DataLase solution on flexo-printed boxes for customers requiring late stage differentiation on their packing line.

Andy Young, print and graphics development manager at DS Smith and chairman of The European Flexographic Industry Association, said: “The advantages are clear with this technology. It provides the ability to digitally print each pack individually, with real time information, minimising both inventory and supply chain waste.

“From our customers’ perspective, they’re not worrying about last minute changes and are able to respond quickly and effectively to changes in their marketing campaigns. Their production teams recognise the benefits of the system.

“There is now a huge choice of coated and uncoated papers that work with the DataLase technology and the printer just needs the right patch coat weight, laser setting and choice of substrate.

“We also recently submitted a case study of the technology for our customer, KP Nuts, part of Intersnack Group, to the 2016 EFIA Print Awards in the technical innovation category, in a bid to demonstrate the nature and potential future for this technology.”

The development forms part of DS Smith’s print portfolio including their own ground breaking digital PrePrint programme and underlining their determination to be at the leading edge of print innovation.

What’s next for DataLase?

The DataLase team is expanding rapidly with new appointments in North America and Asia supporting the fast growth of the technology. With business rapidly expanding across food and drink, pharmaceuticals and personal and household care markets, the number of applications the technology is now being used for is increasing all the time.

Mark Naples, vice president new business development in Europe and Asia Pacific, commented: “We have new customers in case coding, flexible packaging, aluminium can and mailing and addressing applications, which are keeping us very busy. Once clients have investigated the solution, they realise the massive difference it can make to their effectiveness; minimising their costs but more importantly maximising their efficiency and responsiveness to market trends, through their ability to deliver late stage pack customisation and differentiation.”

Today, DataLase has offices in the UK, North America and Japan and is seeing the development of a range of market applications on a global basis. The Variprint development delivers a new level of pack differentiation with promotions and key variable data messages able to stand out from traditional coding and marking style graphics in blue, green and red text.

Whilst coding and marking is still a core application for the technology, the future looks bright for DataLase delivering multi-colour highly effective, flexible inline digital printing capability to maximise brand owner and retailer marketing effectiveness.

To find out more about DataLase and its innovative inline digital printing solutions, please visit the team in Hall 6 at DRUPA, Messe Dusseldorf, May 31st – June 10th 2016.

Visit: www.datalase.com

Packaging Europe | 51 |

DataLase VARIPRINT allows YOU to custom print this text in any language, on demand in-line at the point of packaging

DataLase VARIPRINT enables YOU to custom print this text in any language at high speed, YOU can also include your best before date and batch number © Product Image Copyright of DataLase Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

DATALASE SECURES NEW PATENTS FOR REVOLUTIONARY INLINE DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY DataLase has been granted a further four patents for its novel technologies, Variprint® and Infinity™.

T

he revolutionary Variprint and Infinity solutions combine DataLase core colour-change materials technology with the next generation of laser print engines to deliver high speed, high resolution, on-demand digital printing that is a high performance alternative to traditional labels and print methods.

The technology developed by DataLase relies on a unique additive which is incorporated into a material or patch applied to a pack; when exposed to Near InfaRed lasers, it generates a colour change reaction in the pigment.

The Variprint and Infinity platforms take the DataLase technology to another level, from traditional black/white codes and graphics to introducing multiple colour capabilities.

The Variprint solution has a monochrome colour additive enabling printing with a single colour choice. Meanwhile, Infinity will ultimately offer a full colour solu| 52 | Packaging Europe

tion, changing the game in potential applications and markets for DataLase inline digital printing solutions.

Mark Naples, DataLase VP business development Europe and Asia Pacific, said: “The granting of these additional patents demonstrates the level of innovation and capability that the DataLase solution is able to offer to the FMCG sector. Digital print is growing because it offers a significant advantage over traditional print techniques, delivering capability for responsive and timely customised marketing and promotion on pack and product. Our groundbreaking technology is cost effective and efficient, providing a high added-value solution for today’s print market and meets the needs of brand owners, retailers and packaging converters alike.”

Visit: www.datalase.com

Packaging Europe | 53 |

Setting

New Standards

With more than 120 years of experience, Rexnord is today the premier supplier of power transmission and conveying components to industries worldwide. Libby White spoke with three experts from Rexnord FlatTop about the solutions being used today by global brands and its offerings for leading can manufacturers.

| 54 | Packaging Europe

Paul van der Meer

Sjaak Hofland

S

ince its foundation in 1891, Rexnord has grown from a local chain belt company based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, into a company with global reach serving major industries from transportation, mining, energy, and food & beverage with an impressive portfolio of gears, drives, bearings, couplings, industrial chains, and a wide range of conveyor component products.

“We are specialized in TableTop and MatTop® (modular) conveyor chains, to convey all types of containers like glass bottles, metal cans, PET bottles and various packages used in the food and beverage industry,” explains Sjaak Hofland, segment director, beverage & container.

On top of this, Rexnord can provide the wear strips that carry the chain, the rails that guide the products on the conveyor, and further a wide range of components to assemble the conveyor. Every mechanism that is in contact with the chain is covered in its broad portfolio, ensuring Rexnord can offer solutions to its customers that work together seamlessly.

Mike Livingstone, account manager for can manufacturing, adds, “We are certainly the only company that offers a complete conveyor solution, including chains, wear strips, product guides and conveyor construction components.”

Developing new solutions Rexnord addresses the key trends of the market, providing solutions for the most demanding applications in the can making industry, such as high-speed single file conveyors and mass conveying with critical head-to-tail transfers. Mike Livingstone comments, “One of our main focuses is sustainability. Cans have become much lighter through innovation with less material used, there are taller ‘skinny’ cans on the market today, and

Mike Livingstone

our customers use increasingly faster rates of production.” To address the requirements of the market, Rexnord has already achieved success through the development of new chain materials and designs.

Customers are offered choices of material starting from standard LF acetal based materials. Next is High Performance (HP™) which is an improved material with lower friction, and then there is a top line material (PSX) which offers the lowest available friction and wear. PSX® material is developed for high-speed conveying of glass, aluminum and steel cans in conditions where minimal or no external lubrication is present.

Mike Livingstone shares, “PSX was first applied in the can manufacturing industry in a high-speed single file can inspector, to improve wear life and reduce vibration in the chain. It proved to be a great success and wear life of the chain was improved by more than factor three. Vibrations were greatly reduced, improving the can throughput on the conveyor.”

Efficiency Selecting the optimal chain and material for the application achieves a range of benefits from efficiency improvement, reduction in waste, to energy savings. Paul van der Meer, product manager, food & beverage, comments, “The key is to convey the product in the most efficient way, whilst eliminating waste in the production process (such as due to fallen products). This is one of our main focuses when we design chains, as well as sustainability. We aim to help our customers achieve their goals on energy savings in their plants, whilst also ensuring a high level of safety for operators.”

Packaging Europe | 55 |

As a prime example, Rexnord recently did a retrofit for one of its large end users in the manufacturing industry who had an issue with a high volume of falling cans at the transfers in the can washer infeed section. The customer was facing huge costs due to extra operators, who had to put the fallen cans back upright 24/7. Paul van der Meer points out, “By recommending the optimal conveyor chain and material for this critical application, we could improve the can sliding properties on the chain and reduce the back line pressure on the fragile cans, in case of mass accumulation. As a result, the number of fallen cans has reduced drastically and extra operators are no longer needed.”

With its broad portfolio and innovative new materials, Rexnord can address the requirements of many applications with the best solution. Paul van der Meer explains, “By capturing the Voice of the Customer to find out what conveying issues the customer are trying to solve, we continuously translate the industry needs into new products. Rexnord holds a strong record of innovative conveying solutions, that have set new standards in the beverage filling and container making industry world-wide.”

Assuring high quality With a global reach, Rexnord has a number of production plants where all products are made in-house adhering to the high Rexnord standard of quality. Major production plants are based in the Netherlands, the United States, Italy and China (the latter of which only produces for its local market).

Paul van der Meer comments, “Rexnord serves industries where quality is the most important factor to consider. Rexnord can meet these demands, and I believe this is one of the key factors that differentiates Rexnord from other suppliers.” | 56 | Packaging Europe

Sjaak Hofland is proud to point out, “We have a team of experienced application engineers and technical experts who can investigate the lines of a customer to ensure a good understanding of the environment and application, ensuring we can provide the optimum solution, and support our customers locally.”

Drivers and growth Rexnord is a growth-oriented, multi-platform industrial company with leading market shares and highly trusted brands that serve a diverse array of global end markets. The Rexnord standard focuses on driving superior customer satisfaction and financial results by targeting world-class operating performance throughout all aspects of our business.

“There are great opportunities for growth in can manufacturing plants and with the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) for the can manufacturing industry,” says Mike Livingstone.

Sjaak Hofland adds, “With our focus on sustainable goals for large end users, we will continue developing products that help our customers achieve energy saving goals, optimise their production lines and reduce their total cost of ownership of conveyor equipment in their facilities.”

Rexnord looks forward to the year ahead and will be exhibiting at Euro CanTech, 4–6 April 2016 in Berlin, Germany. Here it will be showcasing its high-speed materials, standard modular belting and complete package of wear strips and components as well as its overall transmission range.

Visit: www.rexnord.com

Packaging Europe | 57 |

As a global solutions provider, LeanLogistics offers SaaS transportation management system (TMS) applications and supply chain services. Elisabeth Skoda spoke to Ian Broadhurst, the company’s EMEA General Manager, to find out more about the company’s services, increasing efficiency and reducing costs for a wide range of sectors, including the packaging industry.

A game changer

for logistics | 58 | Packaging Europe

L

eanLogistics was set up in Holland, Michigan, USA in 1999 by a team of operational logistics professionals who noticed a gap in the market in terms of how shippers and carriers communicate with each other.

“They took advantage of the development of the software as a service space, which allowed shippers and carriers to communicate in a more proactive manner,” Mr. Broadhurst adds.

In 2008, LeanLogistics joined the Brambles Ltd family, and now is one of four companies operating under the Brambles umbrella. Brambles is a supply chain logistics company headquartered in Sydney, Australia, operating in over 60 countries. Sister company CHEP, a major player in the logistics industry, plays a major part in LeanLogistics success story.

“Prior to the acquisition through Brambles, LeanLogistics operated exclusively in North America, but cooperating with CHEP Europe opened up the European LeanLogistics market for the company. We currently operate for CHEP in 27 countries including the Middle East,” Mr. Broadhurst is happy to report.

LeanLogistics’ EMEA headquarters are situated in Surrey, England with teams of implementation consultants, customer support, marketing and sales in France, Spain and Ireland, serving the whole of Europe.

Facilitating processes As a transportation management software provider, LeanLogistics provides software that enables the shipping community to communicate with the carrier community in a proactive and sensible way.

LeanLogistics’ tried and tested transport management system LeanTMS allows all facets of the supply chain to work collaboratively in a single instance of technology.

LeanTMS delivers complete domestic and global transportation planning, execution, settlement and procurement, as well as visibility and actionable intelligence, to improve transportation processes, increase efficiency and reduce costs. This provides shippers

with an opportunity to scale infrastructure and business processes, while becoming more efficient. The global capabilities of LeanTMS ensure compliance by providing complete transportation visibility and access to industry data to meet multi-regional regulations and guidelines.

“Our transport management system provides visibility of transactions of a load to a carrier from pick up to delivery. The system drives carrier compliance from transport planners as they plan loads daily providing cost saving opportunities. Transport planners can use the TMS in a variety of ways, from manually building loads to using semi-automated to fully automated functionality within the TMS environment,” Mr. Broadhurst adds.

The freight payment component of LeanTMS, WebSettle, a paperless self-invoicing process, can significantly help in reducing costs within the freight audit and payment administrative process. Payment is automatic upon closing the load. WebSettle will also perform freight bill matching and duplicate payment detection for carriers who submit traditional freight bills. Paid bills are added immediately to payment history for duplicate detection. WebSettle also accurately allocates freight costs to shipments and orders. The solution is highly scalable and highly flexible, working with customer to reflect their business processes.

“Full cost transparency between shipper and carrier is maintained, the likelihood of errors occurring and non-matching invoices is eradicated, offering significant cost savings,” Mr. Broadhurst says.

Success stories CHEP Europe achieved savings in transportation management as well as efficiency improvements as a result of implementing LeanTMS from LeanLogistics.

“Previously, transportation management at CHEP Europe was done manually. All planning was done by individual countries. Implementing LeanTMS has allowed Chep to move to a centralised method of transport planning, driving

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carrier compliance, increasing carrier capacity and greatly increasing visibility of movements,” Mr. Broadhurst explains.

Thanks to implementing LeanTMS, a high percentage of loads are transacted fully automatically. A high percentage of orders become loads and are never even seen by planners thanks to rules set up within LeanTMS, so planners can focus on more complex issues. LeanTMS allows planners to see what loads are outstanding, and what has been delivered.

“The entire CHEP European transport purchasing team now has access to all aspects of the transportation process across countries. European carriers can now be managed as a whole rather than by individual country. The transportation process has been standardised across all countries. Additionally, the automated tendering process (straight tender from order creation) improved lead times and resulted in better carrier acceptance,” Mr Broadhurst points out.

Another happy customer he would like to highlight is Marine Harvest Norway, the world’s largest producer of Atlantic salmon. As global demand for its products grew, the company faced transportation challenges. One of their key issues was that they have a known demand from customers, but they do not know exactly what the supply was going to be, as the fish were still in the water. This put stress on their transportation processes, in terms of trucks needed each day.

“In order to help with that issue, the company implemented LeanTMS, which offered complete visibility into its transportation processes, allowing the company to begin benchmarking carriers and recording key performance indicators, enabling better procurement process decisions. This resulted in transportation cost savings of up to five percent,” Mr. Broadhurst is happy to report.

A reliable partner LeanLogistics is proud to consider customers as partners with whom they have longstanding relationships, as Mr. Broadhurst explains: “A long term partnership is what we are looking for. Our customers appreciate our support, and our way of dealing with them. Once we have gone live with a customer, we never walk away. Our client services group takes over and works continuously with customers to improve how they use the system to create even greater value for them. This really sets us apart from our competition. We put a lot of focus on client services groups.”

LeanLogistics is proud of working hard to get in-depth knowledge of their customers’ needs.

“We spend a lot of time with potential customers understanding their business, and working out where cost savings and value can be achieved. We work closely with our customers to understand their business right from the beginning, and we aim to understand how they want to operate going forward, if they want central or dispersed planning, and where they see themselves in the coming three to five years. The TMS is highly flexible and scalable to reflect where customers want to be in the future,” he adds.

He sees an exciting future for LeanLogistics in Europe and worldwide.

“Our constant aim is to continually expand our functionality to ensure we cover all modes of transport that our customers require. We have been rolling out the TMS all over Europe, and further expand our knowledge and traction in sectors such as food, beverage and packaging. Just recently, we have had great success with a major packaging customer based in Europe, who are very happy with the solutions we have developed for them.”

Visit: www.leanlogistics.com

“We spend a lot of time with potential customers understanding their business, and working out where cost savings and value can be achieved.”

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Packaging Europe | 61 |

Old master, new

opportunities Family-owned and focused on complete customer satisfaction, German-based Polyplast Müller Group, in short “PPM”, is active across the world and on course for continued success with its refined plastic granulates for a range of applications. Emma-Jane Batey spoke to business managers Dr Thomas Weber and Peter Schumacher to find out more.

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F

ounded in Straelen, Germany in 1981, Polyplast Müller Group is 100 per cent family owned and headquartered in Straelen. Proudly traditional yet totally in tune with its customers’ latest demands, PPM refines plastic granulates by working in additives, fillers and colour pigments.

With 600 employees globally and 220 in Germany, PPM is still a medium-sized business but has achieved the impressive position of Germany’s largest masterbatch company and is one of the top five in Europe. Business managers Peter Schumacher and Dr Thomas Weber spoke to Packaging Europe to explain how the company has developed and what they believe is its commercial advantage. They said, “We have enjoyed a ten per cent annual growth rate for many years and we believe that is thanks to our well-deserved reputation for excellence and our ability to offer complete solutions to our customers.

For our customers, our suppliers and the market, we are very much a growth partner, a technology all-rounder and a true guarantor of service. We deliver; our message is ‘don’t worry, let PPM take care of it’.”

This complete service is achieved by PPM offering ‘everything from one hand’.

With state-of-the-art technology, superior quality management and a comprehensive range of services, the company can promise a reliable, sustainable and performancedriven product that always meets the demands of the customer. Dr Weber continued, “As a leading full-service partner, we support our customers with standardised as well as customised tailor-made masterbatch and cable-compound solutions. All of our products are available from our factory at short notice, making it a very attractive

proposition. Our facilities are carefully equipped with the very latest machinery and are operated by highly skilled technologists, so our customer commitment to standard and tailor-made solutions is always achieved. With the recent trend for combination batches, for example, we have the additives knowledge to blend two or three ingredients. It’s not just black and white.”

Compounding success The broad PPM product portfolio includes PolyPlast Black/White, PolyPlus® Additive Masterbatch, PolyPlast Colour Masterbatch and PolyCable® Masterbatch & Compounds, as well as additional subcontracting capabilities. Mr Schumacher explained further, “We say that customers will always make the right choice when they chose PPM Masterbatch. We develop and produce large volumes of white masterbatch that feature an attractive price/performance ratio and is ideally suited a number of different individual uses. We truly combine the flexibility of a medium-sized company with the performance ability of a market-leading group for the benefit of our customers.”

PolyPlast Black Masterbatch is for complex formulations for demanding applications, regardless of whether it’s a simple colouration or a more stringent technical requirement, or its simply an economical solution for the recycling industry.

PolyPlus® Additive Masterbatch has been created with added value in mind. Both invisible and colourless, these additives improve the processability and characteristics of numerous plastic products. PolyPlast Colour Masterbatch is suited to ‘virtually

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all industrial sectors’ and can be produced in small quantities or large volumes.

PPM Masterbatch & Compounds link varied applications in order to deliver the company’s extensive knowledge in this field.

Keeping it clean Mr Schumacher told Packaging Europe about one of the company’s best-selling additive masterbatch. He said, “the market is facing a trend for specialization and smaller production lots, hence more product changes. PolyPlus® LD 1925 ZZ helps to maximize efficiencies and saves time and money. It’s a well-known purge compound that cleans according to customers’ needs. There are three key applications for this product: as a cleaner for machines or extruders, including as a preventative; for quick colour changes, as it doesn’t stick to metal surfaces so the colour change process is much faster; and as a machine shut-down tool. It’s already our best selling product in terms of number of customers and it looks set to be an important ingredient in our future recipe for success.”

Polyplast Müller’s future is also likely to be positive thanks to its recent strengthening of its direct selling operation. Previously more reliant on distributors, the company is currently working to increase its own sales managers across many of its active world markets and will continue to do so over the next three to four years.

Dr Weber concluded, “Our main sales centre will focus on organic growth and the rapid increase of our global sales force. Also, since the company started we have been

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continually active in evaluating market development, including strategic acquisitions as appropriate, and we will carry on in this manner too. We are open to opportunities and always have our ear to the ground when it comes to trends, developments and possible ways to grow.”

Visit: www.polyplast.com

The Synthetic paper Arjobex manufactures Polyart® a range of synthetic papers designed for high resistant tags and labels.

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olyart films are made of expanded HDPE, are tear- and water-resistant and print like paper using conventional and digital technologies (HP Indigo, UV and water-based inkjet). They cover the main labelling technologies including IML, self-adhesive and wet glue.

Polyart tags and labels are used for tracking, security, logistics and horticultural applications, for chemical drums and luggage, direct food contact, pharmaceuticals, and much more.

Arjobex attended Labelexpo Europe and will also present its latest products at Labelexpo Asia in December 2015: • Polyart INKJET provides exciting possibilities for water-based inkjet printing.

Polyart INKJET is a polyethylene film coated on one side. Its special waterproof inkjet

coating is fast drying and compatible with most pigment and dye-based inks. Ideal for all labels that must stand up to tough environments, Polyart Inkjet resists water, grease and chemical products, tearing, outdoor use and low temperatures (-60°C).

• A range of iridescent coatings especially designed for wine and spirits labels that combine a luxury appearance with water resistance. Polyart is particularly interesting for white, sparkling, and rosé wines which are served in ice buckets.

• A range of security and tamper evident labels specially designed to protect products from counterfeiting and being tampered with. They can be embedded with overt or covert security features.

Visit: www.polyart.com

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BW Container Systems – Robotic Rotary Table Case Palletisation Solution BW Container Systems has a long history in providing innovative robotic and automation solutions around the Globe.

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rom robotic palletising cells in freezers for the Alaskan fish industry to robotic solutions throughout the Middle East and China for both beverage and food customers, BW Container Systems is one of only a handful of robotic system integrators providing innovative robotic, automation and controls solutions around the world. The company’s financial wherewithal (it is a division American packaging leader,

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Barry Wehmiller), extensive application experience (nearly 300 systems installed), and Global footprint (installations in over 150 companies), have solidified its position as a leader in robotic solutions.

While there are many examples that highlight BW Container Systems’ innovative approach to robotic solution development, the company’s rotary case palletiser robotic

cell is among the finest. “A customer came to us with a palletisation requirement that required the palletisation of many mixed case formats from multiple production lines,” says Sean Bailey, BWCS Director of Business Development – EMEA. “The client’s requirement for simultaneous palletisation in a very small equipment footprint forced us to take an innovative, un-conventional approach in order to address their need.” In order to meet the customer’s requirement, BWCS developed its Rotary Table Robot for Case Palletisation which provides a solution for mixed format cases. The innovative robotic system can be fed by either single or multiple production lines. The cases are picked by the robot, and then based on an automated selection process, they are carefully placed into the relevant pallet segment on the table in the customer’s required layer pattern.

Once a pallet is fully populated, the turntable rotates to discharge the full pallet and replenish that segment with a new pallet, which can be of varying pallet size or format.

The complete pallet is then conveyed out to the stretch wrapper.

This innovative approach to palletising mixed case formats provides an extremely flexible palletisation solution which has an extremely compact equipment footprint and has many benefits over the traditional railed robot arm approach.

To find out more about BW Container Systems Robotic and Automation solutions please contact e-mail: sean.bailey@bwcontainersystems.com Tel: +44 (0)1302 711056 or visit www.bwcontainersystems.com

• US –Chicago, Denver, Lynchburg, Baltimore, St. Louis • UK – Doncaster • 500+ associates with over 435,000 square feet manufacturing capacity

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A global name in tissue processing Top quality and reliability are the watchwords for Recard, one of the world leaders in the design and manufacture of systems for tissue paper processing. Daniele Garavaglia highlights the success of a small business that has become a first-class company with operations on five continents.

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ow has a small enterprise, founded as a workshop for mechanical maintenance, managed to become one of the leading international companies in the design and manufacture of continuous machines for tissue paper processing? With over 125 systems installed worldwide, Recard embodies the Italian entrepreneurial and technological spirit: “At Recard, we cherish our ‘workshop’ traditions: Knowledge, expertise, culture rooted in the territory, a streamlined organisation, direct relationships with customers and flexible technology – such are the tenets of our business philosophy, which enables us to provide tailor-made solutions to the issues facing companies of all sizes,” says managing director Mauro Michelini.

Carrying on the technical culture Established in 1962 in the heart of the Lucca paper district by the Cardinotti brothers, Piero and Luciano, and Silvano Renieri, Recard is now a medium-sized enterprise. It employs over 70 people and its turnover exceeds €30 million. “With over a half century of experience in the industry, and carrying on the traditional and technical culture of the province of Lucca, we are one of the best companies in the field of machinery and technologies for the production and processing of tissue paper.”

The Lucca ‘Tissue Valley’ district boasts more than 50 plants, of which almost half were installed by Recard, giving the entire district a production capacity of about 900,000 tonnes per year. Since 2000, nine new systems have been installed in the district, all designed and manufactured by Recard.

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A global presence The numbers speak for themselves: from the first machine exported to Kenya in 1977, there are as many as 128 Recard continuous machines scattered over five continents.

Latin America in particular is a growing market: “In virtue of a partnering with CMPC – Compañía Manufacturera de Papeles y Cartones – we have manufactured seven tissue paper machines (including three with an operating speed of 2000 metres/minute), installed in Chile, Peru, Mexico and Colombia, and producing over 525,000 tonnes per year. Recard plants are used in the first stage of tissue paper production, by companies that prepare jumbo rolls for subsequent processing into retail formats (toilet paper, kitchen towels, napkins, handkerchiefs, etc.).

The result of a technological development Recard’s top-of-the-range product is Crescent Former, the result of a technological development featured on four different machines: Plain Wire, Sloped Wire, Twin Wire C-Former and Twin Wire S-Former. “Every Recard Crescent Former is designed to optimise the actual operating speed: our best performance exceeds 2000 metres per minute,” adds Michelini.

In addition to their outstanding production capacity, these machines feature different customisable equipment and configurations and innovative energy-efficiency systems (such as the recovery boiler or the integration with the cogeneration plant). The other state-of the-art technological solution is Easy Crescent, a new way of conceiving the installation of a plant able to produce 95 tons/day. Also integral to the Recard ‘family’ is its rewinders, which cut and pair one to four plies, as well as systems for pulp preparation, with one or more lines, for fibre and recycled paper.

Guaranteed reliability Suppliers play a significant role in Recard’s success, as Michelini points out: “At the core of our market philosophy are the highest quality standards. For this reason we do not encourage competition among suppliers to guarantee low prices but instead work with | 72 | Packaging Europe

long-term partners. A deep-rooted relationship assists us right from the piece manufactured according to our design up to technical support and maintenance.”

Recard has therefore enlisted specialised companies with a great technical tradition in electronics and mechanics, such as Gruppo Fomat (components and spare parts), StMacchine and Omc Collareda (water treatment plants), Eil (engineering and automation), Sabatini (oil hydraulic plants), Euromont and De Iuliis (light and heavy carpentry), Elli (gearboxes), Robuschi (pumps and compressors), Gruppo Aturia (electric pumps), Svecom (shafts and chucks), Rif (cylinder refurbishing) and Mario Cotta (cutting systems). “We ask from our suppliers the same reliability and service continuity that we guarantee our customers throughout the world, ensuring timely action for any maintenance issue that may arise in the system,” concludes Michelini.

Visit: www.recard.it

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Advancing packaging

film technology

Marubeni Europe plc is a market leader in the distribution, development and manufacture of speciality films for the packaging industry. Philip Yorke talked to Jian Wu, the company’s Assistant General Manager for film and sheet products, about its latest high-barrier films and move into new niche markets.

Jian Wu, Assistant General Manager

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arubeni Europe plc is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Marubeni Corporation of Japan, which is a multifaceted global operator with more than 120 offices in 67 countries worldwide and over 40,000 employees. Marubeni Europe plc is one of the group’s principle subsidiaries and has had a major presence in Europe for over 50 years. In 1998 all the Marubeni European offices were brought together under one umbrella and this consolidation of the company’s organisational structure subsequently facilitated an integrated approach to its full range of business activities across Europe.

Recent technological achievements from the partner Mitsubishi Plastics Inc. include its Siox coated PET film for sterilisation process that offers excellent barrier properties. Pocket Zipper developed by Idemitsu Unitech Co. Ltd which allows without opening and closing the zipper at filling stage. Marubeni Europe’s film department is based in Dusseldorf, Germany and is focused on the supply of plastic related materials including resins, additives, semi-finished films for both packaging and industrial applications. The flagship products of the company includes BOPA Film, Siox coated film, PVDC related latex products and resins, as well as speciality coated films and BOPET film.

New growth opportunities The company sees the development of resin, additive and film for medical and pharmaceutical packaging as being an important future driver for growth, and not only in the European theatre but also worldwide. Recent technological achievements include its Siox coated PET film for sterilisation processes with excellent barrier properties and unique ‘Gelbo Flex property for longer shelf life, as well as straight-cut PET and BOPA film from Unitika Co.Ltd..

Wu said, “Our partners are developing new product solutions that solve problems in niche markets as well as for the big consumables markets. We offer reliable, highperformance materials and have put our expertise to good use in the medical and pharmaceutical markets with products such as infusion bags, which are now available in sterilisable Polyethylene for the first time. These are significantly more environmentally friendly than the traditional PVC bags. | 74 | Packaging Europe

He added, “Around 50 per cent of our film products are designed to extend shelf life for food packaging with approximately 50 per cent of them being dedicated to the medical and pharmaceutical markets. Here in Dusseldorf we have our operational headquarters and a highly qualified sales team.

“We are also responsible for our sales activities at our European offices, which are located in London, Paris, Milano, Budapest, Prague, Warsaw the Ukraine and Russia as well as in Turkey. Another exciting development is our customer developed unique can concept that utilises transparent high barrier laminate lid in order to reduce levels of aluminium foil.

More functional film Marubeni’s coated films with middle barrier level of OTR and WVTR PVDC coated film can be used in packaging for a wide range of food products as well as for medicines and chemicals. Coated film is a functional packaging film that has superior barrier properties, heat sealable and printable qualities, consequently they are often used to package goods to extend their shelf life and prevent product tampering.

Marubeni Europe plc offers different types of coated films: PVDC, Acrylic, Copolymer and PVOH coated film. PVDC coated films have high moisture and oxygen barriers, as well as having a transparent quality that is required for all ‘see-through’ food packaging.

The company’s Acrylic coated films are used as overwraps due to their low sealing point, which also offers a high aroma barrier with excellent printability and a high-quality finished appearance.

Marubeni’s PVOH coated films have the highest oxygen barriers, which makes them the perfect choice for oxygen sensitive products such as nuts and biscuits.

When it comes to healthcare packaging, the company offers PVDC latex from Asahi Kasei Chemicals, which is commonly used as a coating material in pharmaceutical blister packs, as well as for food packaging products.

The shelf life of pharmaceuticals and foodstuffs can be significantly increased by utilising packaging with PVDC coated film. Oil resistance and heat sealability can also be added to films by coating them with PVDC latex.

For further details of Marubeni Europe’s latest innovative products and services visit: www.europe.marubeni.com Packaging Europe | 75 |

Delivering ‘flexible’ success

Uflex is India’s largest flexible packaging company and an emerging global player with an unrivalled production capacity and an extensive product portfolio that includes packaging films, packaging products, rotogravure cylinders, flexo plates, packaging machines, anti counterfeiting products and speciality chemicals. Philip Yorke talked to the company’s Group President (Corp. F & A), Mr R.K. Jain, about its continuing investment in new technology and move into new markets.

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ince it was founded in 1983, Uflex has led the field in flexible packaging solutions and cutting edge technology. The consistent quality of its products and innovative packaging solutions has turned the company into a billion dollar business that focuses on innovation and value-creation for its customers. Uflex has gone from strength to strength thanks to its significant manufacturing capacities for packaging film and packaging products that provide end-to-end flexible packaging solutions for its clients in more than 140 countries worldwide.

Uflex enjoys a global reach that is not matched anywhere else in the region. Headquartered in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India, it also operates state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in India, UAE, Mexico, Poland, Egypt and the USA. All Uflex manufacturing facilities in India and overseas are certified to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 HACCP & BRC quality assured accreditations.

Uflex has a considerable production capacity for producing polyester (PET) chips, Biaxially Orientated Polythene Teraphthalate (BOPET) films, Bi-axially Oriented Polypropylene (BOPP) films, Cast Polypropylene (CPP) films, flexible packaging products in roll, pouch and tube form. In addition, Uflex produces printing inks, adhesives, coating inks, polyols, metallised and PVDC coatings, rotogravure printing cylinders, flexo plates, flexo printing sleeves as well as lamination and pouch-formation technology. Being an end to end flexible packaging solution provider Uflex also manufactures forming, packing and filling machines. Today the company has over 8500 employees globally and generates revenues of close to €950 million per annum.

One-stop shop Uflex is a unique innovator in the packaging industry and is often the first to develop advanced products that meet the ever-changing demands of the flexible packaging industry. Its products are recognised by the FDA and the BGA. Integrated within its core businesses are allied businesses, such as engineering services, gravure cylinders, holography and chemicals, all of which provide it with a significant competitive edge. Currently the company is in the process of establishing first of its kind aseptic packaging plant for packing liquid products at Sanand in Gujarat, India, with an initial CAPEX of around €80 million. Uflex resonates Indian Government’s Make In India initiative. It’s aseptic packaging plant will be commercially operational by early 2017.

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Mr R.K. Jain, Group President (Corp. F & A)

Uflex offers superior packaging technology for a wide variety of products such as snack foods, candy and confectionery, sugar, rice & other cereals, beverages, tea & coffee, dessert mixes, noodles, wheat flour, soaps and detergents, shampoos & conditioners, vegetable oil, spices, marinades & pastes, cheese & dairy products, frozen food, sea food, meat, anti-fog, pet food, pharmaceuticals, contraceptives, garden fertilizers and plant nutrients, motor oil and lubricants, automotive and engineering components etc. Today, Uflex packs solids, semi solids, pastes, gels, viscous fluids, powders and granular materials. It can offer packaging solution for as little as 10 grams to as much as 40 kilograms.

By early 2017 with its aseptic packaging plant going into commercial operations the company will complete its entire bouquet of product offering by including liquids as well (i.e. the only category that is missing right now).

Jain said, “In the early days we specialised in the manufacturing of unit pack for spices, shampoos and ketchup. We have since revolutionised the Indian market and now offer a one-stop shop for an infinite range of flexible packaging products. We are able to offer complete packaging solutions including printing, lamination, and the most contemporary anti-counterfeiting solutions. Furthermore, we produce rotogravure cylinders, flexo plates, flexo printing sleeves and printing inks that offer a unique marketing mix that embraces flexible packaging products, manufacturing equipment such as filling machines, packaging films and speciality chemicals. We are successful because we walk that extra mile for our customers in both our range of services and our range of flexible packaging products.

“We are very much focused on our customers’ needs and the production of costeffective, innovative flexible packaging solutions. We work closely with our customers to ensure optimum results. We recently developed a range of big woven polypropylene (WPP) bags for packaging building materials that won us the DuPont Packaging Innovation Award in 2015. We are frequently conferred with Indian and Global accolades, the most recent being Confederation of Indian Industry’s Innovation Award and World’s Greatest Brand (Flexible Packaging) Asia & GCC. “Furthermore, we have all our manufacturing facilities strategically located across the globe, in order to provide a superior level of customer service. These are special partnerships where we build strong mutually beneficial relationships over the years.”

Focus on quality and sustainability Uflex strives to offer the most precise packaging solutions for its clients in the shortest possible lead time at the most cost-effective prices. In addition, the company works hard to minimise emissions and is steadily moving towards greener and cleaner packaging products. Uflex is an environmentally friendly and conscientious company that is mindful of its responsibility towards a sustainable ecosystem, bio-diversity and the society at large. | 78 | Packaging Europe

When it comes to the manufacturing packaging films, Uflex calls the shots. The company’s manufacturing units in India, UAE, Poland, Egypt, Mexico and US have a cumulative capacity of manufacturing nearly 4,40,000 Tonnes Per Annum of Packaging Films and Packaging Products.

Some of these facilities represent world’s most technologically endowed packaging film plants that give tough competition to anything comparable available in Europe or North America. Emphasising upon the attention that Uflex pays towards customer service, Mr. R. K. Jain said, “Upholding our CMD, Mr. Ashok Chaturvedi’s principle of always delighting the customers keeps us on our toes to innovate for creating value-added differentiation.”

Flexible packaging is the fastest growing packaging sector globally and India’s packaging industry is setting the pace. The shift from traditional packaging to flexible packaging is fuelled by ever increasing consumer demand. In order to continue to create and innovate, Uflex has an extensive research and development team that works in close partnership with its clients to come up with the most appropriate packaging solutions adding value to their businesses. The company’s speed to market reach further gives it an edge above the competition. Today Uflex is well poised to take advantage of the global growth in flexible packaging and is already developing flexible packaging products that will take the company and the industry to the next level.

For further details of Uflex’s innovative flexible packaging products and services visit: www.uflexltd.com

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Palladio Group and E Ink Introduce PhutureMed™, an Advanced Packaging Solution for Pharmaceutical Products

As the world’s leading innovator and producer of electronic paper displays, E Ink Corporation provides the technology for a wide range of consumer devices and industrial applications, including E-book readers (such as Amazon Kindle), smartphones, smartwatches, electronic shelf labels, and digital signs. Elisabeth Skoda spoke to Hui Lee, the company’s Senior Director of Business Development, to find out more about E Ink, the operating principles behind electronic paper (e-paper), and exciting new applications for the packaging industry.

Electronic ink and smart packaging: A perfect match

Using YoTa phone as an example, Hui Lee, Sr. Director at E Ink demonstrated how to turn a ordinary space into a smart surface

Ink is proud to be the market leader in the field of e-paper displays. Best known for revolutionizing the way people read books, further advances in electronic ink technology allow it to be used on a range of different surfaces, opening up a range of exciting application opportunities for the packaging industry.

E

tronic ink is bistable, requiring no power to maintain an image. Just like paper, the image will not change until a new image is displayed without requiring any power at all. This opens up electronic ink displays to a wide range of low power applications. Thirdly, E Ink material is flexible making for an interesting value proposition in packaging applications.

A technology with vast potential

Ideal for smart packaging

Ms. Lee explains the working principle that lies behind the varied types of electronic ink displays: “Electronic ink consists of small charged color particles in a transparent fluid on a flexible substrate. The color particles are charged with opposite polarities. When a positive or negative electric field is applied, the corresponding charged particles rise to the top of the compartment, where they become visible to the viewer. The particles remain in place when the electric field removed - so the displays do not need power to maintain the image.”

Electronic ink has several key advantages compared to other display technologies. The displays are reflective, which means they reflect ambient light just like traditional paper versus LCD or LED displays which shine a bright light towards the viewer. Hence, E Ink displays are clearly visible under direct sunlight. E Ink displays are ultra-low power. Elec-

According to a recent report from IDTechEx1, the global demand for electronic smart packaging devices will grow rapidly to $1.45 billion by 2023. Electronic smart packaging addresses the need for brands to reconnect with the customer, the IDTechEx report notes. It identifies the main factors driving this rapid growth as aging population, more demanding and wealthier consumers, changing lifestyles, stricter legislation as well as concern over crime and terrorism.

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IDTechEx.com, Smart Packaging Comes To Market: Brand Enhancement

1

With Electronics 2014-2024 (Raghu Das, Dr Guillaume Chansin)

E Ink temperature monitoring solution – folding carton designed by YFYJupiter Limited

Today more than ever, products that stand out on the shelf, efficiently deliver a brand’s story and engage customer loyalty are of key importance. Brands face stiff competition, so it is important to stay ahead of evolving packaging design standards to quickly match evolving consumer demands and technologies. E Ink is ideally positioned to deliver the goods to make this possible.

E Ink’s display technology can provide an intuitive interface that consumers can easily interact with. Product information and advertising content can be seamlessly integrated into one smart surface that enhances consumer experience and contains personalized content. This has the potential to become a new advertising medium that can revolutionize how CPG companies advertise to their customers.

Smart packaging is a fast growing market that has the potential to alter the role of packaging in the marketplace. It can facilitate better business by enabling premium pricing, more efficient supply chain management, improved security and brand protection as well as waste reduction. Brand owners are keen to use smart packaging, as long as it can provide a useful function, not just a gimmick, that adds real value to their brand.

“E Ink’s low power, paper-like display technology is well suited for this exciting market which allows packaging to have a higher function and provide a richer experience to consumers,” says Ms. Lee. An exciting application is the ability to change a battery-less E Ink display via a mobile phone. A NFC-enabled phone is able to generate RF signals carrying both the information and the energy necessary to update the display. NFC serves both as a means to change the display content and as a power source, hence avoiding the need for a battery.

The image on the display can be changed using an app and simply holding an NFC enabled phone over the display. This opens up exciting possibilities for packaging manufacturers and brand owners.

was kept in too hot or too cold conditions, something that is critical for biopharmaceuticals and medication with active ingredients,” Ms Lee explains.

The E Ink display module incorporated into the package has built-in temperature sensors and RTC timers. The module records a temperature log of all events the package is exposed to during storage and usage. The unique properties of the E Ink display ensure that relevant information will continue to be displayed even in the event of complete loss of battery power. This provides confidence to the supplier and the patient that the medication has not been compromised.

“Temperature monitoring is key for properly shipping certain products. We added a temperature sensor which can be programmed with different temperature ranges. If the temperature is ever above or below the range defined, a warning message will be displayed. Previous packs of this kind just had an indicator or a red light, but with the E Ink display it is possible to have more descriptive text or graphic on the display, such as ‘warning’ or ‘void’, making the message very clear and thereby saving the need to educate a partner or distributor on what an indicator light may mean,” Ms. Lee points out.

PhutureMed™ can also be programmed to provide a time log to register when the medication was taken by the patient. This vital information can be recalled, analyzed and shared with doctors or health practitioners. This can remove any uncertainty by the patient about whether they have taken their medication at the required times.

“Often it can be difficult, especially for older patients, to remember if they took their medicine or not, with potentially dangerous consequences, if they miss a dose, or, even worse, take a dose twice. With PhutureMed™, the patient can press a button on the pack whenever he or she takes the medicine, and the pack will show the date and time on which the last medicine was taken,” Ms. Lee adds.

At present, PhutureMed™ is at the prototype stage and is available for engagements with pharmaceutical companies.

It’s all about timing An integrated timer can be used within a pack to record the last opening event and for counting. For example, a timer can be programmed to calculate the expiration date after a specific action. This is a key feature for example in pharma and cosmetics products.

“In the case of a cosmetic bottle the storage lifetime can be three years. But after initial opening, the product will expire in six months. The manufacturer cannot predict when the customer opens their product so the manufacturer cannot provide adequate help

Making pharmaceuticals interactive In the pharmaceutical industry, traceability, authentication and compliance issues are major topics, with major regulations, such as the US “Drug Supply Chain Security Act” and the EU’s Falsified Medicines Directive to become fully operational in 2017 and 2016, respectively. A more proactive approach is needed, and E Ink is playing an important part in securing adherence to regulations.

In the autumn of 2015, E Ink announced a collaboration with the Palladio Group, a world leading packaging solutions provider for pharmaceuticals. The result of this cooperation was PhutureMed™, an advanced packaging solution which supports a number of features to monitor the quality of medicines shipped to patients and improve medication adherence of patients to prescribed drug therapies. The E Ink display module is integrated within the paperboard carton for secondary packaging.

“PhutureMed™’s integrated E Ink display and sensors constantly monitor ambient conditions and show patients or customers if the medication was handled correctly or if it

E Ink smart surface technology brings the physical and digital world together

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E Ink temper evidence design with conductive ink – folding carton designed by YFYJupiter Limited

E Ink display used for shipping label

E Ink headquarter office, Hsinchu Taiwan

or guidance. Plus, in most cases, the customer doesn’t remember when the bottle was opened, so the timer tracking feature adds considerable value. ” Ms. Lee explains.

The timer can also be programmed to provide a personal message every 24 hours. The message can be used for promotional purposes in a retail environment, where customers see different messages displayed on the same product at different times of day.

ing to make ordinary space more interesting, or in travel, with electronic luggage tags.

When we started, our focus was on consumer electronics, but as Dr. Frank Ko, Chairman & CEO of E Ink highlighted in the company meeting, we see E Ink on every smart surface, offering an unique and interactive experience. We are working together with eco system partners to make E Ink technology more efficient and adaptable and more easy to use,” she concludes.

Working with conductive ink Ms. Lee also demonstrates a concept design of a carton that uses conductive ink as an activation trigger inside the box. This is the result of a collaboration with the global packaging company YFY Jupiter.

“Instead of pressing a button, we can use conductive ink as trigger. Conductive ink is printed at two different places on the inside of the box. When the box is closed, the two conductive ink materials connect, and when the pack is opened, the disconnection of the conductive ink material sends a signal to the MCU. The signal can be programmed as tamper evidence for anti-counterfeiting designs. The E Ink display will display a warning on the pack, showing clearly that it has been opened. This sample is open for a range of different designs,” she explains.

The sky is the limit As the leading electronic paper supplier in the world, E Ink puts a lot of effort in R&D, and Ms. Lee sees endless possibilities.

“We see great potential for the technology, and the possibilities are endless, whether it is in smart packaging, or in architecture, to create customizable wallpaper and floor| 82 | Packaging Europe

Visit: www.eink.com or for business inquiry, please contact Hui Lee at hlee@eink.com

About the company E Ink Corporation was founded in 1997. As the world’s leading innovator of digital signage and electronic paper display technology (EPD), it delivers its advanced display products to the world’s most influential brands and manufactures such as Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Casio, Citizen, Kobo, Motorola, Samsung and Sony, enabling them to install extremely durable, low power displays in previously impossible or unimaginable applications and environments. Under the name of E Ink Holdings, the company is now a subsidiary of YFY Group, a major Taiwanese corporation.

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Pioneering Track & Trace Technology Central Pharma is a leading UK pharmaceutical packaging company and in collaboration with Optel Vision, recently announced the introduction of its ground-breaking track and trace technology at this plant. During an open day held at Central Pharma’s facility in Bedford in October, leaders from the pharma industry were given an opportunity to see the technology in operation. Philip Yorke talked to Amanda Bentley, Central Pharma’s managing director about the significance of the new anti-counterfeiting technology.

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one of Europe’s foremost pharmaceutical contract packaging companies, Central Pharma is a market leader in the provision of packaging services to the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industry. With over 75 years’ experience, the company provides clients with an extensive range of packing solutions designed to meet their specific requirements, supplying products to more than 50 countries worldwide.

As one of the largest pharmaceutical packaging organisations, Central Pharma recently announced the introduction of a new Track & Trace technology service in collaboration with Optel Vision and Domino. Counterfeiting is a growing threat to the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industry and the new service enables individual products to be tracked throughout the entire supply chain, from packing to the end consumer, thus helping manufacturers significantly reduce counterfeiting by ensuring that products can be easily identified. As the supply chain is of utmost importance, Central Pharma has acquired this new technology to reduce or even eliminate the risk of counterfeiting in the industry.

Leading by example At Central Pharma’s open day held on October 21st approximatly thirty professionals from across the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industry gathered to see the latest technology at work. Following presentations on the company’s packaging and regulatory consulting services, visitors were given a site tour and were able to see a live packaging-line demonstration of the new Track & Trace technology.

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Bentley said, “Like our partner Optel Vision, we are an innovation-driven company and are committed to investing in the latest packaging technology. We have been working closely with both Optel Vision and Domino since early this year to optimise our new Track & Trace service, in order to keep us at the forefront of the contract packaging industry. We are also investing in new clinical and controlled drug facilities and plan to achieve world-class manufacturing status by 2016.

“Furthermore, as a privately owned company we are not only a trusted partner where safety is key, but we are also a very flexible company that is able to deliver products within 48 hours. In addition, our flexibility also means that we can accommodate bespoke packaging requirements at short notice. This is a service that many others can’t match”.

Bently added, “Our new Track & Trace technology is an essential development of Central Pharma’s service offering. We have invested in a highly customised technology to facilitate and enhance the safety and integrity of our clients’ products. This innovative technology is an illustration of the strategic and operational investments that Central Pharma continue to make in our capabilities, demonstrating our commitment to changing market and client requirements”.

Innovation driving sales Optel Vision was founded twenty seven years ago as an innovation-driven engineering company that specialises in the serialisation and aggregation of packaging solutions. The company leads the field in the development of Track & Trace technology for the packaging industry. Two years ago, Optel Vision entered into a partnership

agreement with Central Pharma in the UK in order to combat the growing threat of counterfeiting. In addition, Domino joined the partnership to provide its high-tech expertise in thermal and laser printer technology.

Optel Vision has seen drastic growth during recent years thanks to its continuous pipeline of innovative technologies. Following the opening of a state-of-the-art facility in Ireland last year, the company has announced another major expansion with a new 37,000 sq.ft. building in Quebec City as well opening a facility in Goa, India and Sao Paulo, Brazil. This new facility will double the manufacturing floor space at the company’s headquarters in Quebec, Canada.

Optel Vision’s unique open architecture enables manufacturers and contract packaging companies alike to react and adapt quickly to any future changes in country regulations. In addition, new functions, service features or new types of equipment can be integrated quickly and easily. The company’s open architecture also mitigates the inherent risks of proprietary systems and minimises supplier dependency and locking-in situations.

New modules can be integrated without the need to re-build or reconfigure entire systems. Optel Vision’s systems are completely configurable to operate as standalone, or integrate into any current ERP landscape.

In its goal to be recognised as the leader in its sector, Optel Vision has developed a quality management system that promotes continuous improvement in all its active areas. As a result, corrective and preventative actions are established and implemented on a regular basis.

Visit: www.optelvision.com

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Pioneering next-generation coating systems

Valspar is a global leader of coatings for light metal packaging. Philip Yorke looks at the company that continues to set the standards for the packaging industry with innovative, market-ready coatings technologies.

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.S.-based Valspar Corporation is one of the largest coatings manufacturers in the world, providing coatings products to a wide variety of customers. With 11,000 employees in over 25 countries, Valspar is a global player that offers high-touch service and a comprehensive product line-up in the packaging, consumer paint, construction, industrial and transportation markets. Valspar has customers in over 100 countries worldwide supported by 39 global technical laboratories and 57 manufacturing sites.

Leaders by design As the world’s largest supplier of coatings for light metal packaging, Valspar’s products touch nearly 200 billion food and beverage containers each year. Valspar is the number one supplier of internal and external coating systems for virtually every light metal packaging end-use and is the global leader in its three business segments: Beverage cans, food cans and general line containers. The company adds value to can-makers and brand owners through its broad portfolio of coatings technology, regulatory expertise and bestin-class technical service.

A pioneer and leader in non-BPA* technology, Valspar is helping deliver high-quality products to customers across markets. Within its Tube and Monobloc business, for example, Valspar focuses on providing optimised packaging coatings and solutions for customers to help them meet the growing needs of the food and beverage markets, beauty and personal care sectors, the pharmaceutical industry as well as specialty cans and drum and pail.

Valspar’s non-BPA leadership spans across its product portfolio — a result of its firm commitment to bring innovative, market-ready technologies to life. The company believes that its deep technical expertise and ongoing investment in new technology is integral to its customers’ success. Valspar’s global R&D network of 1,000 technologists is key to developing the solutions that customers use to address their toughest challenges.

‘Sustainable’ high-performance Valspar’s next generation of non-BPA coating solutions, reflected in the Valspar valPure® brand, represents the company’s lead in high-performance, sustainable

*non-BPA - this designation indicates that the coating technology is based on polymeric components that are not directly derived from Bisphenol A. Packaging Europe | 89 |

solutions to address the ever-changing regulatory environment and the ongoing shift in consumer preferences.

“Valspar is the leading global supplier of coatings for metal packaging and the clear leader in non-BPA coatings,” said Massimo Baio, Business Director, General Packaging and Tube & Monobloc (EMEAI). “With our leadership comes a responsibility to continually push the boundaries of innovation and performance. We make significant investments in high-performance, non-BPA coatings and work with can-makers, coil-coaters, and global brands to address the increasing international regulatory requirements. To this end we have evolved our product development process — ‘Safety by Design™ — which encompasses both regulatory and performance requirements during the early stages of our product development process.”

Non-BPA technology differentiates the range of products in Valspar’s Tube & Monobloc business, which includes high-precision liquid and powder coatings for aerosols and aluminium tubes. Valspar focuses on high-resistance internal coatings that offer maximum performance, both in application as well as chemical resistance throughout its full range of products.

“Valspar will further expand the valPure® product line driven by a strong response from the market and very positive feedback from our customers,” said Baio. “As an example, valPure® 32525AA, a non-BPA coating for use in hairspray applications, will be used on more than 35 million cans in 2016. This non-BPA technology is also suitable for most applications currently using polyamide-imide (PAI) coatings.”

Delivering sustainable products and practices Valspar’s commitment to creating sustainable measures and strong environmental performance is evident in every aspect of its day-to-day business. Throughout its global

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locations, the company is advancing its environmental goals, and its customers’, by minimising the environmental impact of facilities, including waste elimination, reduction measures and energy use. Their efforts also include source reduction, recycling, reclamation and pollution prevention programmes. Safety is always a top priority at Valspar, and it takes every precaution to help ensure that its workforce remains safe. The company also works closely with its clients to establish safe-use protocols.

“At Valspar our goal is to develop, protect and advance the packaging design and heritage of many of the world’s best-known brands,” said Baio. “To achieve this, we make significant investments in the areas that are most important to brand owners and manufacturers. We also offer complete capabilities that go beyond protecting products, to improving performance, profitability and efficiency.”

For further details of Valspar Packaging’s innovative coatings and technical services visit: www.valspar.com

Pioneers in

Plastic Packaging Built on the foundation of a long and rich heritage, Petainer has gone from strength to strength since its management buy-in in 2009. With a focus on becoming the world leader in sustainable PET and other plastic container innovation, 2015 has been a year of growth for the company both in terms of the development of innovative products and the expansion of its market presence. Libby White spoke with Annemieke Hartman-Jemmett, group commercial director, to find out about the company’s vision built on the principle of excellence in sustainability based on zero waste.

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riginally Petainer was a part of Rexam, a leading beverage can manufacturer. At the time, the business was focused on small containers between 200ml to 2 l for carbonated soft drinks or water. The company’s current CEO, Nigel Pritchard, took over the business in 2009 together with a number of private equity partners.

Advanced technology Ms Hartman-Jemmett highlights the evolution of the company into the business it has become today: “Our focus has shifted from one key product group of Petainer small containers into a total of four product groups, adding petainerKeg™, petainerCooler™ (bulk watercooler containers, between one gallon to 20 litres, with or without handle) and petainerJar™ (wide mouth jars from one litre to eight litres).”

Additionally, Petainer has expanded on its range of PET containers with products made from different materials (HDPE, PP and CPP) to service all packaging needs. This has opened up new market sectors for Petainer: as well as catering for the beverage sector, it now serves the needs of customers in personal care and food packaging, etc.

“One thing all of our products have in common is that they are created in preform format first, then we ship in bulk to the location, allowing brand owners to blow in their country, which means we can take many lorries off the road,” Ms Hartman-Jemmett points out. | 92 | Packaging Europe

Petainer’s preform sets itself apart from the competition in that it is shorter with a thicker wall. Fittings are also unique to Petainer, and the company works with a number of specialised closure manufacturers.

Leading the way, Petainer has combined its advanced polymer engineering with pioneering concepts to create a two-stage process. This is particularly innovative for the Keg and Jar ranges of HDPE and CPP. “We believe we are one of the only ones on the market able to offer this concept, which has generated a lot of interest from brand owners and our customers as they can benefit from the many advantages,” Ms Hartman-Jemmett comments. Benefits include increased supply chain flexibility, cost savings in freight and removal of logistics complexity.

Hub-and-spoke Owing to the success and interest garnered around the two-stage process, Petainer has transformed its business model to address the needs of the market. “Where before Petainer used to focus predominantly on territories within Europe, we have created and are expanding on the model of the hub-and-spoke system, meaning we are able to ship preforms and then blow our products on a global basis,” Ms Hartman-Jemmett explains.

Petainer established a facility in Klin, Russia, located 40 miles from Moscow in late 2013, which is a model example of the hub and spoke system. Preforms are shipped from

the hub in Aš, Czech Republic, and then blown at the spoke in Kiln for the local market.

The facility is currently supplying petainerKegs™ and water cooler bottles to customers in Russia, as well as Belarus and Ukraine. It also partners with a number of customers, particularly in Russia, who blow the preforms and distribute in their local markets.

Following the same business model, Petainer has established a facility in Modesto, USA which is currently blowing petainerKegs™ and will soon be blowing petainerCoolers™. Ms Hartman-Jemmett adds, “Working with our joint venture partner, we have recently opened our first facility in Asia, in Mumbai, India. We are also partnering with a distributor to be our blowing partner in Australia and we also expect to be adding supplementary hubs in the USA. We are currently reviewing markets in Europe to establish where would be the ideal locations to add hubs.”

This business model has supported Petainer as an organisation traditionally focused on Europe, into a truly global group. “Our expansion is continuous, and will be an ongoing development that has supported and accelerated our growth,” Ms Hartman-Jemmett is proud to share.

Innovation One example of many of Petainer’s innovations, is the petainerKeg™ Linestar, a product that allows brand owners to use existing filling lines for PET kegs. The petainerKeg™ Linestar is based on the petainerKeg™ classic blown, one-way, recyclable PET keg, and features a significantly redesigned outer shell which enables it to fit specifically on existing steelkeg filling lines. The taste of the contents is comparable to with the use of a steel container, and every year at Brau Beviale Petainer invites customers to join them in a ‘taste test’ of beers from Russia, Australia and Europe.

A specially designed, rigid casing means that the petainerKeg™ Linestar travels efficiently and smoothly on existing steel-keg lines. The casing also makes the keg easier to handle in bars, clubs and restaurants; it can also be printed to users’ specifications to create new branding opportunities.

“We have been working for the past year with a brand owner based in the Netherlands who has committed to adding Linestar to their product portfolio, and we are looking to launch it with a number of brand owners in food production by the end of Quarter One,” Ms Hartman-Jemmett shares.

Expansion into Asia Petainer guided its eye towards India around three years ago, knowing it provided a worthy opportunity to introduce high-performance packaging to the market. In January 2015, a joint venture between Petainer and Innnopac Containers saw the launch of Petainer Innopac Packaging, with the official opening of a new manufacturing facility close to Mumbai.

The plant has been designed to provide customers with high quality, high performance and sustainable PET/plastics packaging solutions using Petainer’s advanced polymer engineering technology, enabling customers to enter new markets and enhance their brand at a reduced cost of ownership. The plant houses world-class blow moulding equipment to manufacture the 20-litre bulk water cooler jar, petainerCooler™, using preforms produced from Petainer’s manufacturing sites in Europe, as well as a fully equipped on-site design studio, laboratory services and warehousing.

Petainer Innopac Packaging recently also introduced the petainerKeg™, a one-way 20 or 30 litre keg made out of highly engineered advanced polymers for the beer, wine and other beverage segments. More equipment and products will be brought online in the coming months.

“It has been our proposal to bring high performance packaging solutions to India, and we have received a lot of interest from brand owners in the market,” Ms HartmanJemmett points out. “It is also our intention to gain an understanding of the Asian market from our well positioned facility and we are reviewing further expansion onto the Asian market as we speak.”

For more information, visit www.petainer.com Packaging Europe | 93 |

Delivering advanced laser-print label solutions Sentega is a European market leader in the supply of labels and labelling solutions for the VIP market. Philip Yorke spoke to Jens Brusgaard, the company’s managing director, about its innovative Xonad technology and move into new markets.

Jens Brusgaard, managing director

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entega was founded in Utrecht, the Netherlands in 1957 and was the subject of an MBO in 2002. Since that time the company has seen significant growth. In 2012 Sentega strengthened its position in Europe with the addition of H&P Labels of Germany to the group. With its unique portfolio of products and related technologies Sentega delivers solutions that produce measurable benefits to improve its customers’ quality and workflow, as well as their productivity, reliability and cost-efficiency.

Today Sentega serves a diverse range of markets including the chemical, retail, healthcare and pharmaceuticals markets as well as those involved in logistics and manufacturing. The company is ISO 9001 certified and continues to achieve consistent growth of between 5 per cent and 10 per cent per year. | 94 | Packaging Europe

Innovative technology Sentega prides itself on its ability to design and produce special labels that address the most challenging labelling applications. The company manages a range of different methods of laminating during the production process and can offer finishing in fan-folded options, rolls or sheet formats. The application of its unique Xonad ÂŽ technology makes this possible. With this innovative system a customer can choose precisely where the adhesive or silicone should be applied.

In addition, the machine can also produce innovative label applications for other high-tech applications, as well as providing tailor-made combinations of materials and adhesives.

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Sentega’s product portfolio is very broad and the company offers a one-stop shop for self-adhesive labels, thermal transfer ribbons and laser printed labels in up to 11 colours. In addition, the company produces multi-layer labels and booklet labels and all these products benefit from the innovative solutions developed

by Sentega.

Furthermore, Sentega offers a solution for the carrying of heavy products. With its ‘Easy-Take®’ system, boxes that weigh up to 25kg are easier and simpler to carry.

This special carrying device significantly reduces the problems of carrying bulky products and offers the perfect replacement for traditional, very large plastic bags. It is possible to use this special device to carry heavy boxes of wine, pet-food packag-

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ing, toy packaging and electronic goods. The innovative removable adhesive also enables undamaged products to be exchanged without marking or affecting the original carton’s presentation or integrity.

Tailor-made solutions Sentega is well known for its ability to produce highly specific label solutions and this applies to all its market segments and in particular to the pharmaceutical industry where the highest standards of quality and reliability are standard practice.

For example, Sentega has developed special labels for clinical trials, as well as watersoluble labels and labels for inspection following the sterilisation process, where it

offers labels with ink that changes colour in the autoclave and are validated according to ISO 11140-1 (Class 1 indicator).

Brusgaard said, “We are focused on the VIP market and we work in close collaboration with our clients to optimise their label solutions and cost-effectiveness. We are able to take on any challenge thanks to our in-house R&D and our expertise gained over many years of problem solving. We see our main growth coming from the increasing demand for multi-layer labels and booklet labels, which we can produce with up to 16 pages. Although much our business comes from the chemical industry sector we are seeing consistent growth in the food and manufacturing sectors too. We have always been a major supplier of transfer ribbons and this experience has gained us the accolade of being selected as the official supplier of ribbons to Ricoh of Japan for the Dutch market.

“Traditionally our home markets have been the Benelux countries but we are also gaining market share in France, the UK and in Germany through an extensive dealer network. We tend to do what others are unable to do and our Xonad technology makes it possible to place adhesive anywhere and in any configuration. For example it can be delivered in dots, in a triangle or in a crescent and this can be combined with silicone, which further extends our range of adhesives. We believe that our advanced technology and innovative expertise differentiates us clearly from our competitors.”

He added, “We always strive to be ‘best in class’ and we achieve this by keeping a number of core values always in mind. These are working in close partnership with our customers, ensuring purchasing and material quality and efficiency, minimising waste in our manufacturing processes and providing clearly focused management and manufacturing. This enables us to excel in quality, service and flexibility.”

It is worth noting that Sentega’s formula for success is not only based upon its culture of innovation and quality, but also upon many years of continuous improvement and the refinement of its products and services.

For further details of Sentega’s innovative products visit: www.sentega.com Packaging Europe | 97 |

Pacing ahead

The Arena International Events Group is gearing up for its 2016 Packaging and Converting Executive Forum (PACE), an invite only event designed to provide an interactive platform for elite senior executives in the packaging industry.

Set to take place on 9–11 February 2016, the forum has been strategically repositioned to Amsterdam, with the intention of attracting fresh faces and a novel perspective. Martin Ryan, business development director, provided Libby White with details of the highly anticipated programme, and shares the trends and challenges that will be addressed.

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ear on year, PACE has built a strong reputation, and brand owners and suppliers alike have come to benefit from and rely on the business intelligence gleaned from the event. Martin Ryan comments, “PACE’s vision was to bring together senior packaging experts within the FMCG market, incorporating the whole supply chain. We have created a reputable platform where brand owners can discuss ideas and challenges, meet converters, and find solutions to help improve their packaging performance.”

industry experts and carry out in depth research leading up to the event, and invite some of the biggest names in the packaging industry to give presentations.”

For the last two years, PACE has been held in Brussels, Belgium. Martin Ryan enthuses, “2016 will see a fresh location and new faces. We settled on Amsterdam, a packaging community hub, which is also logistically easy to get to. We have already confirmed 90 brand owners for PACE 2016 and look forward to attracting new attendees.”

An evolving event

Covering relevant issues

Striving to meet the demands of its attendees, PACE has evolved into a portfolio of events with a global reach. PACE Europe has been running for 13 years, PACE USA for eight, and PACE Asia is the fastest growing event since its establishment three years ago.

When the European forum was first launched, it attracted around 15 companies.

Now in its 12th year, it attracts over 200 companies from all different parts of the value chain across the FMCG, food, beverage, personal care, cosmetics and pharmaceutical markets. Martin Ryan explains, “The key to our growth is our programme.

We ensure every year that we provide a packed schedule covering all the current and relevant issues within the packaging industry. We speak regularly with the

Masi Azizi, conference producer, shares that PACE prides itself on its agenda content which covers several key challenges faced by the industry. “We also tackle technical issues in packaging, supply chain efficiency, and materials selection amongst other topics. We spend a lot of time researching the current issues of the industry, collecting our research by speaking to the decision makers of leading companies.”

The three day event will be brimming with a series of visionary keynote presentations, in-depth workshops, interactive roundtables, stimulating panels and one-to-one private business development meetings. Martin Ryan adds, “Attendees can benefit from our fantastic networking opportunities, in both formal and

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informal settings- on top of our schedule, we also host drinks receptions and dinners. We also always ensure an optimal balance between the end-users and the suppliers at our events, providing great opportunities for frank business and partnering discussions.”

PACE’s end goal is to provide as many opportunities for attendees to share knowledge.

“To allow our guests more control of their day, we will continue with a convenient solution introduced in 2015, which we have further improved upon,” Martin Ryan shares.

“Our event will be streamed, allowing brand owners to have more options relevant to their specific focuses. For example stream A will focus on materials and the supply chain and stream B will focus on equipment and sustainable manufacturing.”

Focus on case studies Attendees will benefit in 2016 from an innovative approach of case study driven presentations. Masi Azizi explains, “We encourage our solution providers to invite their own clients to speak on their behalf. This means attendees can take away key knowledge and benefit from a learning experience rather than a sales pitch.” The event will provide a unique opportunity to hear the latest and most innovative case studies from leading brand owners such as L’Oreal, Danone, Unilever, Coca Cola, Heineken and many more.

A successful example from 2015 was from Polymer Logistics, a leading RRP solutions provider, who invited Unilever to speak on their behalf. Unilever discussed how Polymer Logistics helped them overcome the challenges they faced- and solved problems through an innovative solution.

Panel discussions will be led by esteemed packaging professionals in the industry such as Claudio Finol, head of packaging development at McBride, Eric Näf, Absolut Vodka’s director of packaging development, Ranko Jelaca, marketing director at Atlantic Grupa, and Marko Honkanen from Fiskars. “This allows us to hear

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perspectives from different market sectors, and importantly from different regions as well,” points out Masi Azizi.

Of particular interest concerning relevant issues, Virginia Janssens, managing director, EUROPEN, will deliver a presentation delving into the circular economy.

Masi Azizi notes, “EUROPEN has recently released its own set of recommendations addressing the EU Commission’s circular economy proposals, so it will be interesting to hear a key perspective which will allow our attendees the opportunity to share stories and develop strategies.”

Attendees can also expect presentations from Lindt & Sprüngli and Nescafé Expresso. Coca-Cola will be delivering a presentation on increasing consumer appeal through insightful innovations. Paul Bruijn, head of environment, Heineken, will be exploring ways to reduce carbon footprint within the supply chain.

Premium networking Brand owners ultimately benefit from PACE as it allows them to achieve their goals and explore solutions to extend shelf life, reduce costs, speed up print runs, and provide shelf appeal. Martin Ryan comments, “In a cost efficient manner, they will be connected with a select amount of suppliers in a positive setting where they can really discuss their challenges and capabilities.”

He concludes, “Most importantly, brand owners are attracted to PACE as we look to meet their expectations, compared to a trade show scenario where they may be inundated with suppliers. We strive to carry out research and collect intelligence so as to address key objectives. Ultimately, the PACE platform is a conducive environment for business, where serious challenges can be addressed. We look forward to welcoming both old and new faces next year.”

Visit: www.arena-international.com/pace/speakers

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A cut above Madern International is a leading manufacturer of custom-made rotary converting tools and solutions for the cardboard packaging sector. Its sales manager, Menno BrakelĂŠ, talks to Barbara Rossi about recent developments at the company.

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adern is a specialist in high-end tooling and operates in three main areas: rotary converting tools and solutions; engraving; and special products and services. Today rotary tools and converting solutions are its core business and its products are customised according to clients’ specifications. However, Madern also continues to carry out its long-established engraving activity, meeting the needs of all different types of industries and consumer applications. It is able to process a wide range of materials using a number of techniques. Through its special product and service division the company is able to provide a number of services and high-precision parts to a wide range of industries. In addition to this, thanks to the acquisition of AJB Instrument in 2013, it supplies high-precision engineering products to the medical and automotive sectors, as well as to other high-tech industries.

Madern International is ISO 9001 certified. The Dutch Madern factory produces die-cutters and rotary tooling, while their US counterparts take care of rotary tools only.

These works supply the different companies of the group, regardless of geographical location. This means that Madern USA sources its die-cutters from Holland, and will supply the tooling and take care of the service.

Mr Brakelé explains, “As a group we supply customers all over the world. Madern International is equally focused on Europe and Asia. The great majority of our tools and solutions are for cardboard packaging (95 per cent) while the remainder are used to process paper or plastic materials. Our main client segments are general folding cartons, tobacco and liquid packaging. As you may understand, in recent years the tobacco packaging sector has decreased in Europe and grown in Asia. However, the consequent decrease in demand for our products from the European tobacco sector has been compensated by growing requests liquid packaging industry. In Europe our sales are equally split between the tobacco and the liquid packaging segments, while in Asia (including the Far East) the share of the tobacco sector is still larger than that of liquid packaging.”

Investing in the future Madern International invests in new production machinery on a regular basis, updating its equipment every year. “We continuously acquire new high-precision machinery, such as lathes, milling and grinding machines, in order to remain at the technological cuttingedge.” The company has an internal R & D department, which is currently focusing on special steel for rotary dies and achieving higher die-cutting speeds.

“In terms of new products we are extending the dimensional range of our die-cutters, which in terms of width now span from 650mm to 1750mm.Having increased the width means we are able to offer cylinders of a larger diameter. We have developed our new die-cutters in order to meet the needs of the liquid and general folding carton packaging sector and we are experiencing a very good response.”

One of the trends discussed the last time Packaging Europe met Madern was an increasing market demand for shorter run solutions. “We do quite a lot of this for the general folding carton sector and we are currently developing it for the tobacco segment,” Mr Brakelé confirms. “I have to say that in reality there is a bi-directional trend: while some companies in the tobacco industry do require shorter run solutions, some brands are moving towards standardisation and are thus interested in solutions for larger volumes. The same is happening in the liquid packaging sector.

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“I expect growth to be driven by rotary tool and die-cutting systems. In particular, we are currently finalising some projects for 2016, thanks to which we should experience growth in this continent next year. We are not planning to expand into new geographical markets right now, but to grow in existing ones.

While we have no plans for new production sites, we might decide to set up a service facility in the Far East to be better able to serve our customers there. As we are a relatively small company, it is hard to forecast if either Europe or Asia will become prevalent in the next few years, as each of the projects in which we are involved can easily make this fluctuate in either direction. For instance, the setting up of a new factory in one of our client segments in either Europe

or Asia would translate into an important increase in demand for our tools and systems and could make the share of one of these geographical regions increase significantly in comparison to the other.�

Madern International works in very close collaboration with other companies that, while not being direct competitors, are part of its customers’ supply chains. The rationale behind this is to be able to offer clients the best solutions on the market.

Madern International will be in hall 11, stand C61 at Drupa 2016 in Dusseldorf to update you on the latest rotary developments.

Visit: www.madern.com

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Delivering Serialisation Prime Solutions Covectra is a global serialisation, authentication and track-and-trace technologies service provider and a market leader in its field. Philip Yorke spoke to Steve Wood, the company’s CEO in the USA, and Conor O’Neill, Covectra’s VP and Managing Mirector for European operations, about its latest ‘AuthentiTrack®’ Prime products and move into new markets.

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ovectra was founded in the US in 2006 by Dr David Bear after he had observed that a growing number of his psychiatric patients were addicted to painkillers.

Many of these were on government ‘Medicaid’ insurance support and were purchasing large quantities of powerful painkillers at a fraction of their cost. It was then he became aware that drug diversion and counterfeiting had become a dangerous menace to society.

As a result, Bear founded Covectra and in 2006 developed the company’s first system for authenticating an opioid unit dose using unique codes inscribed on the tablet. Following other ground-breaking innovations such as ‘iSTARx®’, a product for image storage tracking and recognition, the company launched its now famous ‘AuthentiTrack®’ serialisation solution in 2010. In the same year Covectra supported the launch of a high volume opioid that was serialised down to the unit dose.

Unique solutions Today Covectra offers anti-counterfeiting, diversion control and serialised track and trace technologies and services from the point of manufacture right through to the consumer, covering all levels of packaging. The company’s unique serialisation technology provides a number of solutions for regulatory, supply chain and brand promotion requirements.

Covectra’s packaging security technology is applied as additional layers of brand protection, from labels and cartons with taggants to sophisticated, unique holograms.

By combining these various layers of security, a product travels from manufacturing, through packaging, into distribution, through the retailer’s point of sale, and into the hands of the consumer with optimal security, traceability, consumer protection and brand integrity.

Wood said, “We differ from our competitors in a number of key ways. Most of them approach the market from the factory point of view, whereas our focus is from the business benefit perspective and we work back from there. We have built a highly specialised team that offer value-added customer services throughout the supply chain all the way to the consumer. Where we come from defines us as a company and this shines through on all our product offerings.”

“In the US, when a company serialises a product, it typically includes all levels of packaging to provide efficient traceability and meet the requirements of the US Drug Security Chain Security Act. We try to help the brand owner find other business benefits from the use of serial numbers to get additional ROI. However, in Europe brand owners have different requirements - they don’t require track and trace in the supply chain, but they do require end-to-end authentication. China has their own unique requirements. So, as you can see, globally every country has a different requirement – but whatever the need

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is, we are equipped to provide the optimal solution. We offer holistic solutions and can guide a customer through the whole process from initial concept, to user requirements definition, to full implementation. As far as the future is concerned we have an innovative new product to launch later this year and we plan to continue to grow organically.

However, we strive to develop strategic partnerships where the synergy is right and we also keep an open mind about the possibility of acquisitions.”

Protecting supply-chain integrity Covectra’s advanced track and trace technology is being applied more widely than ever before and is now being utilised by the makers of infant formula milk as well as by other OTC product manufacturers.

The company recently announced its new anti-counterfeit and track and trace system to meet the increasing need for protecting infant formula products from counterfeiting.

This latest system was developed to meet the increasing need for the supply-chain integrity of infant formula products, particularly given the recent increase in illicit trade activity and supply-chain leakage in markets such as China.

“Managing food safety standards across a global supply chain is complex and challenging. However, steps must be taken to ensure safe and secure shipping and distribution of food products that end up in the hands of consumers,” added Wood.

The latest innovative packaging-line serialisation system from Covectra offers maximum supply-chain integrity and brand protection. This new, low-cost system is called AT-Prime.

“Compliance with EU FMD regulations is a key driver for our products in Europe. ATPrime is basically a low-cost system that enables European pharmaceutical companies | 108 | Packaging Europe

to meet all EU FMD requirements including the addition of ‘tamper-evident’ seals. This unique product has taken our highly specialised expertise and applied it to every layer, right down to the business level,” commented O’Neill.

Covectra’s ‘AuthentiTrack®’ platform has been awarded the EPCIS mark by the GS 1/ EPC Global Software Certification Programme. This is a standards-based compliance testing programme sponsored by the GSI organisation. This prestigious mark demonstrates that Covectra is a certified EPCIS platform that can be used by manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers for smooth data transfer, as well as for the capture and sharing of information for effective track and trace and ePedigree programmes.

For further details of Covectra’s unique track and trace products and services visit: www.covectra.com

Innovation for the dairy industry Inventor of the Form Fill Seal (FFS) concept more than 50 years ago, ERCA SA was created through the merger of two companies founded in 1958 and 1965. Successively acquired by JAGENBERG in 1991 and by IWKA in 2001, ERCA followed the packaging division of IWKA which in 2007 became the OYSTAR Group. R&D director Dominique Schwab talks about what makes the company a leader in its field.

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ince the beginning of 2015, ERCA SA has been a part of the Italian IMA Group’s Dairy & Food division. The IMA Group is world leader in the design and manufacture of automatic machines for the packaging of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and food products. It is established in 80 countries and operates 34 factories, with 4600 employees and a consolidated turnover of €854.6 million for 2014.

“IMA Group’s Dairy & Food division is made up of the companies BENHILL, CORAZZA, ERCA, GASTI, HAMBA and HASSIA, which gives us further opportunities for sharing technology and new developments in the long-term. IMA also brings with it all the advantages of a worldwide industrial organisation,” Mr Schwab explains.

Technology leaders In the almost 60 years since its establishment, ERCA has served the food industry (particularly dairy) with the introduction of a wide range of technologies, including: wraparound labelling technology; three aseptic technologies (clean, ultra-clean and aseptic); open mould technology for cups with a neck smaller than the body; high output machines up to 80,000 cups/h for the yoghurt and fresh cheese market; conical cups with wraparound label; and a fruit station with pigging system to save fruit during changeovers.

ERCA has a policy of constant innovation to maintain its position as the leader in FFS technology, as Mr Schwab points out. “ERCA’s positive image is partly based on the

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robustness of our machines and original solutions to answer the needs of the customers.

Furthermore, our strong customer services enable us to maintain a solid presence on the worldwide market, and long lasting partnerships. That is what makes the customers come to us, stay with us, and come back to us. Every customer can find what he or she needs in the wide range of machines and equipment that ERCA can offer.”

Sophisticated solutions for complex tasks FFS machines are complex and designed for many different technologies. “Our areas of expertise include covering, forming and labelling, dosing and bacteriological safety, but we have also unique solutions in many others domains. ERCA can offer machines with different hygienic levels – clean, ultra-clean and aseptic – depending on the product, the expected shelf-life and the distribution conditions. For each hygienic level different solutions can be implemented depending on the packaging materials and on the fillers,” Mr Schwab explains.

The company’s R&D department supports its growth company by keeping it up to date with regard to external changes such as environment and packaging materials, by developing new functions either to improve efficiency or to meet new needs and by proposing new packaging concepts. “Our continuous work with packaging suppliers ensures that our machines are in line with today’s materials and prepared for tomorrow’s materials,” Mr Schwab adds.

European coverage With its headquarters close to Paris, its manufacturing plant for new machines in Normandy and a daughter company close to Barcelona dedicated to refurbished machines and small output machines, ERCA employs just over 200 people throughout the world. A wide network of selected suppliers in France, Spain and Europe ensure the delivery of all the machine components and spare parts.

“If the natural growth is mainly in Asia, Africa and South America, our vision for the future is to consolidate this growth by taking steps in markets we are not yet present in.

It’s a long and challenging path,” Mr Schwab concludes.

Visit: www.oystar-group.com

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Innovative

Injection Moulding Engel Austria GmbH is a family-run company founded in 1945, which has emerged since the end of the Second World War to become a global market leader in manufacturing and developing injection moulding machines and automation robots. In 1952, the first Engel injection moulding machine was launched and since that pivotal moment, the company has continued to innovate and lead in this industry. Libby White reports.

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oday Engel has nine production plants worldwide and subsidiaries and representatives in more than 85 countries. The global turnover for 2014/15 was more than one billion euro.

Divided into five business units: automotive; packaging; medical; teletronics; and technical moulding, Kurt Hell, sales manager Business Unit Packaging , points out, “Automotive is the largest unit making up 40 per cent of our business; however our injection moulding machines and turnkey solutions for the production of packaging articles is an integral part of our business making up around 12 per cent.”

The packaging division is divided into four different product groups: thin wall moulding (i.e. for food containers); caps and closures (for beverage and other applications); pails, buckets and round containers; and large containers and pallets (i.e. for transporting large volumes of fruit and vegetables).

This division is in fact generating the most growth for Engel and has marked potential to develop further. Michael Feltes, vice president of the packaging business unit, asserts, “We believe there will be a further significant growth in the next three to five years.”

lessons learned along the process. But we have never moved away from the target of reducing energy consumption, which we see as the key driver. Today, converters choose our machines due to the excellent energy efficiency we can provide.”

He stresses, “We have not only calculated, but measured data that shows that we are leading the fiel with regards to the energy consumption of the all-electric machine concept.”

The latest machine innovation from Engel is the ENGEL e-speed. Presented for the first time in 2013, the 650-tonne hybrid machine with electrical clamping unit and hydraulic injection unit will be presented as a second variation with a larger injection unit at the 2015 Engel symposium. The machine size six with a screw diameter of 120mm has added a larger dimension to what the system can offer. Until now, the ENGEL e-speed 650 was available with a 90 mm screw. The new machine size guarantees short cycle times even with large shot volumes. The ENGEL e-speed 650 in machine size six achieves the highest hydraulic force that ENGEL has realised in the area of packaging thus far, and with that it sets new standards in the industry.

High performance and efficient production

Strong global market position

Engel has been building all-electric moulding machines since 2002 and with a wealth of experience and expertise can today offer efficient, profitable and clean solutions to the packaging industry. Michael Feltes explains this has been a difficult but rewarding focus for the company, “Like everybody else, we have had our share of issues and

Globally active, family-run. These key attributes of Engel confirm its leading position on the market, coupled with the fact it can supply complete production systems with high efficiency from a full range of all-electric, hybrid and hydraulic machines for packaging applications up to 650 tonnes.

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Movomech AB Movomech was established in Kristianstad in 1986 and is since 2006 part of the Sunnex group. The company is specialized in lifting technology and delivers customized material handling equipment to customers all over the world.

Movomech does also provide a complete product range of anti-vibration and levelling machine mounts under the trademark Sunnex. Sunnex product series are specially developed to minimize the effects of unwanted vibrations to improve ergonomics at the workplace and to reduce strain on machines.

Movomech AB is proud supplier of machine mounts to a number of Engel production sites. A strong and two ways beneficial cooperation has been established during the years and the two companies´ positive development creates good prospects for continued healthy cooperation.

Reiloy Metall GmbH Reiloy Metall is the globally leading manufacturer of highly wear-resistant screws and barrels for the plastics industry. Nearly 30 years Reiloy is a professional partner of Engel Austria GmbH with manufacturing units in Troisdorf Germany and Wichita USA. In order to secure just in time delivery a rolling forecast as well as necessary stock planning are synchronised weekly. Providing know-how, experience and the right technologies we protect barrels and screws sustainably against abrasion, adhesion and corrosion. We are a manufacturing company, but primarily we are consultants. We use our expertise in engineering and metallurgy to find optimal specifications for plasticizing units, select suitable material combinations, and support our customers in their developments of new barrels to improve profitability and functionality.

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“The packaging industry has a lot of global manufacturers which provide brand owners all across the world, therefore their machine suppliers need to be in a similar position to support them,” Kurt Hell explains, “Engel can provide support and services globally.” To maintain long-term success, Engel is currently implementing a regional support structure, not only for sales, but also for service, application engineering, and configuration management.

Engel’s willingness to invest in the future and the development of its machines is another reason it attracts big customers who exclusively buy from them time after time. With a budget of more than 50 million euro invested in R&D every year even throughout the recent crisis years, Engel is able to stay ahead of the competition. In addition, Engel invests in its personnel. Every year, more than 50 apprentices are placed on the Engel training programme, ensuring staff possess in-depth knowledge, skills and expertise.

Engel has also recently further strengthened its service offerings with a new customer portal for processing service requests and ordering spare parts. Michael Feltes explains, “Every production environment will sooner or later require spare parts. With the new Engel e-connect, our customers can order new parts easier and faster from the machines, minimising delays and the ordering of incorrect parts. With the help of 3D models, the needed spare parts can be selected easily and quickly.”

A progressive industry Developments in pack design and materials drive and impact the manufacturers of packaging machinery. As an advanced provider of solutions, Engel will continue to remain one step ahead of the progressions made in the industry.

Michael Feltes offers his proficient insights into market trends: “The packaging industry will be influenced in the next few years by the demographics of the global population which will increase in age,” He says. “There is a trend that consumers are wanting smaller packs at a higher volume. I believe that the demand for single-serve packs is going to continue to increase.”

Secondly, Michael Feltes discusses the exciting new trend of intelligent packaging, “Cutting-edge developments such as implementing an active indicator (such as a colour code replacing a printed date) into a pack to convey the shelf-life of a product, are going to be interesting innovations to support with our technologies.”

He also points out a third area of development, “In Asia, there is an interesting trend that packages are either manufactured as ultra-cheap i.e. foil-backed, or as a premium package using rigid plastic material. There is huge potential in China | 116 | Packaging Europe

and Asia for thin-wall packaging and in turn our thin-wall packaging solutions, to penetrate the market and provide solutions in between these two extremes.”

The shelf-life of food products, a crucial area rich in packaging development, has seen a rise in demand for advanced barrier technologies. Michael Feltes elaborates, “There is a lot of activity in Europe and North America surrounding barrier functionality, typically an EVOH or nylon barrier layer inside a polypropylene structure, either to extend the existing shelf-life properties of food stuffs, or to substitute metal tins and cans with a plastic or plastic/metal combination container.

“Engel can provide the technology and injection synchronisation with its allelectric machine concepts that is required to create these typically three-layered structures with small micron ranges that require extreme precision.

“We are working on barrier projects in the development stages with large converters globally. Our machines can provide the advanced capabilities and technologies needed, and the focus is on developing the packaging itself.”

Sustainable growth Over the last two years, Engel has injected huge investment into increasing the capacity of its facilities. Spotlighting Asia, Engel has doubled the capacity of its plant in Korea, which manufactured around 1000 machines last year. It has also doubled the capacity of the Shanghai plant and in July 2014 the ENGEL group opened a second facility in China.

In addition to expanding in Asia, Engel has progressive plans to increase its capacity in Europe. Kurt Hell comments, “The focus for 2015 and onwards is to increase our capacity in Austria at the headquarters with new offices and a state-ofthe-art technology centre, and to increase capacity at our plants located in Austria.”

He underscores that future growth will come from several directions. “In Europe we hold a market share of 35 per cent. We aim to maintain this strong position whilst looking at the huge potential there is to grow in Asia and America. In America we hold around 16 per cent of the market share and in Asia around 12 per cent. During the last years we continually increased our worldwide market shares and we will remain on this growth path in the coming years.

For the coming years ENGEL sees further growth of at least 5 per cent per year. Michael Feltes asserts, “Engel has the muscle, the technology, and the market share to achieve this, however at the same time we aspire to achieve sustainable rather than aggressive growth so will not be pushing Engel to its limits to reach this target.”

For more information, visit www.engelglobal.com

Making brands

shine

Schawk offers production, premedia print and workflow services, and helps to protect brands across media channels by producing high quality assets while improving supply chain efficiencies.

Elisabeth Skoda spoke to Carsten Hoppmann, Schawk’s Business Development Director for Germany, Austria and Switzerland, to find out how a recent rebranding positively affects business.

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chawk is part of SGK, a division of Matthews International Corporation.

Matthews International was established following the emigration of John Matthews to the United States from his native England, where he then opened a small engraving shop in Pittsburgh in 1850. The early business focused on military stamping dies, branding irons, ornate engravings and stamps for wooden crates. Over the years the company grew and developed. The company’s SGK Brand Solutions segment has become a leader in pre-press services, helping companies create eye-catching and brand-building packaging graphics.

Schawk was founded in 1953 by Clarence W. Schawk as a one-man platemaking business and from there grew into a trusted partner for production, premedia, print services and workflows with several thousand employees over the world.

“Following the merger between Matthews International and SGK in 2014, the SGK Group currently has more than 6300 employees in more than 30 countries in over 78 locations on five continents. From small businesses a hundred years ago we have grown to have a strong worldwide presence,” Mr Hoppmann is happy to report.

Successful rebranding The Matthews Brand Solutions flexographic business was recently rebranded as Schawk. “We have rebranded our brand solutions and flexographic business in Europe, Asia and America as Schawk. This affects eight local flexographic business brands in Europe, one in Asia Pacific and one in America,” Mr Hoppmann explains.

Rebranding is part of strategy to optimise SGK’s brand portfolio by consolidating the brand. Mr Hoppmann points out the reasons behind this move as such: “This facilitates the buying process for our clients, creates a more seamless service experience, and unifies the knowledge, expertise and resources of all these brands around

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the world. With the one Schawk brand, we focus on delivering a consistent brand experience as we offer a consistent brand experience to our customers, we also have to offer a consistent brand experience with our own brand. Rebranding provides best of both worlds for Europe. European business brands become an integral part of the global brand, and Schawk is in a position regionally to continue to deliver flexographic solutions in Europe.”

Impressive portfolio There are two business lines under the SGK brand. The brand development group is focused on improving top line growth for brand owners, including the creation of corporate brand strategies, brand experience and design across all media channels online and offline, and merchandising at retail stores.

“Brandimage offers comprehensive branding and design services including research, strategy and creative to generate meaningful brand stories,” Mr Hoppmann adds.

Secondly, the brand deployment group is made up of Schawk and Saueressig, focusing on improving bottle line efficiency for brand owners and printers.

“We offer workflow audit, continuous improvement services, print and colour management and flexo plate making. Innovations include security and 3D micro embossing, nanosecond laser three-dimensional gravures, large surface laser structuring of embossing equipment with high-performance ultra short pulse lasers, proofs and mock-ups that depict all finishes like coatings and embossing and colour consistent print previews directly on screen.”

Schawk offers a unique packaging e-content service, allowing customers to keep control of their online presence and create a consistent brand identity.

“We produce artwork for our clients’ packaging. There is no need for printed samples, we can master up details to produce 3D CGIs and combine this with

other elements of artwork. This means that pictures in online shops show the same pack as packs in the supermarket. This guarantees consistency, avoiding confusion if a customer sees a different pack in supermarkets than in online shops,” Mr Hoppmann says.

Showcasing the brand at Fachpack For the first time this year, Schawk did not showcase its products and solutions at the Fachpack trade fair in Nuremberg, but focused on its rebranding in Europe, giving customers background information on the company’s restructuring.

Schawk also shared its expertise. At the fair, the FTA (Flexographic Technical Association) was asked to present a 90 minute slot at Packbox, a space dedicated to innovation and information, communicating information on packaging, machine construction, packaging printing and packaging logistics. Within this framework, Carsten Hoppmann gave a presentation on packaging prepress and the efforts to make creative work printable, addressing why digital graphic files that have been generated by graphic designers still need a great deal of re-work to make them suitable for packaging printing and production.

“I gave some background information and outlined the necessary steps to transform computer design files into a print ready artwork file,” shares Mr Hoppmann.

Successful outlook

He is keen to point out that Schawk is ideally positioned for present and future success: “Our 150 years of experience in the industry, our combination of global and local presence, our deep knowledge in technical imaging, printing processes, colour behaviours, work efficiency and inks and substrates, enable us to provide consistent solutions worldwide, paired with local services for brand owners and printers.”

Visit: www.schawk.com

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Celebrating 80 years of plastics Fatra a.s. is one of the major central European processors of plastics (PVC, PE, PP and PET), and holds a significant share in the plastics industry in the Czech Republic with 1100 employees. Celebrating its 80th anniversary this year, it offers top quality products and specialised customer solutions, which include not only production but also development activities as well as consulting services. Libby White spoke with Mr Miroslav Vecerka, sales manager, about how the company has achieved an impressive turnover in 2014 of €140 million, with sales to more than 50 countries worldwide.

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ounded in 1935 by Baťa group (a worldwide famous Czech shoemaker), Fatra is a member of the Agrofert Holding Group, which associates over 230 subjects from the chemistry, agriculture and food industries, and ground machinery across central Europe. Currently, more than 75% of the company’s production is heading to foreign markets. Two manufacturing facilities are ideally located in Napajedla and Chropyně, Czech Republic, within a short distance of around 30km from each other.

Fatra offers a high level of customer service in the field of testing and development laboratories with testing, preparation of samples and mixtures, expert advice and consultation. The high quality of products and services are supported by the implementation of quality and environmental management systems ČSN ISO 9001 and ČSN ISO 14001. | 120 | Packaging Europe

Comprehensive portfolio With 80 years of knowledge to build upon, Fatra provides processed materials include PVC-P, PVC-U, LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE, EVAC, TPO, PP, PET, and ABS across a variety of markets: the construction industry, food industry, fancy goods, sanitary products, healthcare, consumer industry and the automotive industry. Consequentially, Fatra’s product portfolio is vast. For the construction industry alone Fatra produces waterproofing membranes, technical foils, flooring, PE sheets and cooling filler panels.

For the food industry, Fatra offers PVC foils, PVC packages (cups, containers, lids), BO PET films and laminates, and crates for baked goods. PE sheets, PVC-P foils and extruded profiles are produced for the fancy goods market, and for the sanitary products

sector it produces breathable films and laminates, and bed liners. Special PVC foils and tubes cater for the healthcare sector and lastly for the consumer industry, Fatra produces PE and PET and EVAC foils and sheets, injected products, printed foils, floor tiles, tablecloths and profiles.

Taking a closer look at what Fatra produces for the packaging industry, BO PET films TENOLAN® includes the production of packages for foodstuff and technical products, production of multi-layer flexible packages for industrial and food processing use (duplex and triplex laminates), and thermal food processing up to a maximum of 220°C (for baking).

BO PET films TENOLAN® and multi-layer laminated films FOLAM® (lamination of two or more materials - BOPET, PE, PP films, paper, etc.) are used in the manu-

facture of flexible packages – suitable for the packaging of foodstuff and technical products. TENOLAN® films are also used for electrical insulation and other applications. Films are supplied transparent or coloured in mass (yellow, white, black, red, blue) or matt. They can be also corona treated, metallised or chemically treated.

Technical BO PET films are offered for the production of labels and adhesive tapes and so on.

Multi-layer laminated foils FOLAM® are designed mainly for the production of so-called flexible packages. They are manufactured by connecting two or more areal materials (BOPET, PE, PP film, paper, etc.). Films, which are treated by aluminium metallisation, through dyeing, or deposition of water dispersion of polymers in the context of improved surface adhesion of final materials, can be used in the production.

“Around 75 per cent of our focus is on the European market. Germany and Italy are our biggest markets for BO PET, and we sell this in 28 countries including the US and China.”

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Fatra’s solutions for the packaging industry have many applications: food packages for the packaging of aggressive content (e.g. spice, sauerkraut), lids of alimentary packs, decoration wine funnels, and thermal bags etc. Foil treatments and laminates can add further properties to Fatra’s offerings, such as metallisation, application of water dispersions of polymers for the purpose of improving surface adhesion of final materials, special surface finish such as peel effect and inner/outer printing. Lamination improves functionality and can add a barrier to prevent the permeability of gases, water, water steam and oxygen, strengthen the package, extend durability, offer easy printing, and reduce the microbial risk.

Engaging with the market In a strong position for expansion, Fatra exhibited for the very first time this year at FachPack, a leading European trade fair for packaging, technology, processing and logistics.

The main aim was to find new business contacts and opportunities in the European market and to raise awareness of the performances of the Czech manufacturer. Another key focus was to monitor the competition on the market of packaging and logistics. Mr Vecerka comments, “Fatra has attended FachPack three or four times in the past in a passive manner, to keep up to date with the industry. This year, we decided to put Fatra on the packaging radar, to show the packaging industry what we have to offer, and benefit from the countless opportunities.”

Visitors of the fair were introduced to Fatra’s products: BO PET packaging and technical films and laminates, anti-slip foils and sheets of EVAC and PET, transparent and coloured vinyl oils (PVC-P) for the haberdashery, packaging and special purposes, extruded

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profiles for the packaging consumables, furniture and other industry, injection products (multifunctional floor tiles, containers) and vinyl floors for commercial spaces.

FachPack is held in Nuremberg, Germany, which is Fatra’s biggest market for BO PET films, and where it also sees the biggest opportunity for growth. Mr Vecerka says, “I would definitely say that FachPack exceeded our expectations. As well as gathering fresh contacts within the packaging industry, we managed to attain contacts for every single segment we are involved in asides from packaging, which was a brilliant result.”

Expansion plans Conveniently located in central Europe, the most important regions for Fatra are Western and Eastern Europe, North Africa, Middle East, North and South America. Mr Vecerka points out, “Around 75 per cent of our focus is on the European market. Germany and Italy are our biggest markets for BO PET, and we sell this in 28 countries including the US and China.”

For the next few years, Fatra will focus their expansion mainly on the floor coverings market, and sees big potential in its LVT (luxury vinyl tiles) product range. Mr Vecerka concludes, “We will spend around €500milion for our brand new line for products in construction section (LVT and waterproofing membranes where main growth is expected on the markets outside of Europe. In BO PET films we plan to focus on the product with higher additional value (coloured films, metallisation projects, lower haze and matt surface etc.), and we would like to expand on the markets n in North and South America.”

For more information, visit www.fatra.cz

The next level of

ultrasonic cleaning Liverpool-based Alphasonics designs and manufactures premier ultrasonic cleaning systems for the print, electronics and engineering industries. Elisabeth Skoda visited Alphasonic’s site in Knowsley, was given a tour round the facilities and spoke to marketing and sales manager Chris Jones to find out more about the company’s complete solutions for printer cleaning systems, including anilox roll and gravure cylinder cleaners, blanket wash module cleaners, flexo plate cleaners and parts washers.

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ince its foundation in Liverpool in 1993, Alphasonics has been able to develop a worldwide reputation for innovation and technical excellence.

“We have a big reach, with 2.500 of our systems installed all worldwide and are proud to be an industry leader with the most advanced technological framework out there. Our key customers are award winning printers. Our impact on production quality is apparent, and that is recognised in the industry.”

Understanding ultrasonic cleaning Ultrasonic cleaning is a process in which high frequency sound waves and a cleaning agent are used to gently clean various items. So-called ‘transducers’ are fixed to the base of a cleaning tank which force this base to ‘flex’ up and down at a pre-determined rate.

The rate of this flexure is tens of thousands of times a second. This flexure is far too quick for the tank fluid to flow and the formation and collapse of millions of bubbles, or vacuum chambers, occurs.

This sucks out dirt and contamination on a microscopic level due to the implosion of the vacuum chamber on the surface structure of the item being cleaned. The size and strength of these bubbles is controlled by the frequency employed. The higher the frequency, the smaller the bubble and therefore, the cleaning action is gentler.

Gamechanging technology Over the course of its history, Alphasonics successfully addressed the problem that ultrasonic cleaners not fit for purpose were sold to clean anilox, causing problems and damage.

In 2000 the company developed its Alphasound brand, which offers dual frequency variable power ultrasonic, ideal for cleaning delicate parts, and flexible enough to offer optimal cleaning, whatever the component or how often cleaning is required.

The Alphasound system allows a very equal distribution of ultrasonic throughout, guaranteeing safety and increasing production quality.

“Ultrasonic technology previously didn’t offer the necessary quality, printers were worried to clean anilox, and quality suffered. We came into the market doing the same thing, but far and away more advanced. Unfortunately, these competitors have not changed their technology since that time whereas we have consistently developed new and exciting additions solely aimed at delivering benefit to the industry.” Mr Jones explains.

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Two years ago, the company developed Betasound, allowing to put two different frequencies into a tank at the same time, further enhancing quality and performance.

Mr Jones also is keen to point out the company’s latest development, Active Cavitation, which makes ultrasonic work harder through sonolysis.

“Active Cavitation creates disturbances in the tank, increasing and enhancing the formation and collapse of the vacuum bubbles that give the cleaning effect, enhancing the cleaning on the surface of the part being cleaned, and causing a chemical reaction which speeds up the cleaning process.”

International focus Keen to showcase its products to international audiences, Alphasonics regularly presents its solutions at trade shows, such as Scanpack in Gothenburg and Labelexpo in Brussels.

“Labelexpo in Brussels has been a good show for us in the last couple of years. Last year, we could have sold our equipment twice over, and this year we are still picking up orders from it months later. This year, we are looking forward to exhibiting at Drupa in Düsseldorf in Germany, which is a useful fair for us to showcase all we can do for all different types of printers. I predict that Drupa’s position as an offset-focused show are numbered, and that digital and flexo print will come into the fore,” Mr Jones adds.

Having built its international customer base thanks to attending trade shows, the export market is important for Alphasonics, with around 60 per cent of products being exported, and 40 per cent going to the domestic market.

“We also have cemented our place as the market leader in the UK, and year on year, we are increasing our sales across the board,” Mr Jones notes.

Vast product range Alphasonics offers a wide range of products in a number of options and sizes, starting from simple benchtop units to larger systems. Machine sizes range from 430mm up to 5 metres in width.

“Our product range expands from simple benchtop units up to machines with fully automatic features, cycle alarms and fluid filtration. We do what our customers ask us to do. We start with the anilox roll and build our machine around it. Customers can be confident they will get a product that is specifically suited to them,” Mr Jones says.

He adds that machines are modular and can maintained and easily. They can also be adapted according to individual needs. “We can now also bring extra cycle features in gradually, so there is scope for growth. This means that a small company operating from a garage can use our products just as well as a multinational company that needs machines on a number of sites.”

Alphasonics is working hard to be able to offer its customers a complete product range, from anilox cleaners to plate cleaners and part washers.

“We are currently in the process of developing an on press cleaning system, adding extra flexibility for the printer. Once we have streamlined design, we are hoping to launch it into the market next year.”

In order to offer customers complete cleaning solutions, Alphasonics recently expanded its plate cleaning offering with the PCX series plate cleaning systems, featuring a fully automated brush type plate cleaner, eliminating problems commonly associated with plate cleaning. It is suitable for narrow web through to corrugated and available in widths from 450mm to 1200mm.

“PCX was launched at Labelexpo in Chicago last year and has attracted a lot of interest. Since we launched the PCX series last year, several companies have bought complete packages from us consisting of plate cleaners, anilox cleaners and parts washers. We’re a high quality one-stop shop for all cleaning requirements,” Mr. Jones is happy to report.

Mr Jones is keen to highlight the brush-type plate washer, a piece of equipment that enables the printer to clean plates with a minimum of fuss. “This new system uses non-hazardous chemicals, which means there is no need for an ADR or other HazChem requirements.”

Alphasonics puts a lot of time and effort into its R&D, and is particularly proud of the development of a cleaner for surgical equipment.

“At its core, the technology is the same as for print, and this shows the quality of our machines, as the level we are working at is medical grade,” he points out.

Ongoing investments Thanks to Alphasonics’ success, the company needed more space and has built an extra mezzanine level on site with further site expansion in the next 12 months. Mr Jones is proud of the fact that profits get reinvested in R&D in order to anticipate what is coming next in the industry.

“We also invested in and assisted in the development of a cavitometer, which allows us to measure the equality of our ultrasonics. It is important that people understand how important even distribution is in ultrasonic cleaning. When you put sound into water, it can get patchy and there are hot and cold spots, which can cause roll damage to the delicate anilox. A lot of our R&D has gone into eliminating overexposure and provide a balanced clean all over. Our equipment means no spikes in the ultrasonic. Therefore we

are now going to distribute this equipment as a means of validating our capabilities. It is mainly aimed at the medical sector, but if our print customers are interested, they are welcome to it too,” Mr Jones points out.

The company is so confident in the quality of its ultrasonic equipment that it provides a guarantee: If Alphasonics’ technology damages a roll, it will replace it. “In the 25 years we had this guarantee, we never had to replace a roll,” Mr Jones is happy to report.

Motivated, highly skilled staff is another important factor for the company’s success.

Alphasonics doesn’t outsource any work and utilises the skills and knowledge of its staff, offering regular training so they can develop as engineers.

Alphasonics is proud of the quality of product it is able to supply. “Our technology is effective, easy to use and reliable. We are an engineering company and adapt our equipment to our customers’ needs. Major customers, such as press manufacturers and anilox measurement companies such as Troika Systems, are happy with our products and help us to prove what we have been saying about the benefits of ultrasonic cleaning for so long,” Mr Jones points out.

He is proud to list the many benefits of Alphasonics equipment: “Because the roll is clean, printers don’t have to add pigments to make colour stand out. Our equipment allows quick job changeovers, and waste is reduced- if the anilox is clean there is no material waste getting the print right, and print quality is continuously high because roll is 100 per cent clean. This allows printers to control the anilox inventory a lot closer and plan lifetime of the roll, and gives power back to the printer in terms of relationship to the anilox suppliers.”

Looking ahead Mr Jones sees a brig0ht future for Alphasonics, with a focus on branching out in different industries which will also help to further develop products for the print industry. Alphasonics is also determined to focus on expanding its business into the US more and dispel the idea that ultrasonic can cause roll damage.

“It’s holding the industry back, and getting the message out to the US is the next big thing, it’s vastly important they understand that thee equipment currently used en masse in the ‘States just isn’t fit for purpose,” he adds.

With exciting developments in the packaging industry, with label printers producing wider and wider products and packaging printers steadily improving the quality of what they are doing, Mr. Jones sees exciting potential.

“Packaging printers exist in order to make brands look their very best, and with our equipment we can make sure that products will shine on the shelf,” he concludes.

Visit: www.alphasonics.co.uk

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