LABELEXPO: SOUTHEAST ASIA 2023

Triumphal return of Labelexpo Southeast Asia after COVID hiatus

The second edition of Labelexpo Southeast Asia returned to Bangkok in February 2023 to host nearly 7,500 delegates from 84 countries

-By Piotr Wnuk in Bangkok

Regional printers and converters flocked to Bangkok, Thailand, intrigued to see the latest developments in the label and packaging printing space and preview trends which will potentially drive the market this year. It was a long-awaited edition of the Labelexpo Southeast Asia tradeshow after events planned in 2020 and 2022 were postponed in the wake of COVID-19. Tarsus Group, the organiser of the Labelexpo Global Series, said it was impressed with the multi-national attendees flocking to Bangkok to see the latest developments.

“Labelexpo Southeast Asia launched in 2018 in May was the most successful launch event our company has ever had,” Tarsus Group event manager for Labelexpo Southeast Asia Richard Quirk said.

Labelexpo Southeast Asia returned to Bangkok after events planned in 2020 and 2022 were postponed

According to Tarsus, the first edition of Labelexpo Southeast Asia was the region’s biggest label and package printing event, attracting 7,934 attendees from 62 countries.

“We were due to have the second edition in 2020, and we were forced to cancel and then postpone. So, this is the first time we’ve been back here for nearly five years,” Quirk said.

This year, the exhibition featured more than 170 exhibitors across the label and packaging supply chain and 7,448 delegates from 84 countries, including Thailand, Malaysia, China, Indonesia, India, Singapore and Vietnam.

“I am delighted to report that the show exceeded our expectations. The show floor was bustling. There was a lot of machinery on show, and we’re thrilled to receive positive feedback. The exhibitors were seeing a lot of international visitors, which we’re pleased about because we’ve invested massively into marketing in Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia, and it’s nice to see that our efforts are translated on the show floor,” Tarsus Group portfolio director Jade Grace said. Indeed, despite a much more compact show floor than those in Brussels and Chicago, the equipment at the show was impressive, with an interesting mix of technologies, both from global and regional manufacturers.

Digital presses dominate the show

According to the Knowledge Sourcing Intelligence report published in September 2022, the Asia Pacific (APAC) digital printing market is anticipated to grow significantly in the region and outpace other printing technology. This trend was visible on the show floor.

Durst Group has gathered tremendous interest from regional audiences hungry for innovations and the latest technology developments. The company was one of the few European manufacturers arriving at the Labelexpo show with an impressive equipment line up, showcasing its Tau RSC E 330 5c press working in unison with the Durst printer-software ecosystem and providing visitors access to experienced industry experts.

Durst Group gathered significant interest with the Tau RSC E 330 5c press working in unison with Durst software

“People like to interact with each other; that’s why we exhibit at shows like this one. It was the first time I was at a Labelexpo Southeast Asia show, and I think it went very well. We have seen a significant amount of people attend,” Durst global sales director for labels and flexible packaging Thomas Macina said.

“I heard some statistics that only on the first day, we had more people coming through the doors than for the entire duration of the last edition in 2018. What surprised me was that we have seen printers not only from Thailand but also from surrounding regions like Australia, Japan, Taiwan, Malaysia, Indonesia and Uzbekistan. Converters from all surrounding regions are flocking here, and most were stopping by our booth.

“I think we were the only digital inkjet manufacturer at the show with a 1,200dpi machine. I believe all visitors can see the difference in print quality between Durst and the other inkjet players. I have spoken to several visitors who have seen this machine for the first time and have questions. Some customers know us, already have an older version of our presses, and are considering an upgrade.”

The RSC E has been designed by Durst to evolve and grow with the business and is equipped with native 1,200 DPI resolution. It offers converters an economically attractive entry into successful Tau RSC technology. The press comes fully equipped with Durst Workflow and Durst Analytics software and optional Durst Smart Shop software, enabling web-toprint technology.

The exhibition featured more than 170 exhibitors and was visited by 7,448 delegates from 84 countries

According to Macina, some of the most prevalent trends and most often requested functionalities by the Labelexpo visitors were workflow and automation options.

This is precisely what Durst has set out to showcase during the show. The team on the stand included Thomas Bodner, a service engineer who had travelled from the company headquarters in Brixen, Italy, to showcase Durst’s holistic approach to print and automation by presenting the Durst Workflow and Durst Analytics software working with the Tau RSC E 330 press.

Durst Workflow is a tailor-made solution for the printing industry to prepare customer data for printing and finishing. Data preparation typically requires recurring tasks that can now be automated, freeing up valuable time for other tasks. This software combines automation and product-specific data preparation to decrease production costs.

Epson presented SurePress L-4533AW and SurePress L-6534VW UV presses

On the other hand, Durst Analytics is a web-based software that leverages a printer’s data to provide easily accessible and interpretable dashboards available on a single screen. All software packages are individually expandable and can be used for label, corrugated, textile and large-format printing.

Epson presented industrial and on-demand colour label solutions: the SurePress L-4533AW water-based ink machine and SurePress L-6534VW UV ink press, showcasing flexibility in customised label printing for retailers, SMEs and factories. in the market right now. This is especially evident with companies starting to enter the labels market. They are quite cautious as well,” Epson Asia Pacific growth and innovation lead Conrad Mendoza Jr. said.

“We met potential customers asking for cost-effective solutions but still delivering the quality which would allow them to compete in the market.”

Konica Minolta showcased the AccurioLabel 400 in the region for the first time after the official launch at Labelexpo Americas last year. According to the company, the press was initially designed to offer an affordable entry point into high-quality digital printing for small-tomid-sized label converters.

Konica Minolta showcased the AccurioLabel 400 press for the first time in the region

The AccurioLabel 400 incorporates Konica Minolta’s technology, including the Intelligent Quality Optimiser (IQ-520) colour management functionality for realtime colour stability and registration control. The new press features a fifth well for white toner to expand creative label applications and many automated control features for highly productive output.

An interesting addition to the show floor was Chinese manufacturer Flora, promoting its J-330S, a compact 5-colour digital UV inkjet machine designed as a compact and fully integrated single-pass platform.

The machine uses the new circulation Epson S3200 600 DPI printhead and can run with speeds up to 60m/min to offer high productivity and flexibility. The 350mm print width can support a wide range of applications.

According to the company, the single-pass technology with non-contact printing and one-step forming can deliver consistent printing quality. It offers one-step personalisation with shorter set-up time, minimal tool cost and optimal workflow connection while reducing waste.

Chinese manufacturer Flora promoted its J-330S compact 5-colour digital UV inkjet machine

Despite the apparent domination of digital technologies in Bangkok, Malaysian manufacturer Sen Label showcased highspeed full servo intermittent UV flexo and UV LED letterpress.

Press Systems Group (PSG), one of the leading Southeast Asia distributors of printing products covering the flexo, offset and gravure markets, presented three Rhyguan machines, including the Top330-2 semi/full-rotary die-cutting and inspection system configured with one flexo printing unit incorporating additional equipment, including GEW LED-UV curing systems, Sandon anilox roll, Swedcut doctor blade and Innova mounting tape.

The latest in finishing touches

New to the show was the Digital Embellishment Trail, successfully introduced at Labelexpo Americas last year. Participating companies included Kurz, Grafotronic, Domino and Epson, which offered samples and a team of experts to demonstrate the possibilities of variable embellishment.

Grafotronic, a Swedish/Polish company founded in 2004, promoted two machines at the show. The first one, CF, is a compact, modular digital label finisher configured with a flexo unit for spot varnish, semirotary die, automated loading, slitting station, and standard rewind units.

Grafotronic presented two finishing machines

“This machine can run up to 100 m/min, but the newly developed die-cutting unit can operate with up to 150 m/min speeds. What’s unique about this unit is that despite its extreme speeds, we were able to minimise the waste to only 30cm when switching jobs,” Grafotronic sales and marketing vice-president Mattias Malmqvist said.

The company was also showcasing its HI3 inspection machine developed for 24/7 production environments, available in widths between 13 and 22in, running with speeds of up to 400m/min.

A focus on materials

Armor-Iimak promoted inkanto and other thermal transfer ribbons developed to offer resistance, legibility and print medium (uncoated, coated paper, synthetic, textile, flexible packaging). Its products come with a lifetime guarantee and Certificate of Conformity to provide traceability to end-users.

Cosmo Films showcased a wide range of products, including flexible packaging, label, lamination, packaging, synthetic paper and industrial films, and its newly launched products – PET-G shrink label films and Cosmo Plastech.

Zhuoli Imaging Technology featured thermal transfer ribbons with selfmanufactured PET film. Its main products include wax, wax/resin, resin, near-edge ribbons and colour ribbons. These products are manufactured in compliance with RoHS and REACH regulations and have ISEGA and UL certifications.

Australian businesses in Thailand

Despite a significant distance, the Bangkok show floor has seen a few familiar faces from the region.

Aldus Graphics’ Lindsey Boyd and Damien Prunty represented Mark Andy with its entire range of printing presses developed for label and packaging converters.

“For us, the show has been fantastic, there is a very strong vibe. We had a lot of good interest generated,” Prunty said.

Damien Prunty and Lindsey Boyd represented Sydney-based Aldus Graphics

“We have not seen many visitors from Australia or New Zealand, but mainly from Southeast Asia.

“Our regional market, coming out of COVID, was quite buoyant to us. Several customers have put capital investments on hold through that period, and as we came out of that, the business confidence was higher.

“We have been quite successful, particularly with Mark Andy, and we had several installations over the last eight months. We see a resurgence, especially among the label printers, in investing capital.”

Jet Technologies representative Jack Malki has also been supporting its supplier brands in Bangkok.

“In terms of technology, it was clear to all attendees that inkjet was the star of the show, with virtually all major players present and often with impressive presses printing away,” Malki said.

“For Jet Technologies, specifically, there was very strong demand for the Screen range of inkjet presses, with new L350UV SAI presses on-route to clients in New Zealand, Australia and Indonesia at present.

Jack Malki of Jet Technologies with a team of Jet Technologies Indonesia

“Hybrid inkjet solutions, where the press is embedded in a single line that includes other processes such as flexo, screen, foiling, die cutting and so forth to produce a finished product in a single pass, continue to be a key area of interest.

“Jet Technologies partners, Esko and Asahi continue to make strong strides in imaging and water-wash plate technology, bringing flexo to levels not seen before. So frankly, it is not just digital print that is making progress, but we continue to see flexo respond with their own advancements.”

Warming up for Brussels

In the conversations with ProPack.pro, many brands present at the show in Bangkok confirmed they are preparing major product launches for the upcoming Labelexpo Europe in Brussels in September. HP has booked the largest stand available on the show floor in prime position, so we can only expect that the

V12 will be showcased in Belgium after its launch at Labelexpo Americas 2022 in Chicago.

Lombardi, an Italian family-owned flexo and hybrid press manufacturer, took the second-largest stand and promised a significant technology launch.

“We are already preparing for the show in Brussels. We have reserved the biggest booth in Lombardi Converting Machinery history in Hall 5 in the heart of the exhibition,” Lombardi Converting Machinery marketing director Nicola Lombardi said.

The exhibition featured more than 170 exhibitors and was visited by 7,448 delegates from 84 countries

“All I can say at this stage is that something big is coming. We have been working very hard perfecting new technology so it will be ready to be launched in Belgium.”

Lombardi has also hinted that Australia and New Zealand are desirable markets, and the company has firmly put them on its expansion plans. The Italian company is currently gearing up for the first installation in Australia.

Other sizeable stands are already reserved for Mark Andy, Omet, Screen, Bobst, Durst, Konica Minolta, ABG, Grafotronic and Domino, all promising to show some exciting innovations.

With just a few months to go, Labelexpo Europe will be one not to miss.