Durst delivers on the demand for innovative solutions by answering the need for short, medium and speciality labels and packaging.

In many cases, Durst is the first choice when it comes to the transformation and digitisation of industrial production processes. So, it comes as no surprise that the company offers holistic solutions for short, medium and specialty labels and packaging, amongst other business areas. In the past, Durst has gained a vast know-how about speciality packaging applications such as blister, tubes, tags, tickets or folding cardboard. Today, it uses this knowledge and experience to build robust labels and packaging technologies to suit the needs of many packaging businesses, fashioning their futures for success.

“As the label market shows an unstoppable level of growth, Durst is committed to match that with innovation and investment. As such, Durst Oceania is pushing heavily into the labels and packaging sectors,” Durst Oceania managing director Matt Ashman said. “We’ve significantly grown our label press installation base this year, and we’re going into more high-speed packaging production. “Oceania is a positive growth region, and Australia is a very vibrant, innovative and young market when it comes to labels and packaging. “There are plenty of great businesses here and we just want to be a part of that upward trajectory.” In beefing up its label and flexible packaging segment, Durst named Thomas Macina as its global sales manager of label and flexible packaging earlier this year. The native of South Tyrol comes from HP Indigo, where he was most recently labels business manager EMEA in Barcelona. Macina’s career has spanned more than 15 years at HP and he is considered as an expert in digital printing technology. “Today, no label converter will deny the need of digital printing. Ten years ago, it was about explaining the value of digital versus conventional, as well as the advantages of no plates, minimum waste, minimum setup, automated workflows, mass customisation and variable data printing,” Macina said. “Print quality is now a given with the new 1200×1200 dpi inkjet technology, and the focus is now on productivity, simplicity and cost effectiveness.

According to Macina, “the needs of the labels and packaging industry has evolved over time with the fast changing consumer trends, and digital printing provides without doubts, the best tools to meet the new needs of the brand: fast and short deliveries, features to communicate with the customer through the label, features to protect the labels from counterfeits and finally, environmentally-friendly produced labels”. Macina said transformation has started already, adding that the average run lengths have declined significantly over the last 10 years and many high value short runs are being printed today in digital. “The next big thing will be the migration of conventional jobs to digital and the automation on the E2E workflow,” he said. Benefits of the TAU RSC range Key to Durst’s offerings in the labels and packaging segments are its TAU RSC range of printers.

According to Durst, TAU single pass printing systems now have a market share of around 40 per cent of the UV inkjet market segment, with an installation base of more than 320 printing presses worldwide. The TAU RSC range enables innovation for an industrial level of productivity. Available in printing widths of 330mm, 420mm or 510mm, the printer is designed to take over mid-to long run jobs and is also able to produce short-run jobs in the most economical way. In addition, the TAU RSC UV ink demonstrates high performance in resistance and durability. It is available in a standard CMYK colour configuration, with orange, violet, green and white as optional. It uses low ink consumption, presents a large colour gamut, broad application diversity, as well as high opaque white. The Tau RSC platform printers can print on a large variety of substrates and the software solutions offered by Durst Workflow Label ensure an integrated workflow combined with secure handling of sensitive job data. Ease of use, intuitive and automated, the Durst Label Software tools are also included to help businesses organise their production workflow to be more efficient and cost effective.

Applications for the TAU RSC range include, but are not limited to, the beauty and care, food and beverages, and chemicals industries. In Beauty and Care: The Tau RSC provides the highest opacity white, vivid colours and a screen-like feeling of the label prints. Patternware add additional value, to further enhance the appearance on the shelf. In Food and Beverage: Abrasion resistance and temperature stability are key for these applications. Furthermore, the vivid and strong It also enables labels to be produced in compliance with general industry regulations and standards. In Chemicals: The Tau RSC UV ink provides excellent durability, resistance, and light fastness. Resistance has been proven, for example, with tests against gasoline or methylated spirit. Many Durst Tau RSC clients produce millions of labels for chemical applications such as oil bottles, fertilisers, detergents, hand sanitisers and many other industries. “Additionally to the well-established RSC 330, at the start of 2021, we finalised the beta of the RSCi – the industrial platform leveraging all benefits of the standard RSC but with print widths up to 510mm and printing speeds up to 100m/min, and optional inline flexo stations prior and after the printing unit,” Ashman added. “The introduction of the TAU RSCi has generated a large amount of interest in the marketplace since it was launched in September 2020.” Businesses such as LabelPrint OÜ in Estonia and All4Labels Global Packaging Group in Germany have experienced the benefits of the TAU RSCi range. All4Labels installed a TAU 510 RSCi at its Gebesee plant in mid-2020 and tested the press under real production conditions for a dedicated range of label and package printing applications.

Thanks to the positive performance of the beta machine, another machine has been installed in the same press room to further increase production capacity needs in the premises, followed by multiple installations in other All4Label plants across Europe. All4Labels Gebesee plant manager Christian Kraft said the investment in Durst’s RSCi printing technology, software and service represents a further step up in what it offers its customers who demand the very best. “Optimisation of production processes has become All4Label’s main priority in a market where we see a high level of customisation, premiumisation and personalisation,” Kraft said. “Digital printing and the associated technologies have allowed us to offer greater flexibility and faster response to the marketplace. Now, with the new TAU 510 RSCi, Durst has moved to yet another level and will be providing us with industrial performance for medium and long print runs with outstanding quality.”

At LabelPrint OÜ, the company has been using the TAU RSCi to actively develop digital print services to its client base. “This press has been used to transfer longer run flexo jobs onto a digital platform. We are very confident that this press, with its revolutionary print quality and high printing speed, will help us to reduce production costs and improve lead times,” LabelPrint OÜ owner Sten Sarap said previously. “And thanks to its print quality, it will help to innovate our business and make us more competitive.” A solution for short run corrugated packaging Within the short run speciality corrugated packaging space, Durst has identified its P5 250 WT as a food safe, high-quality solution. The P5 250 WT incorporates the Durst Water Technology and prints from flexo quality up to superb litho quality with odorless ink. Durst Water Technology is highly suited for a range of corrugated packaging and displays applications. Durst WT Inks are completely free of hazardous labelling and comply with the strictest health and safety regulations. With the P5 250 WT and the associated Durst Water Technology inks, Durst offers a solution in line with the sustainable approach of products and packaging. The re-designed P5 250 WT does not only come with an improved efficiency up to 30 per cent less energy consumption, but also the use of the UL-Ecologo certified, GMP compliant and odorless Durst Water based ink, which turns the printer into the right answer for short and mid-run digital printing production for the corrugated/cardboard packaging and displays market.

Additionally, it also offers an offset comparable printing quality and vibrant colours, as well as a cost-effective way even for customised POP/POS products. Looking at the sustainability aspect, the use of plastic free media in combination with water-based ink, also makes the final product easily recyclable. The Durst Water Technology ink can be used to print safe food packaging as it is fully compliant with the required standards, such as Swiss Ordinance or the Nestle exclusion list, and it is produced under the strictest GMP conditions. Migration characteristics were assessed by independent test institutes so that production of primary food packaging becomes possible with the Durst Water Technology. But the potential of the Durst technology does not stop there – it also offers a turn-key solution that delivers on high image quality, gloss, colour brilliance, personalisation, odour minimisation and ease of production.

Whether on a roll or as a sheet, Durst develops the right solution for a product. Customers can quickly and easily design their own individual products and receive production-ready data. For example, customers can use the Durst Smart-Editor tool online to select a model and die-cut pattern, customise and individualise the packages, and view it on a 3D preview before getting it produced and delivered. “Durst is committed to continue investing in the labels and packaging industry, and we are working closely with our customers to constantly bring meaningful innovation to the market, and at the same time contribute to a greener planet thanks to digital printing,” Macina concluded.

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