Avery Dennison, Esko, and GMG were among the category winners honoured at this year’s 16th Label Industry Global Awards, which recently took place at Brussels Expo, Belgium, on the first night of Labelexpo Europe 2019.
The awards aim to recognise the most innovative, influential and successful work from the label and package printing industry across the globe in the last twelve months.
The award for innovation (for companies with up to 300 employees) was presented to GMG GmbH & Co. KG, for its GMG Calibration Creation Wizard.
Developed to enable customers to create colour-accurate mock-ups for labels, flexible packaging and cartons, the company won the award for how it connected GMG Colour Management software with an Epson SC-S80600 to achieve accurate reproducible proofs.
The award for innovation (for companies with more than 300 employees) went to Esko for its Esko Print Control Wizard software, developed to simplify the implementation of screens and dot gain curves in the reprographics process.
Its main feature is the ability to control where the transition from AM to FM occurs. The judges were said to be impressed by the way that transition points can be changed quickly, enabling the operator to see the immediate impact on tonal values.
Avery Dennison won the environmental and sustainability award for its Recycled PET Liners.
The launch of the product in Europe has focused on meeting sustainability objectives and the need to support recycling in the packaging industry. The sustainable liners were made with 30 per cent recycled PET post-consumer waste from PET bottles, while maintaining technical qualifications.
The rising star award went to Robert Rae of GEW. Rae joined the company in 2014 following an early career in research with P&G. With a chemistry degree from Durham University, the judges said his skills have enabled him to contribute towards developing a LED product introduced in 2016, and launching a revolutionary LED system at Labelexpo 2019.
The European converter of the year award went to Reynders. The judges said its recent developments in digitally printed, full colour booklets were noteworthy, since after only 18 months, the company’s investment in the production of ‘loyalty stamps’ resulted in over six billion labels printed and supplied to the world.
Reynders also promotes sustainable label alternatives, with a planned installation of 800+ solar panels and investments to reduce water, gas and electricity consumption. Its emphasis on career growth and after work activities for employees also impressed judges.
A special recognition award was made to Clive Smith, founder of Labelexpo, honouring his creation and ongoing development of the label and package printing exhibition.
The final award of the night, the R. Stanton Avery global achievement award, went to Jim DeFife, vice-president of pressure-sensitive materials at Multi-Color Corporation.
This award honours the contribution an influential individual has made which has impacted the growth of the international label industry. DeFife was selected for driving the global label industry for almost 40 years, with a focus on the development of technical solutions for the pressure-sensitive market – firstly with Avery Dennison and then, for the past 17 years, with Spear and Multi-Color.
Mike Fairley, chair of the judges, said, “I, on behalf of the judging panel, would like to commend and congratulate all our finalists and winners at this year’s Label Awards. What really made them stand out was the demonstration of genuine brilliance in their innovation, leadership and sustainability, and dedication to improving their businesses.
“They illustrate the very best of the label and package printing industry, so it is important that their efforts are recognised in moving our industry ever forwards. I sincerely hope all our winners will go on to inspire the next generation of innovators and leaders as we look ahead to the next 40 years of Labelexpo.”
