John Penhallow07.21.15
In case any readers of L&NW are planning to holiday in France this summer, they should note that the rentrée this year falls on September 1. In case any readers don’t know what the rentrée is, well, it’s the most important date in the French calendar, the date of the start of the school year. So from that date onwards beaches and hotels will be emptier and prices (a bit) lower. For businesses, the rentrée is also a date for hiring new staff, allocating budgets and tackling all those problems that seemed so non-urgent when everyone went off on holiday. Business in France used to grind to a total halt for the whole of August. Things are much different today of course: business now just runs at half-speed – but for two months.
Recycling: the wrong answer
Your correspondent recently visited a label converter near Orléans, France. The plant is a modern one, in a brand new building and with the latest in both conventional and digital presses. Everything very impressive, until we came to talk of waste recycling. The CEO took up the tale: “We have a contract with (he named a major recycling company) and they provided three skips for selective recycling. We sorted everything with immense care, but when the truck came, the man just emptied everything together. When I questioned him, he said, ‘Don’t worry, we have plenty of people to sort it again.’ And then people complain that label converters aren’t doing their bit to help the environment!”
Fast presses, fast felines
It may not have made it into the US news, but a man was recently killed by a tiger which escaped from a flooded zoo in Georgia (our Georgia, not yours). Belgium is not Georgia, but zookeepers at Planckendael Zoo in Belgium were taking no risks when Xeikon, one of the zoo’s sponsors, introduced its “Cheetah” label press to another cheetah. Pocco was safely behind bars but looking sleek and powerful. With a speed of 30 m/minute (98 fpm) the Cheetah (the Xeikon one, not Pocco) is reported as being half as fast again as the next best press in the Xeikon stable. “We are already doing more than 50% of our sales in the label printing industry,” said Xeikon CEO Wim Maes, “And Xeikon is growing twice as fast as the market. What’s more, most of the machines we are selling are for new customers.” This new digital press, using Xeikon’s dry toner technology, is now being beta-tested at five sites in different countries. Maes also took the opportunity to announce that Xeikon would be launching several innovations at Labelexpo, including two new silver toners.
The Land of the Rising Yen
Here are two facts for you to put together. In 1853, as every American schoolboy learns, Commodore Matthew Perry sailed into Tokyo Bay and intimated to the Japanese that trading with America would be most beneficial to them (and that a refusal could seriously damage their health). Now look back just ten years, to Labelexpo Europe 2005, and you’ll find that the only Japanese manufacturers at the show were Ko-Pack (remember Ko-Pack?), Iwasaki and Toyobo. Compare that with the situation today when Japanese label press and equipment makers are pullulating in European waters, particularly in the digital field. And none seems to be pullulating faster than Epson. Seico Epson is among the biggest electronics companies in the world, and may well have made the watch on your wrist. A newcomer to the narrow web printing field, Epson has over the past five years made a name for itself with its mid-range digital inkjet presses. In France alone, Epson has delivered 17 with another five on order, according to Sales Manager François Lebas. When your correspondent joined him at label converter DB Technique to see one of the Epson presses in action, CEO Dominique Bourin explained his company’s business strategy. “We are particularly strong in screen printing, with some flexo, and our specialty is in low volume, complex labels and other products.” That is something of an understatement. DB Technique makes dashboard labels for many different automobile subcontractors, also individualized one-off labels for hospital beds (hence the need for a digital press), as well as short-run labels for top-of-the-range perfumes by Chanel, Dior and Guerlain, among others. A recent award-winning series of labels was made for Hermès: for this DB Technique used both screen and digital printing to make back and front labels which are laminated together, the back label being visible through the product. “This line of labels is expensive,” admits Bourin. “But then you should see the price of the product.” Look out for it next time you pass a duty-free shop.
Another Japanese press manufacturer recently entering the European label business is Screen, notably with its digital inkjet Truepress Jet L350UV. The manufacturer’s latest success is in Italy, where by coincidence its customer is also called Screen. In 2010, Screen srl, a label converter close to Milan, installed a Tau 330 press from Italian manufacturer Durst. When the time came to look at new equipment, Screen srl’s boss Stefano Rossetti visited Dainippon Screen’s demo center in Holland and decided to be a pioneer by buying the first Truepress in Italy. According to Rossetti, the new press, with its width of 12.6" and speed of 150 fpm, has doubled the company’s productive capacity.
Citizen Systems is another Japanese giant mainly known for its watches but increasingly present with its label printers. These printers are (for the moment) all black-and-white desktop models aimed mainly at the industrial market (warehouse labels, production line labels,). But who knows what surprises they might have up their kimono sleeves.
Brother can you spare a billion?
While some Japanese companies are developing their own European sales network for the label business, others have gone down the acquisition road. Even by Japanese big-business standards, Brother, with sales of over $5 billion, is no minnow, and even by more modest European standards Domino is at best a medium-sized fish with annual sales of £350 million. Domino, based in Cambridge, UK, was an early developer of DoD inkjet printing), and in 2013 launched its N600i digital inkjet label press which has had considerable success, enough to whet big Brother’s appetite. Domino is a profitable company, but in June 2014 it issued a profit warning, saying that its 2015 results would be hurt by pricing pressure in Asia and other developing markets as well as higher spending on research and development. This turn of events no doubt contributed to Domino management’s decision to look for a buyer or partner with deep pockets. That the deal (finalized in June 2015) went through is not surprising, though some observers, including this one, were surprised at the price, which at just over one billion pounds (about $ 1.6 billion, give or take a million or two) is 23 times Domino’s 2014 net earnings.
Konica Minolta is another Japanese giant which has recently jumped on the narrow web digital press bandwagon. Known worldwide for its production print systems, industrial inkjet, textile printers, binoculars and you name it, Konica will be using Labelexpo Europe to present its toner-based digital label press. For US markets Konica will partner with Anderson & Vreeland to launch the press, but there seems to be no similar partnership (yet) in Europe and sales will be handled by Konica’s German subsidiary. Yet another Japanese manufacturer is Shiki Machine Supply Corp., which is making a comeback in Europe with PICO-JET, a new digital inkjet label press with UV LED curing, and said to operate at speeds up to 50 m/minute. So far just three of these presses have been installed in Europe: one in Spain and two in Russia.
To round off the story of Japan’s embrace of European label markets, we must not forget Iwasaki and Sanki, nether of them offering digital presses, but both active in Europe. These manufacturers both make semi-rotary letterpress machines which are apparently selling well in emerging markets but may seem anachronous to many European label converters. Iwasaki will exhibit at Labelexpo Europe later this year.
Italy’s Gidue is seldom out of the news, but its acquisition by Swiss-based Bobst, announced in May of this year, caught most observers by surprise. Since its rapid recovery from near-catastrophe some six years ago, Nuova Gidue seems to have been selling its Combat flexo label presses hand over fist. Shortly before the publication of Bobst’s acquisition of 65% of Gidue, the Italian company announced sales results in 2014 19% higher than the previous year, with a €31 million turnover and over 11% positive EBITDA. This acquisition will give Bobst access to the label machinery market, which will nicely complement its existing strengths in all kinds of package printing and converting equipment. It is not quite so clear what is in it for Gidue’s owner-manager Federico d’Annunzio, except that he will be staying on as CEO.
Anyone for Porto?
Readers of this column may recall that last month’s edition brought readers up to date on Serbia. This month we touch on another country that seems to shun the limelight of the label world: Portugal. Now recovering well after a nasty bout of fever during the financial crisis from 2009-2013, Portugal is a small but beautiful country whose main export, until recently, was people. Today it can boast two companies in the label field, both exporting strongly. One is Sistrade, which develops software solutions specifically tailored to the needs of label and packaging converters. The other is Lemoreau, which makes narrow web die cutters and inspection / slitter-rewinders. Until recently Lemoreau was virtually unknown outside of Portugal, but now exports to 28 countries. Recent sales successes have been to label converters in Italy, Romania and Morocco. Both Sistrade and Lemoreau can be found within a stone’s throw of Porto, but if you haven’t time to make the trip, you can see them both at Labelexpo Europe.
Recycling: the wrong answer
Your correspondent recently visited a label converter near Orléans, France. The plant is a modern one, in a brand new building and with the latest in both conventional and digital presses. Everything very impressive, until we came to talk of waste recycling. The CEO took up the tale: “We have a contract with (he named a major recycling company) and they provided three skips for selective recycling. We sorted everything with immense care, but when the truck came, the man just emptied everything together. When I questioned him, he said, ‘Don’t worry, we have plenty of people to sort it again.’ And then people complain that label converters aren’t doing their bit to help the environment!”
Fast presses, fast felines
It may not have made it into the US news, but a man was recently killed by a tiger which escaped from a flooded zoo in Georgia (our Georgia, not yours). Belgium is not Georgia, but zookeepers at Planckendael Zoo in Belgium were taking no risks when Xeikon, one of the zoo’s sponsors, introduced its “Cheetah” label press to another cheetah. Pocco was safely behind bars but looking sleek and powerful. With a speed of 30 m/minute (98 fpm) the Cheetah (the Xeikon one, not Pocco) is reported as being half as fast again as the next best press in the Xeikon stable. “We are already doing more than 50% of our sales in the label printing industry,” said Xeikon CEO Wim Maes, “And Xeikon is growing twice as fast as the market. What’s more, most of the machines we are selling are for new customers.” This new digital press, using Xeikon’s dry toner technology, is now being beta-tested at five sites in different countries. Maes also took the opportunity to announce that Xeikon would be launching several innovations at Labelexpo, including two new silver toners.
The Land of the Rising Yen
Here are two facts for you to put together. In 1853, as every American schoolboy learns, Commodore Matthew Perry sailed into Tokyo Bay and intimated to the Japanese that trading with America would be most beneficial to them (and that a refusal could seriously damage their health). Now look back just ten years, to Labelexpo Europe 2005, and you’ll find that the only Japanese manufacturers at the show were Ko-Pack (remember Ko-Pack?), Iwasaki and Toyobo. Compare that with the situation today when Japanese label press and equipment makers are pullulating in European waters, particularly in the digital field. And none seems to be pullulating faster than Epson. Seico Epson is among the biggest electronics companies in the world, and may well have made the watch on your wrist. A newcomer to the narrow web printing field, Epson has over the past five years made a name for itself with its mid-range digital inkjet presses. In France alone, Epson has delivered 17 with another five on order, according to Sales Manager François Lebas. When your correspondent joined him at label converter DB Technique to see one of the Epson presses in action, CEO Dominique Bourin explained his company’s business strategy. “We are particularly strong in screen printing, with some flexo, and our specialty is in low volume, complex labels and other products.” That is something of an understatement. DB Technique makes dashboard labels for many different automobile subcontractors, also individualized one-off labels for hospital beds (hence the need for a digital press), as well as short-run labels for top-of-the-range perfumes by Chanel, Dior and Guerlain, among others. A recent award-winning series of labels was made for Hermès: for this DB Technique used both screen and digital printing to make back and front labels which are laminated together, the back label being visible through the product. “This line of labels is expensive,” admits Bourin. “But then you should see the price of the product.” Look out for it next time you pass a duty-free shop.
Another Japanese press manufacturer recently entering the European label business is Screen, notably with its digital inkjet Truepress Jet L350UV. The manufacturer’s latest success is in Italy, where by coincidence its customer is also called Screen. In 2010, Screen srl, a label converter close to Milan, installed a Tau 330 press from Italian manufacturer Durst. When the time came to look at new equipment, Screen srl’s boss Stefano Rossetti visited Dainippon Screen’s demo center in Holland and decided to be a pioneer by buying the first Truepress in Italy. According to Rossetti, the new press, with its width of 12.6" and speed of 150 fpm, has doubled the company’s productive capacity.
Citizen Systems is another Japanese giant mainly known for its watches but increasingly present with its label printers. These printers are (for the moment) all black-and-white desktop models aimed mainly at the industrial market (warehouse labels, production line labels,). But who knows what surprises they might have up their kimono sleeves.
Brother can you spare a billion?
While some Japanese companies are developing their own European sales network for the label business, others have gone down the acquisition road. Even by Japanese big-business standards, Brother, with sales of over $5 billion, is no minnow, and even by more modest European standards Domino is at best a medium-sized fish with annual sales of £350 million. Domino, based in Cambridge, UK, was an early developer of DoD inkjet printing), and in 2013 launched its N600i digital inkjet label press which has had considerable success, enough to whet big Brother’s appetite. Domino is a profitable company, but in June 2014 it issued a profit warning, saying that its 2015 results would be hurt by pricing pressure in Asia and other developing markets as well as higher spending on research and development. This turn of events no doubt contributed to Domino management’s decision to look for a buyer or partner with deep pockets. That the deal (finalized in June 2015) went through is not surprising, though some observers, including this one, were surprised at the price, which at just over one billion pounds (about $ 1.6 billion, give or take a million or two) is 23 times Domino’s 2014 net earnings.
Konica Minolta is another Japanese giant which has recently jumped on the narrow web digital press bandwagon. Known worldwide for its production print systems, industrial inkjet, textile printers, binoculars and you name it, Konica will be using Labelexpo Europe to present its toner-based digital label press. For US markets Konica will partner with Anderson & Vreeland to launch the press, but there seems to be no similar partnership (yet) in Europe and sales will be handled by Konica’s German subsidiary. Yet another Japanese manufacturer is Shiki Machine Supply Corp., which is making a comeback in Europe with PICO-JET, a new digital inkjet label press with UV LED curing, and said to operate at speeds up to 50 m/minute. So far just three of these presses have been installed in Europe: one in Spain and two in Russia.
To round off the story of Japan’s embrace of European label markets, we must not forget Iwasaki and Sanki, nether of them offering digital presses, but both active in Europe. These manufacturers both make semi-rotary letterpress machines which are apparently selling well in emerging markets but may seem anachronous to many European label converters. Iwasaki will exhibit at Labelexpo Europe later this year.
Italy’s Gidue is seldom out of the news, but its acquisition by Swiss-based Bobst, announced in May of this year, caught most observers by surprise. Since its rapid recovery from near-catastrophe some six years ago, Nuova Gidue seems to have been selling its Combat flexo label presses hand over fist. Shortly before the publication of Bobst’s acquisition of 65% of Gidue, the Italian company announced sales results in 2014 19% higher than the previous year, with a €31 million turnover and over 11% positive EBITDA. This acquisition will give Bobst access to the label machinery market, which will nicely complement its existing strengths in all kinds of package printing and converting equipment. It is not quite so clear what is in it for Gidue’s owner-manager Federico d’Annunzio, except that he will be staying on as CEO.
Anyone for Porto?
Readers of this column may recall that last month’s edition brought readers up to date on Serbia. This month we touch on another country that seems to shun the limelight of the label world: Portugal. Now recovering well after a nasty bout of fever during the financial crisis from 2009-2013, Portugal is a small but beautiful country whose main export, until recently, was people. Today it can boast two companies in the label field, both exporting strongly. One is Sistrade, which develops software solutions specifically tailored to the needs of label and packaging converters. The other is Lemoreau, which makes narrow web die cutters and inspection / slitter-rewinders. Until recently Lemoreau was virtually unknown outside of Portugal, but now exports to 28 countries. Recent sales successes have been to label converters in Italy, Romania and Morocco. Both Sistrade and Lemoreau can be found within a stone’s throw of Porto, but if you haven’t time to make the trip, you can see them both at Labelexpo Europe.