Reflex Label Plus has acquired a new 14-color FA flexo press from Nilpeter, for its Keighley site in England, to meet customer demands for unique designs, high quality and embellishments, and achieve ambitious business expansion goals.

Initial thoughts – “shelf appeal and wow factor”
"The label sells the product. In this ever-growing market, there are more and more craft breweries and distilleries, all looking for shelf appeal, wow factor, and differentiation from competitors. At the same time, labels are getting very complicated, and the use of multiple print processes is often necessary to meet customer demands with regards to unique designs, high quality and embellishments,” says Shaun Hanson, Operations Manager, Reflex Label Plus.

“Although our existing press bank is quite comprehensive, there are limits, and we want to future-proof with this new investment – by having many print processes combined to produce complicated labels in one single pass. And also adding additional capacity to cope with our ambitious expansion targets,” he continues.

“Our challenges relate to how many different embellishments we can do in one pass. The new press will alleviate these issues, and save us a lot of time. We are looking to expand this exciting business through innovation – our customers want labels that make their products stand out, and this new investment will enable us to meet and exceed those expectations,” Shaun Hanson explains.

Reflex Label Plus’ new FA is a 14-color press, with 10 flexo printing units, two hot foil/embossing units, cold foil, and two fully independent RSI screens. The press will primarily be used for high-end beverage labels, craft beers, wine, spirits, cosmetics, and high-end combination labels. Installation has been planned for April.

The new FA is the most versatile flexo press on the market – designed to accommodate the printer’s ever-growing needs, and built around the modern print operator, with an intuitive user interface and fully mobile print controls. The FA allows printers to enhance the performance of their press with Value-Adding Units, Application and Automation Packages, according to application needs and budget. All main components are manufactured in-house at Nilpeter, meaning higher production quality and control.

Opportunities in high-end label production
“Our new press will be the sixth Nilpeter press on this site over 20 years. Reflex Label Plus went on an extensive tour of Europe, looking at press manufacturers, print shops, and processes. Important decision factors in acquiring another Nilpeter press was build quality, first and foremost, but also technical ability, know-how in single-pass printing and combining different print processes,” Shaun Hanson explains.

“Another big factor was support and service, not just from the parent company, but local "feet on the ground" – Nilpeter is the only company to offer 24/7/365 service and support, and they have skilled engineers living locally, frankly ticking all our boxes,” he continues.

“This FA press represents a major investment and a big vote of confidence in the Keighley site, which was acquired by Reflex in 2015. This press will give us both opportunity and capacity for rapid growth in high-end label production,” he concludes.

Group CEO happy to invest
Reflex Group CEO, Ian Kendall, added, “we are delighted to be investing yet again in Shaun and his team. This machine is not only about giving our customers more of what they currently want; it’s also about anticipating future market requirements in advance. We are totally focused on efficiency in our business, and this machine is going to help use materials more effectively.”