More than 250 label industry professionals took part in the "Omet Hybrid Experience," an open house event dedicated to the opportunities provided by hybrid printing technology in the label industry. Held on January 24 and 25, 2019 at the new Omet Drome, the event was enriched by technical presentations, live demos and visits to the Omet production sites. A gala dinner at the beautiful lake-view location attracted a great number of participants.

Highlighting the event were live demonstrations of the hybrid Omet XJet powered by Durst, which displayed the machine's performance in terms of technology, flexibility, productivity and infinite customization possibilities. Another featured demo was of the Omet iFlex, presented with hybrid curing configuration: UV and LED printing simultaneously. According to Massimo Belingardi of Omet's marketing team, the two machines were touted for their "amazing production jobs, appreciated for their real complexities, and of course for the printed quality results."

Technical presentations were dedicated to the future of label printing. Paolo Grasso, Omet's Head of Sales - Labels Business Unit, spoke about the advantages of digital + flexo hybrid printing technology proposed by Omet in collaboration with Durst, and those offered by flexo with UV-LED printing shown on iFlex.

Sergio Veneziani of Italian labelstock supplier Ritrama introduced the partnership between Omet and Ritrama for a new laminating module to produce linerless labels: an innovative clear-on-clear PS label engineered to be transformed into a laminated but linerless construction, ready to be dispensed. He explained how this innovation allows significant improvements in terms of efficiency and sustainability for the printing industry and brand owners.

Martin Leitner of Durst explained the potential and opportunities digital presents. He said, "For a printer, moving towards digital inkjet or hybrid technology is not just a matter of buying a new machine, but the beginning of a transformation in the business model itself. Durst and Omet offer a solid base of skills essential for this evolution."

Francesco Niorettini of Italgrafica Sistemi spoke about his personal case history, being the first Italian XJet user. He said, "Our challenge is to go for bigger volumes through hybrid-digital. The Omet XJet is the solution that made me possible to break through old barriers of very low figures.  Being able to combine the best of Omet's and Durst’s worlds, made my investment in innovation a game-changer that allows Italgrafica raising the bar in the industry."

Omet says credit for the success of this open house is to be shared with the main 15 sponsors who actively participated to the event: Apex, Asahi, Avery Dennison, Control Technique (Nidec Group), Erhardt + Leimer, GEW, Kurz, Italfinance, Ritrama, Rossini, Rotometrics. Swedev, Tesa, Vetaphone and Zeller + Gmelin.