French self-adhesive label converter Impackt Etiquettes is meeting the growing demand for short-run and no-label look solutions for food, beverage and pharmaceutical brands after investing in a seven-color SPGPrints DSI (Digital System Integration) digital UV inkjet press with inline converting equipment. Installed in 2015, the 330mm-wide press complements two six-color flexo presses at its purpose-built 1800m² premises. 

Impackt Etiquettes recognized that digital printing was necessary for responding to “just-in-time” delivery requests at short notice and for supplying artisan businesses targeting niche markets cost-effectively. Furthermore, the company preferred a UV inkjet solution, with its excellent opacity on plastic substrates. This enables the company to offer transparent labels to luxury goods manufacturers.

“After seeing the trials and samples, it was clear that the DSI press, with its 4,000-meter roll capacity, could deliver both the high quality and productivity, especially on transparent substrates,” explains Michel Potelle, Impackt Etiquettes’ managing director. “We were impressed with the high specification and robust, industrial build that gave the stability at fast speeds, and excellent results on transparent films.”

Impackt’s DSI press features the standard CMYK process colors, plus the optional orange, violet, to achieve 90% of the Pantone Color gamut, and opaque white.

The press’ other standard features include intermittent LED-pinning between printing stations to assure a stable laydown of inks at speeds of up to 115 fpm (35 m/m), and a chiller to prevent plastic materials from deforming. Impackt’s press also includes a flexo coating unit, cold foiling and a semi-rotary diecutter inline.

Since the installation of the DSI press in 2015, Impackt has won significant business for work relating to no-label looks. The opaque white’s 93% optical density has helped Impackt Etiquettes assure high quality for these applications. The no-label look accounts for at least 80% of spirits labels on the press, while opaque white jobs feature on 35% of all digital labels. 

Potelle attributes the success in this niche, for both luxury brands and industrial markets, to the performance of the inks. “SPGPrints’ UV inks give us a level of color, depth and opacity that is equivalent to screen process, providing an effective block that stops the color of the container contents from modifying the label graphics, especially on clear-on-clear applications.”

Due to the ink opacity achieved on the DSI, Impackt has convinced some brand owners to switch from direct printing on to the container via screen process, to using digitally printed labels instead. These customers are benefiting from shorter lead times and significant savings, as the need to store glass bottles in advance is eliminated. 

Also, durability is a critical issue for chemical applications, where the label must resist harsh conditions, ranging from sunlight to corrosive materials. With SPGPrints’ UV inks, Impackt can assure up to two years’ outdoor performance.

Production runs on the DSI range from 100 to approximately four million labels. The shortest of these are digital samples for clients in the food and beverage sectors. Running one 10-hour shift per day, the DSI is responsible for about 15% of overall turnover – a figure that is expected to grow.     

“The DSI gives us a controlled, single-pass solution for meeting quality requirements without the risk of error. We believe we have one of the most advanced digital UV inkjet presses in northern Europe, in terms of productivity and application possibilities,” says Potelle.