Omet makes move into packaging – online exclusive

In this exclusive Q&A, Omet sales and marketing director Marco Calcagni explains the rationale behind its new press, as detailed here, and Omet’s strategic decision to move into package printing.

Labels & Labeling (L&L): How does Omet see the market for web offset flexible package printing growing? Do you see lots of potential with existing customers?

Marco Calcagni (MC): The flexible packaging market keeps growing, and in particular we've noticed a strong increase in demand for hybrid-printed products, which require both high quality performances, as provided by offset technology, and high density printing, which is a standard characteristic of flexo. Both these crucial requirements can be fully satisfied through Omet’s flexo-offset hybrid technology. Another tendency is to use solvents less and less, for health reasons, and we are able to satisfy this important necessity by using food compliant offset UV inks and EB curing. We see high potential in our new Varyflex V2 Offset especially for customers still using gravure technology, which normally requires a high quantity of solvent inks and is not able to satisfy short runs due to high costs. Offset printing technology guarantees high quality through efficiency and low equipment costs. 

L&L: Which printers and converters is the press targeted at, and where is Omet predicting to see the largest amount of interest in this press? Will it be from traditional package printers or from the likes of label printers looking to move into new markets?

MC: This press can target various sectors, in particular flexible packaging, either for food or not, and all those IML labels which today are still printed on sheet-fed offset presses. Moreover offset would be convenient also with short runs, thanks to the lower cost of the printing plates compared to flexo polymer and to gravure cylinders. There will be of course flexible packaging converters aiming at widening their market range, as well as potential label printers moving towards this technology and also sheet fed printers which have generally a lot of experience in offset printing and want to enter the packaging market.

L&L: What are the key technical features of the Varyflex V2 Offset 850?

MC: First of all Varyflex V2 Offset is one of the few machines in the world able to combine and integrate all printing technologies in-line and even change their position depending on the necessity. The offset unit recently developed by our R&D department has an innovative ink system with high-precision ink duct for automatic ink control, which reduces set-up time and waste. A patented pressure control system which guarantees the perfect stability of colors in acceleration and deceleration. Last but not the least is the possibility to print on a wide range of substrates, from thin film to carton, just by changing electronic parameters from the operator pane in one touch.

L&L: What specific benefits does the integration of an in-line flexo unit provide?

MC: The combination of different technologies provides benefits especially with specific jobs. Being able to combine offset and flexo enables the printer to take advantage of the peculiarities of each technology and merge them to confer higher value to the final product.

L&L: Why has Omet chosen EB as the curing option for the Varyflex V2 Offset 850? Are other curing types available as options?

MC: Omet's press is ready to print either in wet-on-dry mode by installing inter-deck UV curing systems, or in wet-on-wet mode, through UV or EB curing system at the end of the line, which enables absolute flexibility. We chose electron beam because we believe that packaging curing quality needs to be fully guaranteed  especially for complex jobs with high coverage colors, but more importantly, food packaging safety is essential and must be safeguarded.

L&L: How does the Varyflex V2 Offset 850 compete and challenge gravure and CI flexo in the mid web flexible packaging market?

MC: Varyflex V2 Offset can compete in this market with no doubt because runs have been shortening and costs of gravure and CI flexo equipment are much higher, in addition to their limitations in terms of process and configuration flexibility. In fact CI flexo reaches 8-10 colors max, whereas the need for job diversification requires more than 10 colors. There are definitely a few very interesting market niches ready to give big chances to this new press.

 Varyflex V2 Offset 850 will be shown on the Omet stand (D90) in hall 3 at drupa 2016.

Read L&L’s preview of label and package printing and converting technology to see at drupa in issue 2, 2016