Labelwerk installs first Xeikon 3030 REX in Germany

The machine was installed at the beginning of April 2021 and is the first of its type in Germany. The Xeikon REX portfolio comprises a range of remanufactured Xeikon presses, providing an attractive and more affordable option for printers looking to expand their businesses with the addition of digital applications.

Labelwerk is an owner-managed business currently employing 18 staff. Its focus is on self-adhesive labels for the pharmaceutical, automotive, and manufacturing businesses from Germany, as well as in other European countries. 

The Xeikon 3030 REX is a full-color digital printing press, including opaque white ink, with a resolution of 1,200 DPI and X-800 digital front end, which can be integrated with an existing MIS system.

Before acquiring its Xeikon 3030 REX digital press, Labelwerk’s production portfolio consisted of five offset presses primarily used for book printing and two heatset web presses, and a somewhat outdated monochrome laser printing press for barcodes, which was sufficient to meet customer demand at the time. 

‘For many years, the focus of technical pharmaceutical labels was on the accurate reproduction of medical information. These labels have now become ‘colorful’, meaning that they involve color effects and graphical content,’ said Jens Hermann, managing director of Labelwerk. ‘At the same time, there is now increasing demand for shorter runs with frequently changing images and different language versions.

‘To be honest, we resisted going down the digital color route for a long time because of concerns about cost and quality issues. However, digital printing technologies, in general, have made tremendous progress. In particular, Xeikon's proposal for us to purchase a remanufactured press for a fraction of the cost of a new one tipped the balance for us. Compared to other digital printing press providers, Xeikon offered the best overall package.’ 

According to Hermann, label orders of up to about 400 sqm can be produced more profitably on the new Xeikon 3030 REX than on a book printing offset press, as the costs associated with traditional pre-press, such as plates and makeready, are not incurred – the order is simply sent to the press at the touch of a button. Another benefit, according to Hermann, is the sharpness and definition of fine black text on transparent film.

‘For a business on this scale, getting into digital printing can be an enormous financial effort. Xeikon introduced the REX portfolio of remanufactured presses in order to enable small and medium-sized printing businesses like us to get into the profitable and growing digital printing market, without the major investment expense previously required,’ commented Jürgen Zeußel, sales manager for label and packaging in Germany at Flint Group Digital.