Antilope gets to grips with Highcon

An award-winning carton has helped ratify the Belgian firm's decision to become an early adopter of the Highcon Euclid system. David Pittman reports

Highcon could hardly have wished for a greater start for its Euclid digital cutting and creasing system.

The machine was launched at Drupa 2012, and drew big crowds on the Highcon stand in hall 4. This was positioned close to the HP and Scodix stands, which themselves were crowd pleasers with the launch of the HP Indigo 10000, 20000 and 30000 digital presses for the commercial, flexible packaging and folding carton markets respectively, and demonstrations of Scodix's image enhancement techniques.

Earlier this year, the first early adopters of the Euclid digital cutting and creasing system were announced, with the UK's Glossop Cartons and Belgium's Antilope signing up to take the first units.

Glossop Cartons used the Euclid to make a splash at Packaging Innovations in Birmingham in late February, and will transfer its Packaging Superheroes theme to Packaging Innovations in London on October 1-2. The Birmingham show was Glossop's first exhibition presence and was reported as a success by the UK converter.

Award-winning die-cutting

Now Antilope Cardboard, the specialist business unit of the wider Antilope Printing group that offers design, printing and finishing of cartonboard,  has moved the story forward again by winning a Pro Carton/ECMA Award for packaging converted using the Highcon. The Mylène carton came top in the beauty and cosmetics category, and Marc Binnemans (pictured, below left with Highcon's Aviv Ratzman), chief executive officer (CEO) of Antilope, was still glowing when he hosted a group to see the Euclid in action at the Antilope facility in Lier, Belgium. This took place less than a week after the Mylène packaging, Box Femme Fatale eau de parfum as per the award entry, was named as a winner, and saw him pronounce: ‘I think this is the first time a winner has been chosen because of the value added to the packaging, the simplicity of the design and the uniqueness.’

Antilope used Sappi’s Algro Design as the base material for the carton.

The comment from the Pro Carton/ECMA Award jury states: ‘The appeal of this carton in the judge’s opinion was all about the intricate and very accurate cutting that had been achieved using a laser cutter. They were interested to note that the shape and the printing was relatively simple but that the look and appeal of the carton was enhanced substantially by the clever design and skill used in creating the very fine cut sections of the box.

‘Once again the feel of the carton was different and in the beauty and cosmetics sector, emotional appeal to the consumer is just as important as the initial visual appeal.’

The carton features a fine and intricate die-cut floral pattern, which extends across three of the four panels, including across a crease line. Linda Corremans, director of Antilope Cartonboard, says: ‘Mylène wanted the current Femme Fatale packaging to be upgraded. For a state-of-the-art company such as Mylène it is vital for cosmetic products to stand out from all the rest.

‘Hence the crucial need for “out of the box thinking".’

A proud parent

Highcon itself is understandably delighted to have had its technology be central to an award-winning carton, with CEO and co-founder Aviv Ratzman saying: ‘To have won such a prestigious award is amazing. It is like watching your baby grow up and become an adult.

'It is also pleasing that our early customers are already using the system to such great effect. Our customers are the ones that show us the true potential, as they are the ones that produce the work, which in this case was at an award-winning level.'

The Mylène carton was at the center of Antilope's presentation of the Euclid in the days following the 2013 ECMA Congress, where the award was presented. Antilope operator Nabil Benaissa (pictured, left) showed the full workings of the unit to a mix of media and industry figures, from the substrate delivery and transport system, to the Highcon DART polymer being written onto a DART foil (pictured, below) to produce high-quality creasing rules on-press and the laser cutting used to create the intricate pattern on the box that was so integral to helping it win the award.

Outside the box

Antilope has history when it comes to making investments in new technology and being at the cutting edge of the print industry with regards to digital. This includes the installation of Xeikon press in 1993, which Binnemans says made it the world's first digital printer.

A bold statement perhaps, but one he is comfortable making, especially given it also now one of the first printers to install the Euclid. And this comes less than a decade after it added carton printing to its portfolio. This happened in 2006, and has already risen to account for 27 percent of its revenue. This will grow further says Binnemans, who has hopes to see it reach 50 percent due to the continued decline in offset commercial printing.

He says: ‘We want to invest in the latest technology because we want to lead the market, want to make use of windows of opportunity and claim a temporary monopoly by using technology others aren’t yet, so differentiating our offering.

‘As we invested in digital technology more than two decades ago, it is in our blood, so we knew about the issues when it comes to converting digitally printed products using analog processes, so when we found out about the Euclid we were very interested.

‘I was first introduced to Highcon in 2011, then saw them again at Drupa 2012. We then visited the Plantin site and carried out a SWOT analysis, before commissioning and commercializing the unit this summer.’

Binnemans concludes: ‘We are keen to think outside of the box and be creative, allowing us to target new markets and opportunities and find new ways of working. The Highcon Euclid offers this to us.’

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