Insignis proves Labelfire digital embellishment unit

Just under 18 months after its installation of a Gallus Labelfire 340 hybrid press, Austrian label converter Insignis co-hosted an open house at its Vienna facility with the Swiss press manufacturer. The two companies have collaborated closely on the project, with Insignis providing development advice and serving as a showcase facility for Gallus. 
L-R: Erwin Pudek, Insignis; Ferdinand Rüesch, Gallus; Silvia Spatt, Heidelberg; Uwe Alexander, Gallus

The press features the full configuration of available options: cold foil, flexo unit, Heidelberg Digital Print Unit (DPU), as well as a Digital Embellishment Unit (DEU) for in-line finishing. The system has been augmented with the addition of rotary screen printing, which can be positioned upstream or downstream of the print engine. 

‘Printing a fully embellished die-cut label digitally at 50 meters per minute is a real USP for us as a service provider. Even metallic relief effects with haptic properties are possible,’ enthused Erwin Pudek, managing director of Insignis. ‘The years of experience Gallus has with conventional printing units is an added bonus. The Gallus Labelfire reliably combines flexo printing, screen printing, die-cutting, and varnishing with eight-color inkjet printing – all in a single system.

‘With this machine, we are becoming extremely flexible whilst obtaining top quality. The expanded color gamut with seven printing inks (CMYK + GOV) and digital white enables us to cover 96 percent of the Pantone color space and, with a physical resolution of 1200 DPI, we achieve offset quality, sometimes even beyond. That is absolute top class.’

‘The versatile Gallus Labelfire can s‘‘produce more than just adhesive labels, though. Examples of other products include sachet foils, banderoles, tickets, and even magazine covers. We’re no longer looking to go with the flow, but rather to swim against the tide and generate added value by using the equipment we’ve invested in to help us stand out from the crowd.’

Versatile 
Ferdinand Hager, managing partner of Insignis, said: ‘The Gallus Labelfire is incredibly versatile. The Digital Embellishment Unit in particular enables us to achieve effects that were previously inconceivable and produce new applications that customers are willing to pay for. We’ve also succeeded in attracting new customers and recently won a Finat award for our Frizzante label for a local vineyard, which further underlines our innovative credentials.’ 

The Finat award came in the ‘Label printing processes – Combination printing’ category. The winning Frizzante self-adhesive label, printed for local winery Weingut PayerPayer, was printed on the Gallus Labelfire. First, a Micro Glitter cold foil Silver was applied in a color gradient from 0-100 percent. Then it was digitally printed in the Heidelberg Digital Print Unit (DPU) before varnishing in the flexo printing unit took place. Here an overall soft touch lacquer was applied. Afterwards partial relief lacquer was applied digitally, again in the Digital Embellishment Unit (DEU).

Prior to the installation in February last year, Insignis restructured its operations through the establishment of two independent business units, InsignisEtiketten and Insignis Digital – the latter housing the Gallus Labelfire. With 55 employees, Insignis serves the food, beverage, wine, cosmetics, chemical, pharmaceutical and technological sectors. Its Vienna factory houses flexo, offset, letterpress, screen, toner-based digital and inkjet printing capabilities. 

Christof Naier, head of the label business unit at Gallus, said: ‘One year on, we are happy with how things are going at Insignis. The Gallus Labelfire hybrid press and the Digital Embellishment Unit are the perfect combination for the current demands of the label market.’

James Quirk

James Quirk

  • Latin America Correspondent