BPIF Labels AGM visits electronic printing facility

In February BPIF Labels held its AGM at the offices of CPI (Centre for Process Innovation Limited) in Sedgefield. In total 20 label converters and suppliers attended.

Reviewing the last 12 months, BPIF Labels chairman John Bambery said, ‘We have held two well supported technical seminars and published a definitive Good Manufacturing Guide for the printing of labels and related packaging for the food, drinks and sensitive products sectors. This guide sought to address the issues surrounding ink migration. For the coming year there will be two technical seminars which will be incorporated with the two annual golf days.’

The first seminar will have a conventional print bias and be held at Breadsall Priory, Derbyshire on 21^st and 22^nd May.  The second seminar which will have a digital printing theme will be held at The Forest of Arden, Warwickshire on 8^th and 9^th October. In addition work will start on two more Good Manufacturing Guides. One will tackle the issue of Waste Management and the other label specifications. Representatives from both sides of industry will be chosen to help draft these guides which it is hoped will be published in early 2014.

Following on from the AGM the group were informed about the services that CPI have to offer (see L&L6 2012).  An outline was presented by Alan McClelland commercial manager followed by a detailed presentation of the type of products that CPI has been prototyping, by Neil Porter, ISS technical print manager.  A practical example of what has been achieved was then given by Richard Price of Pragmatics.  Full details of all these presentations are available on the BPIF labels web site www.bpiflabels.org.uk

As regular L&L readers will be aware, the facility features a Nilpeter 6-color 330mm wide press fitted out with UV flexo, gravure, silk screen and litho print heads plus a DEK 248 lineo pick and place machine. CPI was anxious to keep industry informed of the prototyping that is being developed and the production samples that are being produced. They need to know what companies would be prepared to take any of these developments to full production. John Bambery agreed that BPIF labels would become a clearing house and keep a record of those companies who were willing to become involved in this process.

‘It would appear that this facility is keeping the UK firmly ahead in the area of printed electronics and some of the possibilities shown were really inspirational,’ said John Bambery. Contact john.bambery@bpiflabels.org.uk for further details.