EyeC expands operations into Benelux

In line with the continued success of the Proofiler off-line print proofing system, EyeC GmbH is expanding its sales and support operations into the Benelux countries (Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg).

Managing director Ansgar Kaupp stated that opening an office in Hengelo was an important step to EyeC’s expansion. ‘In addition to our new head office in Hamburg, we now have offices or partnerships in USA and Japan and representation in several other countries. Although the primary focus of our Proofiler range has been the companies printing pharmaceutical materials – folding cartons, labels and patient information leaflets, we are now seeing other areas of the print industry that can benefit from using our products as part of their quality control. These include high-end brand printers for example perfumes and cosmetics – where the quality demands of the package and labels are very high – and large volume label printers where the potential for errors and product mixing can be high.’

Erik Hoving who has been appointed to run EyeC’s sales operations in the region, commented: ‘What sets the Proofiler apart from other systems is (a) the simplicity of operation and (b) its object-based image processing means it finds real errors rather than small shifts in registration or minor squeezing of characters that can occur in any flexographic printing process. Being GAMP and 21CRF Part 11 compliant is another key benefit within the pharmaceutical world.’

Hoving added: ‘EC Directive on Braille marking on pharmaceutical packages, introduced last October, has put new demands on carton printers. Embossing the Braille is one issue but checking it is almost impossible without a system with the capabilities of the EyeC Proofiler.’

Traditional proofing methods have relied upon inspectors using transparent overlays to look for missing ink, filled in letters, stains resulting from defective plates etc. This is very time consuming, is subjective and does not automatically provide a report; foreign languages and different alphabets make the task even more difficult. The Proofiler automatically compares a stored PDF or archived master file to the scanned sample. The operator is asked to make a decision on the severity of the errors found and a report showing enlarged images of the defects is generated automatically.

Summing up his thoughts on his new appointment, Hoving commented: ‘I have worked with industrial machine vision for 14 years and the Proofiler is a product we have dreamed about. There is a very clear need for this product and I am proud to be involved in its introduction in the Benelux area.’