Omet wins FTA 2008 Innovation Award

Italian press manufacturer Omet was a 'clear winner' of the 2008 Innovation Award according to the FTA, which presented the trophy on Sunday April 27 in Dallas, Texas.

The company had submitted its new X-Flex narrow web press line in the FTA Innovation Category and the judges were impressed with the design that offers ‘unmatched production flexibility, efficiency, and the capability of handling a range of products from film labels to multi web jobs’.

The X-Flex, which was launched at Labelexpo Europe 2007 in September, will handle substrates from 12-micron unsupported film to 250-micron carton board, and offers a major reduction in set-up times and waste levels, thanks to its short web path. The first X-Flex machines are now being shipped to customers who see it as ‘a new benchmark in narrow web technology’, according to Omet’s sales director Marco Calcagni.

Among its features are: Vision-1 fully automated pre-register and press control for improved print quality with reduced waste; the design of flexo print unit, which combines impression roll and chill drum for better print quality at all speeds, and optimized tension control for filmic substrates.

Accepting the award, Omet’s president Angelo Bartesaghi said: ‘Our customers tell us that the X-Flex is the best solution in today’s label printing market after carrying out comparative print tests with rival machines.’

One of the X-Flex’s key advantages is the way it can make fast format changes that reduce expensive stoppages and cut down on substrate waste. With label converters under increasing price pressure, these are the criteria by which a company’s performance and competitiveness are measured. ‘They also leave the press operator to concentrate on printing, in the knowledge that the machine will do the rest,’ concluded Calcagni.

Pictured: Omet’s president Angelo Bartesaghi holds the 2008 FTA Innovation Award at the recent event in Dallas, Texas