Andy Thomas: Laser cut

While perhaps not considered as a key investment in the past, laser die-cutting is now starting to become of greater interest for the potential benefits and opportunities it can offer to both converters and their customers. There are also more laser cutting equipment companies entering the market, so widening the choice of investment and equipment.

Laser die cutting will certainly not obsolete conventional die cutting, but rather complements it, and surely has a key role to play in the future of short run, on-demand digital label converting.

To aid converters in understanding these latest developments in laser cutting technology and requirements, the opportunities it can offer, how it works and the quality of the finished die-cut results, Labelexpo Americas will be running a series of four different laser die-cutting technology workshops each day of the show – one for prime labels, one for industrial labels, one for blank die-cut computer-over-printable labels, and one for special label solutions.

This is a true industry-wide effort. Four leading laser die-cutting equipment suppliers are participating in these technology workshop sessions: ABG International, Delta International, SEI Spa and Spartanics. Pre-printed labels for cutting at the show – with all the necessary re-registration eye marks and codes – are being produced by Xeikon, EFI Jetrion and Mark Andy, with MIS input from CERM and EFI Radius. Origination for the label designs has been undertaken by Esko.  Labels materials are provided by UPM Raflatac, Flexcon and Green Bay Packaging.

Previous visitors to Labelexpo technology workshops will know that these events present a great opportunity to ask questions in an open forum and to see the results of different machinery and software approaches at close quarters.

It will be fascinating to see how far the technology has progressed since I saw my first laser die cut system at Labelexpo over a decade ago.

Andy Thomas
Group managing editor
Labels & Labeling