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Carmina Pinto · General Manager · Flexografica · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Jean Lloyd from Inkish speaks with Kamina Pinto from Flexographica at LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona. Kamina explains that Flexographica is based in Guatemala and has been in business for 28 years, primarily as a flexo label printer. However, in recent years, they have also started producing small-quantity stand-up pouches and adopted digital printing about 14 years ago. The company handles a mix of large flexo orders and many small digital ones to meet the diverse needs of its customers, focusing on delivering consistent high quality at competitive prices. She says she is at LabelExpo to explore new technologies, particularly inkjet, which she sees as offering more vivid colors and potential differentiation compared to other digital systems. In Guatemala, she notes, there has not been much investment in new digital technologies, and Flexographica aims to be the first mover so others will follow. Kamina emphasizes that brands don’t usually dictate technology—they expect excellent quality—so it’s up to her team to guide them on what’s possible. She adds that while there are many solutions on display at the show, choosing the right OEM partner is critical because digital equipment requires long-term support and stability, not just a low upfront price. She concludes that she is looking for technology that can help Flexographica stand out from competitors by offering something different rather than competing solely on price.

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Harald Jasper · Managing Director · ACTEGA Metal Print · LabelPrint Barcelona 2025

Morten from Inkish interviews Harald Jasper from Actega at LabelExpo in Barcelona about their breakthrough metallization technology, Ecoleaf. Harald explains that for years, metallization at the show was shown only as dummies, but this time it is running live on a press from Gallus. Traditionally, metallic effects were made using foil carriers, which generate large amounts of waste. Ecoleaf replaces the foil with metal flakes suspended in water: a binder is digitally printed and cured on the substrate, then metal flakes are applied and adhere to the binder, creating a glossy metallic surface comparable to foil. He says this method cuts the carbon footprint by at least 80% because it eliminates polyester film production, metallization, and transport. The gloss and reflection now match conventional foil, and when overprinted with inkjet, the results are striking. Harald notes that metal flakes themselves are recyclable and that Actega has received RecyClass certification confirming the recyclability of the finished products. Developed over eight years by a multidisciplinary in-house team, Ecoleaf is already shipping and can be mounted on almost any press—typically at the start of hybrid presses for overprinting with inkjet, or at the start of flexo lines for applications like spirits and whiskey labels. Actega’s focus now is scaling up from 8-hour runs to 24/7 production, expanding globally to support major brand customers, and developing new applications such as shrink sleeves and possibly cardboard. Harald emphasizes that big brands are increasingly driving the push for sustainable packaging, and Actega aims to meet that demand with Ecoleaf.

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Christoph Gamper · CEO · DURST · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Morten from Inkish interviews Christoph Gamper, CEO of Durst Group, at LabelExpo in Barcelona. Despite the extreme heat in Hall 3, Christoph shares that business at Durst is just as “hot,” with the company continuing to grow and now having over 4,200 systems installed worldwide, including more than 550 digital engines across 33 countries. He explains that Durst’s success is driven by a collective mindset within the company—while they don’t aim to be the biggest, they strive to be the best in technology. Everyone at Durst has bought into this goal, creating what he describes as a big, happy family pushing forward together. Christoph says he spends little time in his office and is often traveling to meet customers, attend trade shows, and visit markets like China and the United States, ensuring he stays close to the market and to customers’ needs. He sees his role as leading the innovation roadmap while also “sniffing the markets” to deeply understand customer pain points, with Durst’s mission being to remove those pains. He credits Durst’s success to its strong mid-management, close collaboration between teams, and a culture where leadership actively engages with both staff and customers. He also outlines Durst’s expansion beyond labels into other areas, especially packaging, including corrugated and folding carton, through Durst Group’s partnership with Koenig & Bauer under Koenig & Bauer Durst. In addition, Durst remains committed to large-format printing, ceramics, 3D printing, additive manufacturing, and new ventures in software. Christoph highlights All4Labels as a customer and mentions being particularly proud of All4Site, a company he founded in New York, brought back to Europe, and which is now rapidly growing under Redstone Capital with major clients like Nike. He concludes that while not every segment develops at the same speed, Durst is growing strongly, expanding strategically, and maintaining its focus on innovation, quality, and customer satisfaction.

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Chiara Prati · CEO · PRATI · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Wayne Beckett from Inkish interviews Chiara Prati at LabelExpo in Barcelona. Chiara is part of the second generation leading Prati, a company founded in 1973 by her father and now over 50 years old. She explains that Prati has long specialized in designing, manufacturing, and servicing finishing and converting machines for the label industry, later expanding into flexible packaging—and now, for the first time, also into folding carton.

At the show, Prati is launching the new Digifast 20000, a larger-format solution aimed at folding carton production. It complements their existing Jupiter modular platform, which mainly serves the food and beverage sector. Chiara says their stand showcases equipment covering all market segments—food and beverage, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, security labels, logistics, and retail—demonstrating how Prati machines can handle a wide range of applications from narrow to mid-web. Each machine on display is running a job tailored to a specific market to highlight its versatility.

She adds that Prati operates globally through a strong distributor and service network, with a branch office in Dallas since 2018 to support the United States market. Chiara says the first day at the show has gone very well, with customers excited to see Prati’s move into mid-web solutions, which opens new business opportunities for converters. Wayne concludes by praising the impressive size of the Prati booth and the impact they’ve made at the show.

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Robert Rae · Managing Director · GEW · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Wayne Beckett from Inkish interviews Robert Rae, Managing Director of GEW, at LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona. Robert shares that the show has been incredibly busy, with GEW’s stand packed and orders already being placed. He explains that GEW is a global company turning over about £65 million annually, employing 160 people, and operating three factories in the United Kingdom. Their UV curing systems are installed in over 70 countries, with more than 100,000 UV lamps running worldwide, supported by 40 distributors who handle service and spare parts. While 60–70% of GEW’s business comes from OEM partnerships with leading press manufacturers—including Nilpeter—the other 30–40% is direct with end users, particularly for retrofitting older machines. The big focus at LabelExpo is GEW’s ArcLED technology, which allows users to easily switch from mercury-based UV lamps to energy-efficient LED curing. Robert explains that switching to LED delivers many benefits: 50–70% lower energy consumption, reduced CO₂ emissions, lower web temperatures, improved registration, no ozone extraction, lower maintenance, and more consistent process control. He notes that every GEW system made since 2015 using their Rhino or RLT power supplies is LED-ready. Retrofitting involves simply swapping the mercury cassette for an LED cassette and doing a quick software update, which can convert a press to LED in just one to two hours. The return on investment is typically under two years thanks to energy savings and efficiency gains, and customers can still switch back to mercury instantly if needed. Discussing the United States market, Robert says recent tariffs and currency fluctuations have created some uncertainty and dampened customer confidence. Still, GEW continues manufacturing in the UK and is working closely with partners to minimize the impact on customers. He concludes by noting that with LED now making up about half of GEW’s production—and over 3,000 LED modules built for the narrow web market last year—the shift to LED has become a clear industry standard.

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Andrew Strand · Business Development Manager · CERM ·  LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Pat McGrew from Inkish interviews Andrew Strang, Business Development Manager at CERM, during LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona. Andrew explains that CERM has spent decades building an open software architecture and a strong network of integrations with industry partners, allowing them to serve as the backbone of MIS for label and packaging printers. Customers, he says, are looking for end-to-end workflows—systems that can seamlessly connect prepress, presses, finishing, and converting equipment to move jobs efficiently through production. He notes that while many companies want to partner with CERM, the choice of integrations is often driven by customer needs. A recent example is CERM’s newly launched two-way integration with Durst, which was developed in response to customer demand and is already live at several sites. Andrew describes how these collaborations often start with customer requests, then move into product team discussions and technical trials until stable connections are established. While many in the industry view CERM as just another MIS vendor, Andrew highlights their deep specialization: their heritage is in labels and flexible packaging, and they are now expanding into folding carton. Unlike generalist MIS systems, CERM focuses solely on this sector, meaning its R&D and support are entirely dedicated to the specific needs of label and packaging converters. He concludes that this singular focus makes CERM a strong fit for companies in this space, offering solutions built precisely for their workflows.

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Dr. Adrian Steele · Managing Director · Mercian Labels · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Pat McGrew from Inkish interviews Dr. Adrien Steel, Managing Director of Mercian Labels, at LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona, about how CERM has been central to the company’s drive for efficiency and growth. Adrien explains that CERM has become the “point of truth” for Mercian’s entire production platform, integrating all their hardware and software systems into a single cohesive workflow. They adopted CERM in 2016 and, after an initial implementation phase, have continually built deeper integrations over time. He highlights their biggest productivity leap: integrating CERM with ABG’s Connect platform to automate the conversion of short-run digital labels into finished rolls—traditionally one of the biggest bottlenecks. This project, launched in 2019 and fully operational from 2022, won a global label industry award and has delivered major results: a 9% improvement in turnover per employee in 2023, followed by another 13% in 2024. Adrien notes that this automation not only boosts efficiency but also builds customer trust by improving delivery reliability and product quality, which in turn strengthens sales and retention. He adds that productivity gains have continued despite tough market conditions across Europe, and that profitability has grown as a result. Looking ahead, Mercian is now exploring ways to integrate AI into order processing. Adrien also discusses the cultural side: staff at Mercian expect continual change as part of the company’s drive to be a world-class label manufacturer, and seeing ongoing improvements motivates them. Rather than resisting new tools, employees embrace them as part of their culture—so much so that stopping innovation would unsettle them. Adrien concludes that embracing change, automation, and innovation through platforms like CERM has made Mercian more competitive and secure and has helped build a high-performing, future-ready team.

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Adrian Brown · Director · All4Labels UK · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Morten from Inkish interviews Adrian from All4Labels at the Actega booth. Despite the heat and broken air conditioning, Adrian speaks enthusiastically about All4Labels’ long history dating back over 130 years and their reputation as a first mover in the label industry. He explains that while All4Labels does not have its own booth at the show, they are present through partnerships, especially with Actega, using Actega’s technology in two key products: Star Shine and Star Direct. These are used to create on-demand digital metal finishes and are central to their focus on sustainability and innovation.

Adrian highlights that the decision to adopt this technology was driven by sustainability goals, which made it easy to present to customers as part of their ongoing innovation strategy. The products are fully recyclable, and they recently received RestiGlass approval for PET with Star Shine and Star Lake, which supports recyclability efforts. He says the implementation has been well received by both their sales teams and production staff, and their leadership actively encourages further development in collaboration with Actega.

He describes the process as similar in principle to old bronzing techniques but far cleaner and more advanced, with metallic flakes applied to an adhesive and then overprinted. The technology works with various printing methods, including silk screen, flexo, offset, and digital, and performs well in durability tests. Adrian concludes that combining sustainability, scalability, and high visual quality has given All4Labels a competitive edge and that the entire company is excited about continuing this innovative journey.

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Jordi Giralt · Technology Sales Director, Labels · BOBST · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Wayne Beckett from Inkish interviews Jordi Giralt at LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona. Jordi recently joined Bobst, starting in February 2025 as Zone Business Director for Southern Europe and becoming Head of Global Sales in July. He explains that Bobst entered the label market through its former Gidue flexo business, then expanded into digital by acquiring Mouvent, and later merged this expertise to develop hybrid presses that combine both flexo and digital. Bobst is now strong in flexo and a market leader in hybrid, aiming to become one of the leading companies in the label sector overall. Jordi says Bobst’s approach is rooted in precision engineering and attention to detail, and they bring this mindset to every segment they enter. He explains that Bobst no longer brings machines to trade shows, choosing instead to focus on discussing customer applications and challenges rather than hardware. Customers can visit Bobst competence centers in Firenze, Switzerland, or Atlanta to see the machines in operation, while events like LabelExpo are used for one-to-one discussions about solutions. He emphasizes that Bobst increasingly tailors solutions to customer needs rather than just selling machines. Their new team of application experts works with customers to understand the products they want to produce and then designs end-to-end workflows and configurations to match. Jordi concludes that this solutions-driven approach reflects Bobst’s long-term strategy to become a leader in the label industry.

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Spring Xu · Global Sales Director · Weigang · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Wayne Beckett from Inkish interviews Spring Xu, International Sales Director for Weigang, at LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona. Spring explains that Weigang has exhibited at LabelExpo Europe since 2009 and is presenting four machines this year: an intermittent offset machine for adhesive labels, a flexo press for medium to long runs, including packaging, and two digital presses for very short runs. The company’s goal is to offer complete printing solutions covering everything from short to long runs. She notes that Weigang uses high-end components from top brands like Rexroth, CMS, Yaskawa, and Schneider, and is looking to expand its global network of sales agents and service centers. For potential agents, she emphasizes the importance of understanding both the technology and the market to ensure customer success and repeat business. Spring highlights that Weigang focuses on high-end machines, has been in the industry since 1996, holds over 60% market share in offset machines in China, and has CE certification through TÜV for the EU market. Spring says the first day of the show exceeded expectations with strong visitor interest, helped by their prime location at the front of the hall. She explains that LabelExpo is a key global platform for meeting partners, current users, and potential buyers. Weigang’s main selling points are high quality, stable performance, and competitive pricing. She adds that while LabelExpo is their most important global event, they also attend various local shows worldwide. She concludes by saying she hopes day two will bring even more orders and interest.

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Martin Leitner · Director Product Management · Labels & Flexible · Durst · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Morten from Inkish interviews Martin from Durst at LabelExpo 2025 in Barcelona. Martin explains that Durst’s mission is to lead the label industry’s transition from conventional to digital production, constantly adding new features and technologies. He says digital inkjet printing is now fully industrial—reliable, simple to operate, and no longer in its infancy—and that the industry’s focus is shifting toward people, automation, and software to enable more efficient production, potentially even lights-out manufacturing in the future. He notes that while hybrid presses remain important in some regions, especially in the US and parts of Europe, standalone digital presses are still the core of Durst’s business because of their flexibility, shorter web paths, and ease of operation. Martin also points to growing demand for personalization and especially variable data printing, with customers now regularly producing up to 100,000 linear meters of variable jobs per week, which requires a strong data infrastructure and automation to feed data to the press efficiently. Martin introduces Durst’s new Tau 340 G3 platform, which builds on their previous models but brings a range of improvements. It maintains 1200x1200 dpi resolution and speeds of 80–100 meters per minute across 340, 420, or 510 mm widths, offering more flexibility and productivity. The G3 features a redesigned operator area, new systems to protect printheads from poor-quality or wavy materials, automatic registration, new backend software, improved electronics and temperature control, and many other visible and hidden enhancements that reduce waste, speed up setup, and make operation easier. He says the G3 will succeed the Tau 340 RSCI platform while the current RCE model remains available. Martin concludes that the G3 is designed to be highly reliable, easy for operators to run, and backed by Durst’s in-house expertise in chemistry, mechanics, and software, along with knowledge drawn from other industries like graphics, textile, and ceramics—making it a strong step forward in digitalizing the label industry.

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James Thomas · Head of Sales & Business Development · Focus Label · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Wayne Beckett from Inkish interviews James Thomas at Label Expo in Barcelona. James explains that his company, Focus, has developed a new water-based inkjet system for labels and packaging in collaboration with Simply Inkjet. Unlike previous attempts where material and coating costs were too high, this new system makes water-based inkjet viable and is currently in active development with projects already underway. It builds on Focus’s long experience with UV systems. It opens new opportunities in markets like food, pharmaceuticals, coffee cups, and other packaging applications where water-based solutions are preferred or required by legislation. The system can be adapted as a retrofit or built as a custom configuration with CMYK, white, precoating, and finishing units, making it suitable for complex applications like duplex pharmaceutical printing, fan folding, and peel-and-reveal labels.

All Focus machines are manufactured in Nottingham in their own facility with in-house design, assembly, and demo areas. James says the label market is challenging but still buoyant, with good growth in international markets like the USA. Recent collaborations, new agents, and partnerships with companies like Kuka and OK have helped expand their reach and bring more production back in-house for customers. He concludes that the new water-based system represents a major opportunity and that it’s exciting to bring innovative equipment to such a large trade show.

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Doga Ipek · General Manager · Jetron · LabelExpo Barcelona 2025

Pat McGrew from Inkish interviews the team from Jetron at Label Expo about their LB3550 single-pass label press. The machine uses LED UV technology with a 350 mm print width and can print up to seven colors, including CMYK, orange, green, violet, white, and spot varnish. It combines two types of printheads: Epson heads for CMYK to achieve very fine details and Ricoh heads for white and varnish to deliver high opacity and density. The press is designed to produce high-quality, embellished labels for markets like cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals, and customers have been impressed by its quality and capabilities. Jetron focused on making the machine easy to use, with a simplified touch interface that allows operators to quickly select and print jobs without needing advanced computer skills, which is important for short-run digital jobs. They also developed their own workflow platform called Saga. This browser-based job management system handles prepress tasks such as file checks, color conversions, and trapping automatically, reducing errors and operator intervention. This ensures operators receive ready-to-print job orders with all critical settings preconfigured, improving consistency and minimizing waste. Saga integrates seamlessly with the press and is designed to help converters adopt digital printing easily, even in emerging markets where skilled operators and prepress expertise may be limited. Jetron positions the LB3550 as a cost-effective, low-barrier entry into digital printing while maintaining build quality and functionality, aiming to make the transition to digital and inkjet technology as smooth as possible for new users.