Gallus Adds Heidelberg Digital Printer to Portfolio

ST. GALLEN, SWITZERLAND—June 18, 2013—The demand for short and/or variable print runs is growing extremely rapidly on the label printing market. As a result, professional label printers increasingly require digital printing systems that enable flexible, high-quality and cost-efficient production of such runs. Gallus is therefore adding the Heidelberg Linoprint L digital drop-on-demand (DoD) system to its portfolio. It is offering these systems with immediate effect in Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Australia via its sales and service organizations. Further markets will follow gradually. In this connection, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) and the Gallus Group have signed an international sales and service agreement for the Heidelberg Linoprint L digital printing systems.

“Digital label printing is a key growth segment in our industry and offers our customers the potential to obtain additional business," explained Klaus Bachstein, CEO of the Gallus Group. "In conjunction with the Heidelberg Linoprint L digital systems, our solutions for flexographic, offset and screen printing enable label printers to significantly boost their competitiveness by meeting even the toughest requirements in terms of flexibility and quality."

“The sales agreement with Gallus means greater market access for our Heidelberg Linoprint L systems in the growth segment of digital label printing," added Jason Oliver, head of the Digital Printing business area at Heidelberg. "It enables us to benefit from Gallus’s comprehensive application know-how in the field of label production. For their part, users gain access to inkjet and workflow technologies from Heidelberg that have already demonstrated their credentials in the packaging sector."

Heidelberg Linoprint L for integrated digital full-color label printing

The Heidelberg Linoprint L uses the drop-on-demand inkjet method. It offers a resolution of 600 dpi and a printing speed of up to 48 meters per minute in four-color mode. This makes the system an ideal addition for high-quality flexographic, offset and screen printing applications where small batches need to be produced cost-efficiently as and when required or variable data needs to be printed on prefabricated labels. The digital printing system is also suitable for new applications such as smart labels, security printing or trackable labels.

Heidelberg supplies its Heidelberg Linoprint L with the Prinect Digital Print Manager Label, a digital front end specifically developed for this press and based on the Prinect workflow technology that Heidelberg has been using for more than ten years in commercial printing applications. The Prinect Digital Print Manager Label also uses the company’s tried-and-tested color management. It automates the production workflow and can also be integrated into the user’s existing workflow. “The Heidelberg Linoprint L and our management information system are the ideal complement to our existing portfolio of solutions for the cost-efficient production of short runs—the revolutionary Gallus ECS 340 flexographic press and the Gallus ECS C digital finishing system based on this unit,” shared Stefan Heiniger, COO Label Business at Gallus.

Gallus will be showcasing the functions and benefits of combined label production with digital and conventional production equipment with its print shop concept at the upcoming Labelexpo from September 24-27 in Brussels.

Heidelberg unveiled the Heidelberg Linoprint L at drupa 2012. The system is a further development of the drop-on-demand technology of CSAT GmbH, which Heidelberg acquired in 2011. It is suitable for label printing applications and for integration in the production lines of pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers of branded goods. Sales to these customers will continue to pass via Heidelberg.

The Gallus Group
The Gallus Group is the world market leader in the development, production and sale of narrow-web, reel-fed presses designed for label manufacturers. Its folding carton business offers a range of wideweb, reel-fed presses and die-cutters for the cost-effective in-line production of folding cartons and cardboard products. The machine portfolio is augmented by a broad range of screen printing plates (Gallus Screeny), globally decentralised service operations, and a broad offer of printing accessories and replacement parts. The comprehensive portfolio also includes consulting services provided by label experts in all relevant printing and process engineering tasks. In 1999 Gallus entered into a cooperation agreement with Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, the world market leader for print and media industry solutions. Gallus employs around 580 people, of whom 270 are based in Switzerland. The group headquarters is in St.Gallen.

About Heidelberger Druckmaschinen
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) provides globally leading products and services for commercial and packaging printing. The Heidelberg name stands for leading technology, top quality, and customer focus. The company’s core business comprises the entire sheetfed offset process and value chain as well as digital printing solutions. It is also working to develop new markets with forward-looking, innovative printing technologies. Contract manufacturing—mainly for customers in other engineering industries and the energy sector—is also increasingly important for Heidelberg.

Headquartered in Heidelberg, Germany, with production and development sites in seven countries, the company serves its customers via a dense network of sales and service units. Its printing presses, prepress equipment and postpress finishing systems are mainly produced in Germany. Standardized presses for all common format classes and folding machines are also manufactured in Qingpu near Shanghai, China, primarily for the Chinese market.

In the 2011/2012 financial year, the company achieved a sales volume of 2.735 billion euros. As of March 31, 2012, the Heidelberg Group employed 14,215 people.

Source: Gallus.