Dejonghe Printing Company in Ypres, Belgium has been the first to opt for Xeikon’s Fusion Technology solution. The packaging and labeling specialist plans to use this investment for the production of, among others, self-adhesive labels on cosmetics. The configuration is made up of three modules: (1) Fusion module for the application of very high opaque white, (2) a Xeikon CX3 and (3) a Xeikon DCoat330. The Fusion module will be installed as a pilot setup.

The Fusion module is installed between the unwinder (used to unreel) and the Xeikon press, and facilitates the application of very high opaque covering white by means of digital printing technology. The capacity will moreover be higher than 90%; a prerequisite for the production of certain high-quality labels such as those used for cosmetics.

The Xeikon CX3, also referred to as the “Cheetah,” with a speed of 30 m/m, is a productive five-color label press. Dejonghe Printing Company, one of the largest players in the Belgian packaging market, chose the Xeikon CX3 due to the top speed in combination with high-quality prints offered by the dry toner printing process and the option of enlarging the color space via the fifth printing station. In addition, orange, blue and green can be used alternately to widen color space.

The Xeikon DCoat330 is installed inline with the Xeikon CX3 and is responsible for applying the finishing touches to the printed label material. In this process, the material is varnished with a UV varnish, punched and wound up onto a roll.

Dejonghe Printing Company invested in a digital machine for the first time with the purchase of the Xeikon CX3. The printing company has a long history as a family business dating back to its founding in 1890. Today, Birgit and Alexis Dejonghe are jointly at the helm of this printing company. Over the past 125 years, the five generations regularly invested in new technology from typo to offset, narrow belt labels and flexo to the production of duo labels and sleeves.

“Quality is the top priority at Dejonghe Printing Company,” explains Birgit Dejonghe. “Our standards meet the BRC-IOP-certification. We can meet the high demands of our customers, thanks to our specialist knowledge of color management. This new solution, consisting of the superior full color quality of the Xeikon CX3 and the high-quality covering white applied in the Fusion module, even further enables us to meet our quality standards, to have a unique range on the market and, in addition, to increase the production speed.”

“In recent years, we have also experienced a trend of more diversification in the product portfolio of our customers in respect of high-quality labels,” adds Alexis Dejonghe. “As a result, we are receiving a larger quantity of printing assignments but for fewer copies. With our current printing processes, we are technically capable of producing this (flexo combined with screen print), but the costs attached make it less cost-efficient. We were therefore looking for a solution that offers comparable quality and functionality. With the Fusion Technology, we see a combination of digital printing technologies that meets our needs for the first time.”

Fusion Technology combines full color production with digital refinement in a single process. It is also referred to as digital combination printing, featuring a modular system built on a single platform where the printing processes are digital. These are then also all managed from the Xeikon X-800 (One-pass/One platform/all digital) – and that makes it possible that all printing plates can be variable – which therefore accounts for the automation of the entire production. This technology was demonstrated for the first time during Labelexpo Europe in 2015 and was also on display during the drupa trade fair.

“Xeikon is proud to be able to welcome Dejonghe as customer,” says Filip Weymans, Xeikon’s director of Segment Marketing, Labels & Packaging. “In recent years, digital printing has taken a significant position in the landscape of self-adhesive products. However, the printing presses could only offer a response within the segment of full-color printing, nevertheless a very important part of the market. For the refinement of specific packaging and labels, one has to return repeatedly to the analog, conventional technologies that results in it not being possible to fully use the digital opportunities in the production of high-quality labels. Fusion Technology offers an answer to this, and the purchase by Dejonghe reinforces our vision to, besides full color digital solutions, also create solutions that digitize specific types of refinement in combination with our dry toner printing presses that are extremely suitable for reproducing high-quality work.”