At Labelexpo Europe 2025, Heidelberg and Gallus have highlighted a new chapter in their vision for smart, connected printing with the debut of two new machine solutions. As the label industry faces increasing demand for shorter runs and faster turnaround times, converters are challenged to maintain productivity and profitability while navigating complex market dynamics and tightening margins.

Heidelberg and Gallus’ new launches at the show represent a significant expansion of their portfolio. The products span across all market segments and application areas, driving performance for converters regardless of size, market focus, or production challenges. The solutions enable label converters to scale efficiently, respond rapidly to shifting market demands, and remain competitive in a fast-evolving landscape. 

The new Gallus Five has been launched at Labelexpo Europe. The Gallus Five is a high-performance hybrid press built on the robust Gallus Labelmaster platform, combines five key benefits to offer a combination of performance and versatility. Industrial throughput, high-resolution image quality, with plug and play modular configurability and finishing at full press speed. At the same time, total cost of ownership is significantly reduced. Specifically, the new hybrid press offers 1200 x 1200 dpi resolution and production speeds up to 100m/min, increasing productivity for label converters. Built on Gallus’ modular System to Compose concept, the Gallus Five is available in 340mm and 430mm widths and is fully compatible with the existing Gallus Labelmaster portfolio. Meanwhile, the newly introduced “SDC Pro” semi-rotary die cutter offers high-speed cutting at up to 100m/min, rapid job changeovers, and optional cutting-depth adjustment.

Developed together with HEIDELBERG, the Gallus Five also introduces a host of advanced features designed to optimize productivity and reduce costs. This makes it particularly valuable for volume-driven markets where consistent, industrial-level quality, speed, and efficiency are critical such as the health, beauty and cosmetics, pharmaceutical and OTC as well as food and household segments. The press incorporates the newly developed HEIDELBERG Saphira UV05 ink set – a major advancement in ink technology – with a high-pigmentation formulation that significantly cuts ink consumption, lowering total cost of ownership. It also delivers premium color performance, covering up to 95% of the Pantone® color gamut, including the vast majority of the most frequently used spot colors in packaging, while ensuring compliance with the latest ink safety regulations.

Serving the other end of the market, the new Gallus Alpha, an accessible, value-focused, digital-only printing solution, addresses the needs of converters looking for an efficient, cost-effective entry point into digital printing. Targeted at fast-growing markets such as retail, pharmaceutical, and logistics, the Gallus Alpha brings ease-of-use, flexibility, and performance to converters adapting to shorter runs and faster turnaround times. Available in 340mm width, the Gallus Alpha comes in two configurations – four-color + white or six-color + white – and offers high-resolution printing of 1200 × 1200 dpi at 65m/min. Notably, the press offers a pure roll-to-roll digital configuration for operational simplicity and seamless integration into existing production workflows. With the Gallus Alpha, converters gain a digital-first platform that enables faster onboarding, versioning, and agile job switching, all critical to thriving in a dynamic, fast-paced marketplace.

“Today’s converters need future-ready solutions that deliver industrial speed, accuracy, and workflow automation to run a profitable business,” explains Dario Urbinati, CEO, Gallus Group. “With the Gallus Five and Gallus Alpha, we’re enabling smarter, more connected printing at every level from entry-level systems to fully scalable hybrid platforms.

“Importantly, with the Gallus Five, we are taking the market beyond conventional definitions of hybrid,” he continues. “The press represents a new evolution: a high-performance, fully integrated solution that brings together the best of digital and conventional technologies, intentionally designed and crafted from the ground up and anchored by our System to Compose approach. This isn’t just another evolution in technical capability – it’s a holistic, practical approach focused on removing barriers in even the most demanding areas of the market, accelerating digital adoption, and creating tangible, game-changing opportunities for converters worldwide.”

Other new product developments include the recent launch of the new Gallus MatteJet technology for the Gallus One. Developed at the Gallus Experience Center and launched earlier this year for the production of profitable, inline digital labels with a high-end matte finish, the solution has already seen a strong initial reception from the market. MatteJet, in turn, followed previous milestone innovations such as the Gallus One and the continued evolution of the System to Compose modular platform. Collectively, these launches reflect Gallus’ focus on addressing customer challenges, removing barriers to digital adoption, and supporting the long-term transformation of the label printing industry.

Digital growth

With the digital label printing market projected to grow to over $20 billion over the next 10 years, the segment represents a key driver of innovation and value creation across the packaging and print industries. The joint appearance of Heidelberg and Gallus reflects this commitment to leveraging this momentum as part of their growth strategy for the packaging and label segment. Here, they are showcasing new technologies and end-to-end solutions that drive efficiency, productivity, and quality, to meet the evolving demands of brand owners and converters. 

“Heidelberg and Gallus’ joint presence at Labelexpo underscores the strategic importance of label printing within the group,” says Dr. David Schmedding, chief technology and sales officer at Heidelberg. “As a total solution provider and systems integrator of both digital and conventional solutions, we are ideally positioned to address evolving market trends and meet diverse customer needs across all segments. Our customers benefit from a seamlessly integrated ecosystem that delivers end-to-end solutions focused on maximum efficiency, productivity, and quality – and Labelexpo provides the ideal platform to share this vision and strengthen our growing global network.”

Expanded portfolio

Visitors to the Heidelberg and Gallus booth can witness Gallus’ System to Compose concept. Existing and new innovations launched at the show also enable converters to future-proof their operations. Gallus has designed modular solutions to work seamlessly, not just within its own ecosystem but also alongside complementary partner technologies from across the production line. These collaborations demonstrate the company’s commitment to whole-industry advancement through shared purpose, vision, and a connected, end-to-end print ecosystem. The booth features a robust, unified lineup of technologies and samples, including sheetfed offset innovations for the efficient production of wet glue and in-mold labels, HEIDELBERG Prinect, Gallus Screeny, Gallus Services, and Gallus Classics.

“Together with the continued strength of our partnership with Heidelberg and a growing network of partners and collaborators, we’re looking forward to a successful event in Barcelona, where Labelexpo’s dynamic new home will no doubt inspire new thinking, fresh momentum, and exciting opportunities”, says Dario Urbinati, CEO of Gallus Group. “Labelexpo has always been an inspiring world stage where innovation and collaboration come together, serving as a reminder that real, meaningful industry transformation doesn’t happen in isolation. Success in this industry requires collaboration across the value chain, and the more expertise, ideas, and ambition we bring together, the greater the opportunities for everyone to thrive.

“The latest innovations and strategic partnerships we’re unveiling at this year’s event demonstrate how Gallus is steadily removing barriers to digital adoption, growth, and lasting success,” he continues. “Through close collaboration with industry leaders and by truly listening to our customers, we’re turning our vision of a smart, connected print future into a tangible reality – empowering converters to confidently embrace what lies ahead and reshape their trajectory for greater success.”