Nilpeter, the label and packaging press manufacturer, hosted an Open House on November 12, 2015, at its North American headquarters in Cincinnati, OH, USA. The event, which welcomed converters and suppliers, provided an in-depth look at industry trends and the company’s latest offerings.

The Open House featured a “Bases Loaded,” theme, designed to cover all the bases of the printing industry. The topics ranged from traditional printing to digital to various value-added options and finishing capabilities.

“At the end of the day, we need to be five years ahead of the game in developing equipment for tomorrow’s packaging trends,” said Paul Teachout, vice president of sales and marketing, North America. “Things are going to be a lot different on the store shelves five years from now. It’s going to be augmented reality, printed electronics, dynamic packaging, and there’s a lot of development that needs to happen there.”

Nilpeter conducted three presentations in the morning, highlighted by Dr. Chip Tonkin, director of Sonoco Institute of Packaging Design & Graphics, Clemson University. He examined the growing role of dynamic packaging and printed electronics.

Teachout kicked off the Open House with a summary of his company’s offerings, as well as its mission statement and goals for the near and distant future. According to Teachout, inline flexo continues to grow despite the recent surge of digital technology.

Digital printing is growing by leaps and bounds, however. Teachout stated that the number of new digital press installations in 2014 outpaced new conventional presses in North America. He found that the increasing demands for short run applications has fueled the growth. In addition, 30% of North American converters plan on buying a digital press within the next 12 months. The market expects digital press installations to double between 2015-2019.

In order to keep pace with this evolving technology, Nilpeter has released Panorama, a digital printing solution. Panorama, which was on display at Labelexpo 2015 in Brussels, Belgium, will make its North American debut at Labelexpo 2016 in Chicago, IL, USA.

“We need to develop equipment that millennials and the next generation coming through are going to be attracted to, and that allows that next generation of printers to adapt to,” added Teachout. “Clean-hand technology is a term that we have taken to identify what the next generation wants.”

The Panorama product line features the DP-3 Stand-Alone Digital Press and the Combined Digital Press & Converting Solution. The DP-3 is highlighted by fast and easy start-up and Equios, a smart workflow management system. The digital press is designed for faster turnaround times, minimal waste and high-quality. Kyocera provides the UV inkjet heads, and the press prints in CMYK+W. It operates at speeds up to 50 mpm at 600 x 600 dpi.

Nilpeter is currently in its fourth generation of ownership after nearly 100 years in business. The company plans on exploring new markets and reaching younger generations of label printers.

Teachout also announced that Nilpeter would be donating an FB 3* to Clemson University, which is slated to be installed in February 2016. “A lot of the students going through these programs now are entering into the marketplace, and they’re going to be the next generation of printers,” explained Teachout. “They’re going to be suppliers, printers and in leadership positions, and we need to start providing all the tools that they’re going to need to develop dynamic packaging.”

Robert Wray, West Coast sales representative, and Chris Baldwin, Technology Center manager, concluded the morning sessions with a detailed look at their company’s ancillary solutions. They also delved into industry trends and the benefits of expanded color gamut. According to Wray, value-added solutions help customers identify with products like wine. “There is an emotional attachment in wine and spirits,” said Wray. “Does the wine taste better because it has hot foil, because it’s embossed? No, it doesn’t just because the label looks nicer. What it does is create an image. It allows winemakers to sell that wine for a higher price because of that brand recognition, and that’s across the whole supply chain.”

Following the morning presentations, Nilpeter invited attendees on a guided factory tour and demonstrated three of its flexo presses. Nilpeter’s latest equipment focuses on automation and detailed prepress. The company’s staff presented the FB, FB-3 and FA-4* flexo presses. The FB line is optimized with five servos for complete automation, which includes job save, job load, and job change, as well as pre-setting, impression settings, and side register load. The narrow web press runs at 750 fpm with a 13.75” printing and web width. The FA-4* features CleanInking technology and the PowerLink control system, as well as the ability to accommodate various value added units to aid in shorter run and small repeat lengths.

The tour also showcased Nilpeter’s ability to design and assemble presses from scratch, with all the work completed in-house. For a video explaining the FB-3, click here.