Responding to a greater interest in rotary UV offset printing, especially among high-end converters in the EU countries, Nilpeter plans to boost spending on its UV rotary offset press sales budget by 50 percent in the current trading year.

“Most interest has come from European converters, but that’s not surprising since their customers expect them to meet demanding quality standards, especially at the high end of the consumer market,” says Jakob Landberg, Nilpeter’s sales and marketing director. “Quality tends to be less of a market determinator in the USA, which depends largely on water based flexo printing. However, several of the large label converters with global accounts are showing increased interest in UV rotary offset.”

Most of the growth, Landberg notes, is influenced by the demands of the corporate buyers. “As key influencers, they tend to be familiar with the process and its ability to deliver consistent print quality and color reproduction. This is vital to support a brand’s image and give shelf appeal to products in the healthcare, toiletries, cosmetics, and some pharmaceutical sectors. Other important growth sectors include wine and spirits labeling.”

Nilpeter, headquartered in Slagelse, Denmark, introduced offset as a combination press process in 1994. The original 330mm wide MO-3300 press is now a third generation press, sold as the MO-Line. More than 175 MO presses have been installed throughout the world. Major users include the large labeling and packaging groups such as CCL, Skanem and WS Packaging. The platform format allows MO users to augment the primary offset units with secondary UV flexo and even gravure modules, while interchangeable rotary screen and hot/cold foil modules add to the range of decorative effects. The latest MO-S model offers optional servo drive technology, which increases the machine’s overall performance and versatility for various types of labels and flexible packaging.