Omet’s latest technology has helped fuel the production of label converter Grafiche Amadeo. The company is producing special labels with double diecutting shapes and no backing removal. This specific configuration is applied on an 8-color XFlex X2 370.

Grafiche Amadeo entered the label business with the purchase of two Omet narrow web flexo presses in three years. The second XFlex X2 was equipped with technical solutions developed on the specific request of the customer. Omet designed a tailor-made solution for the production of dual-shape labels based on the addition of a diecutting station in between the flexo units with an accurate use of glues.

The machine was specially designed with a particular layout that enables the removal of the internal part of the label by cutting and removing it before the stripping unit. The diecutting unit installed in between the last two printing groups cuts the shape meant to be removed, without touching the backing, thus preventing the support from being punched.

Andrea Delfino, responsible for the label sector at Grafiche Amadeo, explains: “After the cutting process, we use a cold foil and a flexo unit to apply a layer of UV glue on the shape that’s already diecut to facilitate its removal. The label and the filmic substrate are coupled by means of a nip roll. The UV lamp activates the glue and the removable shape sticks to the plastic film that strips it away. The following steps consist of traditional diecutting process and matrix rewinding to obtain a special label with both internal and external diecutting shapes.

“Thanks to Omettechnology implemented on the XFlex X2 and to a wise substrate handling, the working speed of this press can reach 130 m/m,” adds Delfino. “The application of a layer of glue killer under the shape to be removed is a crucial step for the success of the entire job. When the adhesive material is separated from the backing, this particular substance is spread onto the area corresponding to the removable shape, weakening the strength of the glue in order to facilitate the stripping process. Without this special glue killer, the maximum printing speed would be dramatically slower.”

Omet had already integrated this special configuration with the diecutting unit in between two printing groups on an XFlex X6, fully automatic and high-performance machine. Yet, Grafiche Amadeo’s X2 is the first machine to implement this very application on a completely mechanical platform.