Bobst opens labels and flexible packaging Competence Center in Italy

Following the successful establishment of the Atlanta Competence Center in the US, Bobst has opened a new 1200sqm Competence Center dedicated to labels and flexible packaging, located in Florence.  

Providing access to the company’s full range of printing solutions with six complete production lines (including inline flexo, digital and all-in-one technologies), the new Italian Bobst facility is designed to serve customers through proximity and local expertise, as well as being a hub for collaboration and innovation. 

From October 8-10, over 200 customers attended the opening of Bobst's new Competence Center in Florence. The event showcased Bobst’s value proposition for the narrow-mid web market, including pre-press, machinery, Bobst Connect, and final applications.` 

Matteo Cardinotti, head of narrow mid-web printing & converting product line, Bobst, said: ‘The major investment in the narrow-mid web printing and converting product line demonstrates Bobst Group’s strong commitment to this segment. Bobst has experienced exceptional growth in labels in recent years and we are supporting that development by opening more local Competence Centers and hiring more staff worldwide. In Italy specifically, we have also expanded our production facilities and reinforced our service organization to match the needs of our European customers.’  

At the event in Florence, guests could experience live demonstrations of the entire ‘Label Solutions by Bobst’ portfolio. Bobst’s All-in-One concept, with inkjet and flexo technology inline, was presented by the Digital Master 340 press running pressure-sensitive labels for the beauty segment. For inline flexo, Bobst Master M5 demonstrated single-pass production of multi-layer labels featuring oneECG (extended color gamut) technology and DigiFlexo automation. 

The production lines on show included a complete solution for short to medium-run flexible packaging applications – a Bobst Master M6 flexo press integrated with a near-line mid-web laminator, the Bobst Novalam MV. This setup, in combination with oneECG printing and DigiFlexo technology, is suitable for flexo converters wanting to produce short to medium run flexible packaging and shrink sleeves. All presses demonstrated live were operating with direct integration to Bobst Connect, the advanced digital platform that offers high automation, digitalization and connectivity to support sustainable, efficient and profitable production.  

As a central data center, Bobst Connect seamlessly integrates every aspect of the workflow, from application management and pre-press setup to printing, converting, and quality control, collecting the production data. The platform is continually evolving with more functionalities added, such as the new Bobst Certified substrate library, job quality reports, and ‘Job and Recipe Management’. 

‘Bobst has brought into reality the idea of the closed-loop workflow, from PDF to twin-PDF concept, addressing the main industry trends with easy-to-use machines, all orchestrated by Bobst Connect,’ commented Cardinotti. ‘Our main focus is to provide customers with complete workflows that help them overcome a multitude of market challenges, allowing them to deliver consistent and high-quality results much quicker and with low waste, without having to rely on highly skilled operators.’ 

Another crucial issue addressed at the event was how to maintain color consistency across different types of technologies, applications and over time. Beyond labels, converters are also leveraging Bobst inline flexo technology to produce a range of short-run flexible packaging applications, such as pouches, shrink sleeves and flow wraps.  

During the event, Bobst, together with its network of partners, demonstrated how oneECG guarantees cross-compatibility for production floor optimization by digitalizing color management. By standardizing the colors on press and automating the color matching process – moving it from the pressroom into pre-press – machine operator skills will impact the outcome much less. 

OneECG printing on inline flexo presses offers ink and plate savings, reduced waste, quicker setup, and less cleaning. It also boosts profitability for short runs, enabling converters to enter flexible packaging, as shown with the Master M6 at the event. 

Guests could also experience the benefits of one global and extensive worldwide service organization dedicated to support them with a wide range of services enhancing productivity and overall machine efficiency, from connected services (remote support) for fast resolution of problems to production ramp up support on-site.  

The event reinforced Bobst’s ecosystem of industry partnerships with the presence of Esko, Kurz, Avery Dennison, Sun Chemical, Kongsberg PCS, DuPont, and Lohmann. 

‘The new labels and flexible packaging Competence Center provides the ideal scenario for printers and brand owners to fully understand Bobst’s vision for the future of packaging production. Guests at the grand opening experienced our comprehensive portfolio of printing solutions in action and saw how our innovations and partnerships are shaping developments, while discovering how to boost and simplify their label production,’ concluded Cardinotti.