Soabar installs Konica Minolta AccurioLabel 230 digital press

UK-based converter Soabar has installed AccurioLabel 230 digital press from Konica Minolta Business Solutions (UK).

It replaces two previous AccurioLabel 190 presses to ensure essential digital print capability while freeing up space for expansion and enabling seamless integration with the company’s multi-technology print mix.

'With its increased speed and enhanced flexibility in terms of substrates and applications, a single AccurioLabel 230 has perfectly replaced the previous pair of presses without any compromises on performance or output levels,' said Phil Achurch, managing director of Soabar. 'This is all delivered in a smaller physical footprint, which has obvious advantages in a production facility with finite space available.'

The AccurioLabel 230 works in tandem with Soabar’s inkjet and flexo solutions to offer full flexibility to cater to different types and sizes of customer jobs with a quick turnaround time, freeing up its inkjet press for longer run work.

Andrew Lamb, production print specialist at Konica Minolta, said: ‘As Soabar builds upon its Konica Minolta digital label press platform investment with the recent addition of an inkjet investment, it clearly demonstrates that no one technology delivers everything, and that by having the right combination of toner and inkjet technologies under one roof, along with the excellent support, enables the right job to be printed on the right press to meet the demands of the business and its customers.’

The AccurioLabel 230 ensures samples are quick and efficient to supply to customers, and its ability to use variable data processing has been particularly valuable in delivering versatility without slowing the process down. Thanks to this flexibility, the company is now primarily using the press for chemicals and food labelling applications, delivering high quality results on applicable materials.

Robert Gallagher, production director at Soabar, said: ‘The AccurioLabel 230 serves us very well and has opened new revenue streams for Soabar. It is a proven technology that has been adapted to narrow-web and delivers impressive speed, as well as an attractive price point, and value for money. There is also a clear costing structure through the click charge (with no hidden costs), which makes it much easier to price up jobs.’

Soabar is now expanding its building and production capacity.

‘We are planning to further consolidate our offering with a dedicated digital production area and investments in both hardware and software, including the Label Traxx software to manage our business from order entry through to invoicing,’ Achurch said. ‘Undoubtedly, working with Konica Minolta and its digital solutions has changed how things are done and fits in well with our new background infrastructure, enabling us to offer even more flexibility and service to our customers moving forwards.’

Since the AccurioLabel 230 was displayed at Labelexpo India 2022, various companies have installed the digital press, including BSP Labels and Vista Labels.