SPECIAL SECTION: Precision partnership

Based on its 30-plus years of mutual co-operation, Gundlach Verpackung, of Oerlinghausen, Germany, was one of the first customers to decide in favour of the synergistic benefits offered by eltromat’s regi_star 20 and webvideo_star 2000 register and web inspection systems - and the special functions _aft (automatic fine tuning) and _sc (skew control) which are available when these two products are combined.

Gundlach thus took on a pioneering role for the new eltromat technology after its launch at drupa 2008. Its faith has been vindicated, as the register and web inspection combination was rapidly proven and, it is claimed, has since convinced many users in Europe and the Far East of its cost effectiveness and high user benefits.

Gundlach, whose company slogan is ‘Perfection in colour, form and function’, provides creative packaging concepts for the cigarette, tea, candy, food and cosmetics industries. The €80 million turnover family business has 400 employees and is equipped with seven rotogravure presses and two high-capacity sheet-fed machines for large and medium size formats.

Production manager Axel Heise comments: “We have been using eltromat register controls for more than four system generations. When it comes to individual solutions, we knew we could always rely on eltromat’s competence, innovation potential and service quality.

“Quality is first and foremost for us, and when it comes to investments in future oriented technology for printing, processing and converting. Quality doesn’t come cheap, but it provides the trust that is required in order to achieve and fully exploit efficiency potentials together.

“A mutual trust has developed between our companies which is reflected on the one hand by the number of installations and on the other by the trend-setting development projects carried out between the two companies. We are not only a customer, we are a long-standing partner.”

He continues: “When eltromat presented the innovative regi_star 20 project in late 2007, we told them spontaneously that we would be prepared to co-operate. We were convinced that we could achieve important improvements regarding mark recognition, register adjustment, waste reduction and ease of operation.

“After very constructive project discussions in which we clearly defined options and risks, the regi_star 20 prototype ran from February 2008 to our complete satisfaction on our Cerutti gravure press. After only four weeks, we could confirm its suitability and nothing stood in the way of the drupa presentation.

“During the exhibition, a simulation model gave us a first impression of the potential synergistic effects for register fine tuning and skew control when the regi_star 20 register control system and the webvideo_star 2000 web inspection system are operated in combination.

“We were immediately convinced of the future potential this combination had to offer and decided to install it as a retrofit on our 11-colour Cerutti. The knowledge gathered during the regi_star 20 prototype project gave us the confidence to do without back-up versions of the previously installed, older eltromat systems. Downtime on this high risk press could have serious effects for our production, as we use it to produce specialised products for our top customers, which are printed on expensive materials,” he stresses.

“Our trust was well placed: installation and commissioning were carried out without any problems and eltromat offered our printers professional training on the new systems. You could say that they installed an all-inclusive, carefree package for register and web inspection.”

Mr Heise adds: “The practical advantages are clear to see: the new register control system offers maximum automation and is easier to handle than the older systems. It is very quickly in register, which means a significant reduction in paper waste and installation time, and reduces the pressure on the operator. This leads to increased productivity and reduces the costs per print job.”

By means of intelligent networking between regi_star 20 and webvideo_star 2000, a fully automated register fine tuning can be achieved for side register deviations as well as for skew sensitive materials. Once the right measurement point has been determined by the regi_star 20, the webvideo_star 2000 measures the register on both sides of the web as well as the skew, with ‘maximum accuracy’. The resulting fine adjustments are immediately taken over by regi_star 20. The automatic fine tuning is said to enable perfect register with every job change, ‘saving up to hundreds of metres of expensive substrates’.

Axel Heise comments: “Although, when making our last two investment decisions in 2001 and 2007 for Bobst in-line gravure presses, we went for political reasons with Bobst in-house solutions instead of eltromat, we are still open to all eltromat’s innovations. For the new investments in the off-line sector, we will seriously consider buying the latest generation of eltromat register control and web video systems.

“Eltromat not only carries out development work with reputable end customers, but also with leading manufacturers in gravure, flexo and the offset sectors. This not only applies to Cerutti, but for all market leaders in the industry. With a pro-eltromat decision you are, technologically, in the front rank and economically always on the safe side.”