The sharp rise in demand in the healthcare and food sectors in recent months has also meant that large quantities of packaging, and therefore also labels and labelling, were quickly in demand. Three examples show how print service providers with digital label printing systems have risen to this challenge and used times of crisis to flexibly expand their business and prepare for the future.
Companies working with digital label printing systems have been able to double or triple their production thanks to minimised set-up times. This shows that the user-friendliness, reliability and high flexibility of an AccurioLabel label printing system helps print service providers to react quickly and creatively and to generate growth from unplanned demand. This growth is illustrated by figures from Konica Minolta: The volume that can be Konica Minolta Accurio label printing systems produced rose by 150 per cent across Europe in March 2020 alone compared to the previous month. Konica Minolta has a global label customer base of more than 500 AccurioPress installations, 200 of which are located in Europe.
Soabar triples output of digitally printed labels
At Soabar, demand for digitally printed labels has increased significantly since the start of the COVID-19 crisis Output has more than tripled to over 70,000 linear metres per month. The label printing company based in Leicester, UK, saw a clear shift: while demand from the textile sector declined, demand from customers producing hand sanitisers, disinfectants, chlorine tablets and other hygiene products for the healthcare sector increased massively.
This also meant a significant difference in the capacity utilisation of the production lines and their share of sales. The company processed most of the orders for manufacturers in the healthcare sector with two AccurioLabel 190 digital label printing systems. Soabar was also able to increase the running speed of the systems, achieving the capacity of three machines.
„The reliability of our two AccurioLabel printing systems has been put through its paces over the past two months. We have seen the demand for digital labels go through the roof and if it wasn't for the Konica Minolta systems, we would have struggled to support our customers during this difficult time. Although we had already expanded our digital department last year, the crisis has accelerated this process and we have very quickly gone from 16 to 17 per cent of sales to close to 50 per cent of current sales.“ Phil Achurch, Managing Director of Soabar.
HBO Nova opens up new markets with digital label printing systems
HBO Nova also recorded an increase in label orders. As a result, the Norwegian company an investment in digital printing and finishing systems that was postponed at the beginning of the pandemic was realised in the middle of the crisis has. With the AccurioLabel 230 digital label printing system and Konica Minolta's business consultancy, HBO Nova is now able to offer customers digitally printed self-adhesive labels for every conceivable purpose in short and medium runs and in the highest possible quality. HBO Nova labels beers from microbreweries, but also from other national and international customers, for example from the food sector, who use self-adhesive labels for niche markets.
Düssel-Druck & Verlag GmbH doubles production
During the crisis, the family business Düssel-Druck & Verlag GmbH was confronted with a massive increase in demand for label printing - especially for chemicals, cleaning agents and similar products from the chemical and health sector. Within a very short space of time, the Düsseldorf-based company set up a second production line for printing and finishing and reallocated internal resources from the copy shop and small print areas. With the help of a second AccurioLabel 230, production was more than doubled. „The advantage of Konica Minolta's digital label printing systems is that they are equipped very quickly compared to the competition. This enables us to realise even small print runs in a very short time,“ says Managing Director Axel Meyer. In May, Düssel-Druck & Verlag GmbH recorded a 40 per cent increase in turnover. Without digital printing, the company would not have been able to react so quickly - and is also equipped for new developments in the future.
Source: Konica Minolta
