Making a Digital Difference

Over the past few years there have been a lot of changes in the methods of printing and finishing of labels and much of this change has been down to the development of digital systems. A company that has been at the forefront of this development is Impression Technology Europe (ITE) who, with their partners Rapid and Compress, have introduced digital equipment targeting specific markets. They have additionally developed their own range of digital label finishers under the name Eclipse. How though has all this change been received by the industry at large?

The sales seen by ITE over recent months indicates that the changes are being very well received and comments from users only goes to strengthen that thought. Digital production has numerous advantages but the principal ones are the ability to produce high quality product at a lower price and the facility to produce small quantities or even individual labels at no extra unit cost. Those that have been involved in the industry for some time immediately saw these as distinct advantages as they had experienced first-hand the problems of customers wanting to place small orders but being put off by the high unit price. Now, with the introduction of digital, these same companies could say yes to that order without having to worry about how they would make the price attractive. In effect digital gives the user the ability to produce one label at the same unit price as 1000 labels opening up the fast growing and lucrative ‘small order’ market.

It does of course have another big cost advantage that many missed at first. Many of you will have experienced the occasion when one of your largest customers wants a small sample order. You don’t want to upset them but to produce a small quantity on standard machinery was, and still is, an expensive operation. Digital changes all of that and means that you don’t have to either accept the loss or upset you key client.

ITE are one of the most experienced companies where this type of product and production are concerned. The company is not hobbled with past habits and beliefs because they have only been involved with the digital side of label printing and this gives them a massive advantage when designing and developing new machinery. Some may say though that experience in the industry has to be learned and developed and how can a company that doesn’t have a background in the industry hope to satisfy it needs? Well, ITE would agree with that and that is why they have recruited experienced personnel who have served their ‘apprenticeship’ and so understand the ups and downs of the industry. The payoff for the user comes when you put these two factions together. The ‘old head’ ensures that the definite requirements of the industry are met whilst the ‘new head’ brings the fresh approach of digital technology. Together they make the perfect partnership that has resulted in the introduction of equipment and techniques that satisfy the industry.

For printing ITE supply the amazing machines from Rapid and Compress. The former were the first company to utilise the in-line print head from Memjet. The number of ink droplets laid down using this process ensures the highest quality prints whether the number is 1 or 10,000. The company has a range of machines from portable table top models to high production in-line units. The addition of the Compress LP4 machine has complemented the ink jet range offered by ITE by introducing dry toner label printing which offers the same high quality print from beginning to end. With no nozzle redundancy the last print is exactly the same as the first one.

ITE also has its own range of machines designed and built in the UK. The Eclipse range specialises in post print finishing and includes machines for cutting, slitting, unwinding and rewinding. All of these machines have been designed from the ground up and offer unique specifications giving users an enormous advantage over their competitors.

Digital has certainly made a difference to the industry and companies such as ITE have taken that difference and turned it into a distinct advantage not only for themselves but also for their growing band of loyal customers. In the short time they have been supplying machinery they have established a world-wide distributor network and have installed machines in markets across the world. If the difference is digital then the difference is Impression Technology Europe.

For more information about ITE or the products they supply or to find your nearest distributor call them on +44 1623 861173 or e-mail them at info@impressiontechnologyeurope.com. You can link to the Rapid web site and the DTG one by visiting www.impressiontechnologyeurope.com