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Tag: labelling

Renovotec offers Epson Colorworks printer rental

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Renovotec, the UK’s fastest-growing rugged hardware, software and services provider for supply chain companies is launching a rental campaign for the latest Epson Colorworks C6000 and C6500 Series custom label printers, targeting manufacturing and logistics users, Renovotec announced today. Epson Colorworks are highly flexible, custom printers, capable of printing one-stage colour labels on demand, in user-defined quantities and designs – slashing print time and label inventory costs say Renovotec.

The Colorworks C6000 printer delivers up to 4-inch print widths and the C6500 up to 8 inches. Both printers improve inventory management and product identification to keep supply chains connected and running smoothly.

They improve traceability with colour coding, by ensuring that the right products are directed to the right place; reduce supply chain errors, using colour to make labels easier to track, avoiding mistakes; and improve the cost-efficiency of the user’s label production by reducing waste and eliminating the cost of pre-printed labels, according to the manufacturer.

In addition to generic 3PL, logistics and manufacturing companies, target supply chain users for Epson Colorworks printers include retail, healthcare and pharmaceutical and food and catering companies.

Commenting on Renovotec’s decision to launch sales and rental offers for Epson Colorworks products, managing director Richard Gilliard says: “We scour the market to identify best-in-class products and technologies for our supply chain customers, then try to make them as cost-affordable as possible with rental and other options. This latest Epson colour printer technology is ideal for today’s e-commerce marketplace, where speed and flexibility are essential.”

Packaging firm invests in sustainable products

Posted on by Keith McKinley

As part of its continued focus on product innovation for the sustainability market, one of Europe’s leading packaging suppliers, Southgate, is developing a range of new, eco-friendly packaging solutions.

The investment is part of the company’s ongoing, pioneering activity to lead the industry in developing sustainable packaging products. In the past year, Southgate has launched several new sustainable products including another Paper Tape Dispenser and Void Fill, with many more innovations to come.

As an industry leader, Southgate is committed to developing a line of alternative products to expand its current range and significantly reduce packaging waste and plastic content.

For example, its Carbon Neutral Air Cushions already use 53% of recycled content and its Water Activated Tape product reduces the amount of tape needed compared to standard packaging tape. Southgate’s Air Pillow Void Fill also uses less material than other void fill alternatives, consisting of 98% air, reducing wastage.

Craig Turner, Managing Director at Southgate, said: “With the increase in demand for packaging supplies having a knock-on effect on the supply chain, we are already starting to see industry restrictions on items such as corrugated boxes. In addition, there is also a need for warehouse space and fulfilling daily order quotas.

“With such a huge increase in demand, we are taking responsibility by giving our customers sustainable packaging solutions, reducing waste and plastic content, whilst feeding into the consumer shift for more eco-friendly packaging products.

“Currently we are re-focusing on our most sought-after sustainable products, whilst developing new product innovations, with plans to have a suite of eco-friendly options available for every product.”

With the Plastic Packaging Tax coming into effect in April 2021, which will apply to plastic packaging produced in or imported into the UK, that does not contain at least 30% recycled plastic, Southgate’s plans will continue to expand its range whilst reducing plastic content and increasing users’ productivity and profitability.

Highlighting its focus on sustainability, Southgate was recently awarded a bronze certificate by EcoVadis, the ratings platform to assess corporate social responsibility and sustainable procurement, and recently launched a Sustainability E-edition brochure to showcase its latest sustainable product line.

New partnership yields cloud-based print innovation

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Perceptor PTXL is the first innovation to emerge from a new partnership between thermal print specialists, TSC Printronix Auto ID, and complex optical inspection solutions expert, InterVision Global.

The joint cooperation sees TSC Printronix Auto ID‘s world-renowned barcode verifier, the ODV-2D, and its T8000 printer combined with an unparalleled centralised, cloud-based inspection system. The end-to-end solution, Perceptor PTXL, enables companies to monitor, verify and control their print process across multiple networked printing systems, irrespective of where in the world the devices are located.

“We are delighted InterVision Global has leveraged our unparalleled ODV-2D and T8000 printer technology with a cloud-based system to enable unlimited printers around the world to be connected and managed by one central server,” says Neil Baker, Sales Manager UK, Ireland, BeNeLux and South Africa, at TSC Auto ID Technology EMEA GmbH.

Perceptor PTXL is expected to prove most beneficial to global brands in highly regulated sectors such as automotive, healthcare, life sciences, medical device, pharmaceutical, and food and beverage, where printed barcodes and human readable text must meet minimum quality requirements. Incorrectly printed barcodes, label content or duplicate serial numbers can prove costly in chargebacks for non-conformities and rework, as well as rejected deliveries.

“This integrated solution makes global control of printing processes possible, ensuring labels meet ISO barcode print quality and data content compliance. Perceptor PTXL inspects and verifies every label in real-time. It ensures codes are formatted correctly, or if label sizes are correct or barcode heights are wrong. Every defective label is overstruck and destroyed with no need for manual intervention,” says Mark Worlidge, Managing Director at InterVision Global.

Perceptor PTXL controls the print process so unauthorised labels cannot be printed. Once an authenticated user is logged in and the system is running, labels can be printed and barcodes verified by the T8000/ODV-2D. Once they’ve passed verification, labels are inspected for OCR on human readable text, for blemishes and that data content and patterns match.

All this is done in real-time with each failure being overstruck. All data is recorded to the customer’s own Azure Hosted Tenancy which is held and replicated in the cloud ensuring full traceability and an audit trail. Batch information and accumulated serial numbers are all held centrally ensuring that no two systems can duplicate label printing.

 

 

Smurfit Kappa invests further €35m in Germany

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Smurfit Kappa has announced a significant investment in its Hoya paper mill and board manufacturing plant in northwest Germany. It is the latest phase of an investment programme, which commenced in 2011, and this last phase will see production output increase by 70 kt to 450 kt per annum.

The investment will replace the complete press section of the PM2 paper machine with new state-of-the-art technology, increasing the overall efficiency of the manufacturing process. The PM2 is a 7.5m-wide paper machine, producing both testliner and fluting packaging paper. Production speed will increase to 1250 m/min and upon completion, this world-class machine will further strengthen the industrial efficiency of Smurfit Kappa Group’s containerboard system. It is expected to be operational from the first quarter of 2023.

Saverio Mayer, CEO, Smurfit Kappa Europe said: “This investment will be the final and significant phase of a programme of sustained investment at our Hoya Mill which commenced over a decade ago. Today’s announcement underlines Smurfit Kappa’s continued commitment to developments in leading edge technology and our operations in Germany.”

The investment means that CO2 emissions will be reduced by 5,500t per annum.

Also commenting on the investment, Andreas Noss, Managing Director of the Smurfit Kappa Hoya Mill, said: “This investment will make the PM2 a state-of-the-art light weight paper machine that enables us to meet the changing needs of our customers. It will increase production speed and produce light weight paper in the most efficient and sustainable way possible.”

The Hoya site in Germany has been in operation for over 50 years and is a major regional employer, with over 300 people working at the facility.

 

TSC Printronix Auto ID Overhauls Printers Product Range

Posted on by Keith McKinley

New models and advances in security, wireless connectivity, remote management and printhead management mark just some of the sweeping changes TSC Printronix Auto ID has made across its popular barcode printers and print engines.

More powerful and adaptable wireless connectivity options in the newly improved printers, including wireless 802.11a/b/g/n/ac and Bluetooth® 4.2 modules, enable faster roaming and greater productivity. The enhanced connectivity works especially well in facilities with Wi-Fi networks boasting multiple access points, ensuring no data is lost between roaming from one access point to another.

The MX Series, MH Series and PEX Series have all been upgraded with new electronics to improve their operational performance. TSC has also added two 6-inch industrial thermal transfer printers to its MH261 Series; the MH261T and MH361T.

The upgraded printers are all supported by SOTI Connect, which gives greater visibility and real-time data on the health and performance of an entire fleet of printers allowing them to be managed remotely.

Vast improvements in printhead management help prevent incorrect or poor quality labels entering the supply chain. The printhead mechanisms checks and reports bad dots on the printhead in real-time. Users get alerted in advance to replace faulty printheads thereby avoiding production downtime. The new printheads incorporate a feature enabling printhead usage to be stored in the printhead mechanism giving users a clear indication of output levels as well as the printhead’s health and replacement status.

“We’re committed to delivering the most advanced thermal print technology to customers across demanding industrial environments like logistics, manufacturing and retail,“ says Sabine Mayer, Senior Marketing Manager of TSC Printronix Auto ID EMEA. “Our radical new line-up of rugged printer models are competitively priced yet bring unprecedented performance and precision to users.“

Industrial Printer Portfolio Strengthened

Posted on by David Priestman

TSC Printronix Auto ID, a global leader in barcode label printing solutions, adds real-time 1D and 2D barcode verification tools to its popular Printronix Auto ID T6000e series mid-range industrial printers. The announcement further reinforces the company’s commitment to invest in the advancement of thermal printing technology including online barcode verification.

Previously only available on the T8000 enterprise-level industrial class printer, the addition of 2D barcode verification to the T6000e series printers enables a new level of value and affordability for compliance and regulatory applications where label barcode quality must meet minimum grade requirements. “Offering high-performance ODV-2D technology to the mid-range thermal printer category removes another barrier to the broader adoption of real-time barcode verification,” stated Neil Baker, TSC Printronix Auto ID Sales Manager UK, Ireland, BeNeLux and South Africa.

The ODV-2D verifier grades barcodes on labels as they are printed. The technology meets industry standards with grading that is based on ISO 15415 and ISO 15416 standards for both 1D and 2D barcodes. Customers can print with confidence due to the enhanced measurement accuracy of this technology. Labels that fail to meet the required quality or standards for their application are marked with a partial pattern so they can be identified as incorrect or unreadable barcodes.

Similar to the T8000, the T6000e ODV-2D system can provide users confidence that every barcode label they send out will be accurate and printed at the required standard. With ODV-2D barcode verification, the printer has the power to generate grading reports for each print job. This is extremely beneficial in the event that the readability or grade of a user’s labels are questioned. They will have documented evidence of every barcode label printed and their grade at the time of printing. Additionally, the Printronix AutoID Data Manager software application can capture grading measurements for every barcode printed on each label. “We have customers using this data capture tool to successfully defend barcode quality chargebacks,” said Baker.

The T6000e barcode label printer with ODV-2D barcode verification technology can also be used in conjunction with the integrated RFID option, enabling customers to not only encode and verify their RFID labels, but also guarantee the grade of the barcodes printed on them. This industry leading capability is ideal for retail supply chain applications where vendors not only struggle with barcode quality but are also required to use RFID labels on their shipments.

Barcode Labeling Manufacturers Combine

Posted on by David Priestman

Loftware, Inc., the global leader in Enterprise Labeling & Artwork Management Solutions and NiceLabel, a leading developer of label management systems have announced that they are combining under the Loftware corporate umbrella. This union gives customers and partners an expanded choice of solutions, while providing enhanced labeling capabilities and the benefits of greater investment in cloud-based solutions and technologies. It also brings together 60 years of combined expertise in solving labeling challenges for companies of all sizes throughout a wide range of industries across the globe.

“Our customers, channel and technology partners and the overall market will benefit from our strategic vision to provide broader and deeper labeling solutions in addition to expanded scale, world-class services and global support. It also unites the best talent in the industry to drive new levels of innovation,” commented Loftware President and CEO, Robert O’Connor, Jr. “Loftware and NiceLabel have both seen sustained growth and expansion over the past several years, especially in 2020 when labeling solutions have become so critical to supply chain continuity. This move brings together two thriving organizations, providing momentum for significant expansion over the next decade and beyond,” he added.

NiceLabel’s extensive global partner network includes resellers, ISVs, OEMs and print technology partners that deliver NiceLabel labeling solutions and technology. In a complementary fashion, Loftware brings deep experience in selling, servicing and supporting Enterprise Labeling and Artwork Management solutions to large global organizations. The combined organization will continue to offer both Loftware and NiceLabel products, providing the broadest range of cloud-based labeling solutions for direct and channel partner customers across the globe. Together they will further enable supply chain agility, support evolving regulations and optimize business operations for companies across a wide range of industries including life sciences, manufacturing, food & beverage, retail, automotive, consumer products, apparel and more.

“We are delighted to combine with Loftware and look forward to expanding opportunities for our channel partners and end customers by providing new solutions and innovations to help them grow their business,” stated NiceLabel CEO, Chris Walsh. “The two companies offer truly complementary solutions that are more vital than ever. This combination represents a terrific opportunity to further accelerate growth especially as organizations look to address evolving customer and regulatory requirements and standardize labeling across worldwide operations,” he commented.

Increase Output with Automated Labelling

Posted on by David Priestman

Save up to 5 minutes per label print job: Automate labelling to remove intermediate exports or data retyping from your production process.

Are you retyping label data or using intermediate data exports? Increase production output by improving label data quality while printing labels at greater speed on fixed or flexible locations with automated label printing directly from your ERP.

  • Increase label data quality: avoid cos
  • tly labelling errors by using data directly from a single source of authority, which can be a simple spreadsheet, a complete ERP-system, or anything in between
  • Increase labelling speed: remove the need to retype data and save up to 5 minutes per label printjob
  • Great printing flexibility: print on a wide range of professional label printers on fixed locations or anywhere with wifi-acces

Checkout our infographic and find out how you can implement automated labelling >>

 BRADY UK

 

Increase Output with Automated Labelling

Posted on by David Priestman

Save up to 5 minutes per label print job: Automate labelling to remove intermediate exports or data retyping from your production process.

Are you retyping label data or using intermediate data exports? Increase production output by improving label data quality while printing labels at greater speed on fixed or flexible locations with automated label printing directly from your ERP.

  • Increase label data quality: avoid cos
  • tly labelling errors by using data directly from a single source of authority, which can be a simple spreadsheet, a complete ERP-system, or anything in between
  • Increase labelling speed: remove the need to retype data and save up to 5 minutes per label printjob
  • Great printing flexibility: print on a wide range of professional label printers on fixed locations or anywhere with wifi-acces

Checkout our infographic and find out how you can implement automated labelling >>

 BRADY UK

 

Diomaster Floorblock Labelling Solution Released

Posted on by David Priestman

inotec UK, has expanded its warehouse identification range with its new Diomaster 250 PC Floorblock TRANS HUW (Diomaster Floorblock) labelling solution. Developed by inotec in France and now available in the UK, the protective Diomaster Floorblock labelling system is ideal for warehouses which print their own labels on-site.

inotec specialises in warehouse solutions, barcode security and RFID labelling.

The Diomaster labelling solution is a high-quality blank polycarbonate label cover protecting self-made labels which are fixed to the floor within a solid cast aluminium frame (Floorblock).

Logistics facilities which handle frequently changing stock items and stock layouts, often face the issue of own-printed labels not being sufficiently durable. The Diomaster label solution allows users to place their printed labels inside a 2-3 millimetre recess within the aluminium Floorblock which is screwed to the floor.

The polycarbonate Diomaster cover sits on the top of the label and adds extra protection from foot and truck traffic in the warehouse, as well as potential daily wear and tear. This ensures complete protection for the efficient readability of labels. Not only can the label under the Diomaster cover be easily replaced as and when required but also, the Floorblock unit can be easily unscrewed and repositioned.

David Stocker, sales director at inotec UK comments: “The Diomaster Floorblock solution is a great addition to our warehouse labelling product range. The combination of the label cover with the aluminium label holder creates a robust system for warehouse identification marking – even when printing your own labels on-site.

“Damaged or unreadable labels cause operational delays which can have significant financial implications. If labels can’t be scanned or locations found, it can cause serious disruption in the supply chain. The Diomaster labelling solution prevents this to ensure warehousing identification performs at an optimum level. We are now able to offer this cost-effective and long-lasting labelling solution to all our UK customers.”

For more innovations in the logistics sector you can browse the latest issue of Logistics Business here

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