Label Express, the UK label company based in Croydon, took delivery of their new BOBST M4 inline UV flexo press early in 2017 and reports excellent performance since production started. With speed of turnaround being the main focus of the business, it has found the M4 to be the perfect machine to deliver impressively fast performance whilst producing the premium print quality the company is renowned for.
Established in 1984, Label Express has been supplying high end paper and filmic PSA labels to a wide variety of market sectors that include; beverage and food, health and personal care, retail and automotive. To achieve the quality and speed of turnaround, the company maintains full production capabilities at its Croydon site with studio, repro and plate making through to print and finishing.
After extensive research of the narrow-web, UV flexo press market, Mark Freestone, Label Express Operations Director, identified the BOBST M4 as the perfect press to fulfil their requirements and worked closely with Keith Robson, at Global Print Services Ltd (representative sales and support agency for BOBST narrow-web machines in the UK) to ensure the press specification exactly met Label Express’ high expectations.
“We decided to extend the range of applications and services that we offer to our customers to include a full range of multi-ply constructions and non-adhesive films for wider packaging applications” explains Simon Williams, Sales Director at Label Express. “With the various options on the market to produce these products, it was important that the machine we chose was versatile, efficient, provided great print quality and could produce all of these products cost effectively and the BOBST M4 delivers exactly that”.
The highly specified press includes a web turner bar with delam/relam and inline cold foil. There are three die-cutting stations that are capable of converting and waste stripping the most complex of shapes and multi-cut label constructions. The servo driven press has eight inline UV flexo print stations that are equipped with the BOBST ground breaking, digitally automated print register and die-cutting controls suitable for 7-colour, extended colour gamut production. In addition, Label Express are also excited at being able to offer single pass, multi-layer coupon labels in 2, 3, 4 and 5 layer formats of up to 9 pages!
“The machine hasn’t failed in both ours and our customers high expectations” says Simon Williams “Being able to confidently go to our customers and new markets with a performance press such as the M4 has really been a huge boost for the business and we are enthusiastic for the future going from strength to strength”.
“The M4 production line at Label Express features a host of accessories and has a specification so far unique in the UK” says Peter Redmond, Zone Business Director UK for BOBST Business Unit Web-fed. “The outcome of this project gives us great satisfaction and the M4 press installation at Label Express, is the first BOBST narrow-web press installed in the UK, so we are delighted to partner and work with the team in Croydon as they become our first UK reference site for our highly specified narrow web presses”.
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