Page 45 - Print 21 Magazine Jan-Feb 2019

Digital Technology
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Brussels: trading history
R+D at Océ: Paul Whitehead
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Applications:
Filip Weymanns and Danny Marten, Xeikon
Océ leveraging
In a sprawling multi-building complex in the Dutch border city of Venlo,
Océ is the only one of the four
located in Holland. Since becoming part of Canon nine years ago, the Dutch-based printing equipment manufacturer has operated with a large degree of autonomy. With the huge resources of Canon behind it to drive R&D, it seems to have gained the best of both worlds.
Paul Whitehead, formerly the marketing manager for the company in Australia, often welcomes Australian visitors such as me to
Océ in Venlo. He’s now well into
his second stint at head office, and appears to be enjoying himself; he likes being where the action is, and is enthusiastic about developments at the company. “Being at the centre of Océ is an exciting place to be. You see how much technological development is going on, how the people here have their fingers on the pulse of print,” he says. “Since becoming part of Canon, the ability to leverage the R&D from Japan has been a tremendous asset.”
Océ’s Arizona wide-format flatbed UV inkjet printers are the biggest selling UV flatbeds in the world. More than 6000 are installed, including 178 in the local market in Australia. The innovative Colorado with its new UVgel is the latest development in the sector; then there’s the established Colorwave with its trademark ink in gel balls.
The company has long been has been the leading supplier of high volume, inkjet web systems. Today its ColorStream, ImageStream,
and JetStream solutions set the standard for the direct marketing and essential mail sector, while ProStream is for the commercial print market. Running at up to 250
Left:
decision at the turn of the millennium to exit commercial print and focus on packaging, Esko has become a crucial part of the majority of packaging produced around the world. The company estimates that no less
than 90 per cent of all packaging
has some Esko input in its creation and production, a remarkable achievement. Such products as the likes of Esko ArtiosCAD for packaging design have become the de facto standards in their fields.
An idea of the scale and increasing influence of Esko comes from the fact that some 300 million packaging jobs were processed through Esko workflows globally in the 12 months to September last year, its highest number ever for a 12 month period.
Esko has achieved this not by just making great products, but by taking a holistic approach to the market. When I meet with Jef Stoffels, director of corporate marketing, he explains the strategy behind the success.
“Esko understands the packaging chain. Our mission is to enable our customers to meet the needs of the market in the most efficient way. For instance we use value stream mapping (VSM) with our customers, which helps everyone see where business processes can be improved. This is part of the reason we’ve achieved such success,” he says.
Those who have visited Esko at recent trade shows will have noticed that the company’s theme has moved from ‘packaging simplified’ to ‘packaging connected’. Stoffels believes every part of the process is becoming more connected. “We are not only automating all the steps in the packaging production process, but now integrating everything such as MIS, ERP as well. Everything is
connected. There is just one location for everything, including colour and content, in the entire supply chain,” he says.
Esko’s colour management has come through its integration with Pantone, X-Rite and AVT. According to Geert De Proost, director of solutions marketing at Esko, this has allowed the company to deliver mathematically-based colour management. “Between them, these three enable us to digitise the value chain. One of the biggest frustrations of printers is colour, and now we offer digital colour management based on the numbers.
“To companies looking to make a new entry into the market, such as Aldi and Lidl, brand colour is crucial, and to have scientific measurement provides accurate reproduction. Being able to measure and score leads to a closed loop system, where the colour is managed automatically according to the numbers, rather than the look.”
There’s no doubt that the future of colour in packaging will become more important. The R&D and expertise being deployed by Esko in Belgium will keep it at the leading edge.
Print21 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2019 45