| Britepak’s boxing clever |  | Britepak’s boxing cleverBritepak’s celebrating its 40th anniversary this month by doing what it does best … producing award-winning packaging based on well-entrenched processes and ongoing equipment investments, reports Karen Stretch.
In 1973, the world was in the grip of an oil crisis. US troops were withdrawn from a bloody war in Vietnam, Princess Anne was married to Captain Mark Phillips, Australia’s Sydney Opera House was officially unveiled, and the World Trade Centre was declared the world’s tallest building.
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| More Propak news from PPM’s editors |  | More Propak news from PPM’s editorsLast month we brought you several pages of ‘Hot off the press’ intelligence from Propak Africa. This month we expand on that offering with a 20-page section of further news and views unearthed by the PPM team at the show. It was clearly a world-class event with a strong international flavour; but above all it was fun!
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| Taking printing to new levels |  | Taking printing to new levelsThe evident success of Typesetting & Repro Services has been driven by a commitment to exceeding customer expectations, writes Karen Stretch.
Much has changed in the printing industry since 1968, when Willie Jackson launched Typesetting & Repro Services (T&R). Far from just surviving, T&R has grown from a small typesetting enterprise into a formidable operation offering a complete prepress service (typesetting, colour proofing and digital communications), point-of-purchase materials, digital and poster printing, die-cutting, print finishing, laminating, encapsulating and mounting.
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| How to beat the AQA |  | How to beat the AQAGill Loubser investigates the looming legislation regarding VOC emissions, and the options available to printers when it comes to meeting requirements. What final form the legislation will take or when it will be enacted remains unclear but it’s irrefutable – sooner rather than later a law will be promulgated concerning the control of VOC (volatile organic compound) emissions from printing works in terms of the AQA (Air Quality Act, 2004). As repeatedly reported in PPM’s pages in recent months, Printing SA has taken the lead in representing South Africa’s already-embattled printers to ensure equable legislation that suits local conditions. And, as previously noted, a number of options exist that allow printers to meet proposed thresholds, one of which is the purchase of pollution control equipment (where possibilities include regenerative thermal oxidisation, biological treatment or carbon adsorption).
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| The rise and rise of digital |  | The rise and rise of digitalKemtek and HP jointly hosted ‘VIP events’ at which the keynote speaker was Alon Bar-Shany writes Gill Loubser who was among the guests in Cape Town. The evolution of printing from Gutenberg’s 14th century invention of movable type to the 21st century revolution of ‘the cloud’; a world in which more than two billion people are online, six billion are mobile phone subscribers, and Facebook users have reached the one-billion mark . . . amazing facts such as these formed the introduction to a presentation by Alon Bar-Shany, HP Indigo’s charismatic general manager and VP, who took guests through this technological explosion during luncheons hosted jointly by HP and Kemtek in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
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| Fima firmly focused on growth |  | Fima firmly focused on growthFIMA (formerly trading as Treofan South Africa) has forged a sterling reputation as one of South Africa’s leading suppliers of high-quality BOPP (biaxially oriented polypropylene) films. While the company has seen its fair share of ups and downs in the last three years, what has remained constant is the team’s dedication to technical excellence and innovation. Emphasis is on providing focused sales and marketing services in tandem with ongoing R&D, especially the development of speciality films for flexible packaging and label applications.
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| ‘Raising the roof’ to deliver top-class multilayer films |  | ‘Raising the roof’ to deliver top-class multilayer filmsInvestment in the latest Windmöller & Hölscher seven-layer coextrusion line has opened up exciting new markets for Nampak Flexible, reports Karen Stretch.Nampak’s diverse packaging businesses are respected across Africa for superior product quality and innovation; and the group retains its leading spot through investment in best-qualified people and world-class production equipment.At Nampak Flexible in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal, they’ve literally ‘raised the roof’ to install the very latest Windmöller & Hölscher (W&H) seven-layer coextrusion line. It’s the first of its kind in South Africa and the most technically advanced extruder in the African market.Already home to several modern single- and three-layer blown film lines, the Pinetown site is the main hub for the production of food and other high-end flexible films.According to Clinton Farndell, Nampak Flexible MD, W&H has proved the perfect partner to meet the division’s future growth needs. ‘We’re very familiar with W&H’s quality processes, with our existing lines, so when we embarked on this project we consulted with Bruce Allen, MD of Ipex Machinery (W&H’s southern African representative), and Simon Pollock, W&H’s South African area sales manager, to deliver a blown film line that meets our requirements,’ he remarks. ‘The top-of-the-range seven-layer coex line was chosen for a number of reasons. We needed to increase production capacity and address market demand for speciality high-barrier film and laminates, specifically in the meat, dairy and high-end food sectors. We couldn’t achieve the latter on our existing machine, so the new line has given us the freedom to improve our product offering and deliver world-class multilayer and laminated formulations.’
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| New look, new orders |  | New look, new ordersAlong with a fresh corporate identity, Advanced Packaging Technology is also experiencing sales growth. Gary Kieswetter tells Emma Rowberry about a number of new orders on his books. The most newsworthy of Advanced Packaging Technology’s latest orders is for Comexi’s latest generation Flexo F2 printing press – the first of its kind on the African continent – although the South African customer is yet to be disclosed.
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| Further upgrade for Mpact |  | Further upgrade for MpactAt Mpact’s Epping plant, further additions to the BHS corrugator and the commissioning of Martin casemaker are enhancing capacity and board quality, writes Gill Loubser. It was barely six months ago that we reported the completion of a major upgrade at Mpact’s corrugated plant in Epping (Cape Town) (PPM Oct12, p87), the first of a two-phase modernisation of the corrugating line. Last year’s phase saw the replacement of two single facers with two BHS MF-P module facers at the wet end (added to five existing BHS splicers) plus an all-new dry end – from the rotary shear to the duplex stackers, including a new slitter-scorer and duplex knife.
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| Innovation and excellence |  | Innovation and excellenceLapack, an award-winning packaging company with a nationwide reputation for quality, innovation and personal service, continues to focus on product development to meet brand owners’ challenging requirements for effective packaging of fast moving consumer goods. Lapack, a technology-driven packaging company that operates as a hands-on family business, started life when brothers Eric and Bob Smith, plus their partner Sigi Marks, started producing plastic bottles in a disused butcher’s shop in Malvern, Johannesburg, but soon moved to their first small factory in nearby Cleveland. And that was the beginning of a noteworthy success story that culminated in Lapack’s now enviable reputation for outstanding packaging. It really is a family business in every sense. By the time Lapack was two years old, Eric and Bob’s sons were involved – Eric’s son Mark started life in the toolroom, while Bob’s sons Grant and Gary started in production and logistics respectively. Within its purpose-built premises in Germiston, Gauteng, where the company moved in 1994, there’s immense activity, with some 380 employees working three shifts a day, seven days a week to manufacture quality products from 20ml to 2,5-litres. ‘Our 156 converting machines and presses are operated by qualified personnel who have a broad understanding of our industry,’ states Mark Smith.
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| Food on the go |  | Food on the goCommercially prepared food, designed for convenience and on-the-go consumption, is an overriding trend in the packaged food industry. Emma Rowberry considers some of South Africa’s options. Grab-and-go soups, seasoned tuna in pouches, vacuum-packed and portioned meat, ready-to-brew and ready-to-drink coffee, liquid dairy products, and nutritional bars and snacks all play to the needs of busy consumers and change the way South African’s eat and cook.
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| Sacmi’s open house success |  | Sacmi’s open house successSacmi’s open house, attracting visitors from 21 countries, was dedicated to the launch of the innovative Formsleeve+ machine.Guests were welcomed by Vezio Bernardi, GM of the company’s Beverage Division. ‘Sacmi has significantly contributed to the development of avant-garde solutions for the beverage industry, offering competitive stand-alone solutions as well as integrated lines – from raw material to bottles, filling, labelling and quality control.Sacmi believes the Formsleeve+ is revolutionising sleeve labelling operations. It offers reduced costs and increased productivity – reaching 20 000 labels/roll and speeds up to 50 000 botttles/hour. Additionally, its modular design enables sleeves to be produced and applied from machine-direction oriented rolls.
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