Two days, five trend topics and one overarching goal: making packaging printing more efficient and recyclable. At the 10th “Inno-PrintPack” Expert Meeting, held at the new Follmann Group event centre in Minden, manufacturers, converters and technology providers presented modern approaches to 7C fixed-palette printing, digital workflows, automation, inline inspection and recycling-friendly materials.
Higher efficiency through 7C/ECG printing
Several presentations highlighted the benefits of moving from spot colours to 4–7 process colours across flexo, offset, digital and gravure printing. GMG demonstrated efficiency gains of around 27% through shorter makeready and lower waste – in the example case up to €337,000 per year, plus additional order potential in the millions. Gallus showcased the advantages in the label segment: fewer colour changes, reduced wash cycles and combination forms enabling multiple jobs in one pass. Permapack AG confirmed these advantages in practice.
Zecher outlined suitable anilox specifications for 7C workflows, while Hybrid Software focused on colour management, process standardisation and ERP/prepress integration. Bobst presented smartGRAVURE and oneECG, a fully digitised gravure concept with inline colour measurement.
Real-time data, inspection and automation
Manroland Goss demonstrated how central data platforms analyse energy, material and production data in real time, reducing waste and improving OEE. AVT presented 100% inline inspection including spectral colour measurement for consistent and repeatable results.
A special highlight came from Esko, Asahi, Kongsberg and Allstein: a fully automated flexo workflow from plate imaging to robotic plate handling and automatic mounting. The result is a significant productivity boost and maximum process consistency.
Material innovations and regulatory compliance
Several contributions focused on recyclable packaging. Sun Chemical and Flint Group presented new PPWR-compliant ink and adhesive systems designed for mono-material packaging. Follmann showcased VOC-free, water-based inks that meet upcoming PFAS and heavy metal limits and do not interfere with recycling.
Transparent Paper introduced ultra-high-barrier BOPP films as aluminium foil replacements, heat-resistant grades for high-speed packaging lines and lightweight BOPP solutions for improved circularity. Yair Gellis addressed the challenges of printing on MDO-PE, where low surface energy and heat sensitivity require adapted SOPs, controlled drying and low web tension.
OCS presented inspection technologies for PCR-rich and bio-based materials, using multi-channel evaluation to reduce false alarms in noisy recycled films.
Anti-counterfeiting, pharma and medical packaging
KURZ SCRIBOS introduced ValiGate, a copy-protected, double-encrypted QR code that enables instant authentication via smartphone. PTS outlined requirements for tamper-evident pharmaceutical packaging and long-term code readability. VP Medical Packaging discussed low-migration UV inks, including sterilisation resistance, toxicological evaluation and E&L testing for medical applications.
Conclusion
The event clearly highlighted how 7C workflows, automation, real-time data analysis and inline inspection are reshaping packaging printing. At the same time, PPWR regulations are accelerating innovation in recyclable materials, inks and adhesives. Inno-PrintPack 2025 once again demonstrated the dynamic pace of development in the packaging printing industry.
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