Esko – Mark Andy Innovation Day

Published: April 08, 2025

Photo courtesy of Mark Andy

How to optimize and increase label production efficiency

Production process optimization, cost reduction, and increased efficiency are key challenges facing label printers in response to current market trends, and were the main topics discussed at the recent meeting organized by Esko and Mark Andy.  

The special Esko – Mark Andy Innovation Day, devoted to European label printers and converters, took place at the Mark Andy Technology Center in Warsaw on March 5th.  In addition to technology presentations from Esko attendees had the opportunity to take part in the live print demonstrations of Mark Andy presses.  These included the flexo Evolution Series E5 and UV inkjet hybrid, the Digital Series HD HighSpeed 1200.  Labels printed on both presses utilized advanced software solutions created by Esko, including Equinox, a tool dedicated to label and packaging production.

“The event opened our series of meetings scheduled in the Warsaw-based Technology Center for this year.  Some are organized in cooperation with our technology partners,” said Lena Chmielewska-Bontron, European Marketing Manager Mark Andy.  “This time we partnered with Esko, which offers a wide range of advanced hardware and software solutions used by our mutual customers.  The meeting attracted many attendees from Poland, Turkey, Croatia, Czech Republic and other countries.  For us, it was a great opportunity to showcase the new presses in Mark Andy's portfolio, including the fastest UV inkjet hybrid press on the market dedicated to label production, Digital Series HD HighSpeed 1200." 

Market trends and technological innovations
The first speaker was Jan De Roeck, Marketing Director Esko, who highlighted the dynamic global changes and uncertainty affecting both businesses and consumers.  He cited research results that outlined major business risks, the degree of preparedness for external crises, as well as preventative strategies implemented by companies. 

‘Revolution in prepress with Esko: From concept to print’
This was the title of the presentation given by Sam Coussens, Application Sales Manager at Esko.  He showed a complete workflow of a sample job file, from submission to final print, based on the Esko Automation Engine server. He covered successive stages of job processing: prepress, file approval, platemaking and printing. 

Innovations in Platemaking and Screening
The final Esko presentation was given by Nils Otto, Solution Architect for Color & Print.  He presented Esko solutions for flexo platemaking and screening processes.  He showcased optimized workflow for file preparation process, designed to bring measurable financial and environmental benefits.  He also highlighted Esko’s flexo platemaking systems from numerous implementations worldwide.  Finally, he spoke about standardization and calibration processes using the Esko Print Color Wizard tool.  When combined with the Equinox module, it creates a complete solution from press calibration to verification of final print.  This offers cost savings while reducing the negative environmental impact of the print production process.

Mark Andy Presses Demo
After the theory came the practical, with attendees taking part in a ‘live’ demonstration of two of the narrow-web printing presses installed at the Mark Andy Technology Center in Warsaw.  The demonstrations were led by Lukasz Chrusliński and Antony Cotton, European Sales Managers at Mark Andy. 

The event concluded with a Q&A session featuring representatives from Esko and Mark Andy. The questions covered technical aspects of the solutions presented as well as general topics including the current state of the market and the upcoming Labelexpo Europe trade fair, being held for the first time in Barcelona. 

"We’d like to thank all customers who participated in the Esko – Mark Andy Innovation Day and hope they gained valuable theoretical and practical knowledge.  Our Technology Center was designed as the place of learning, inspiration, experience exchange, competence building, and knowledge sharing.  In a few weeks’ time, we will be hosting students and pupils from printing colleges and high schools, and in June we are planning an Open House for customers from all over Europe.  We hope that all these events, scheduled for the first half of the year, will be a great prelude to the forthcoming Labelexpo Europe in September," concluded Lena Chmielewska-Bontron.

For more information, visit www.markandy.com.