Durst’s G3 press platform signal a new digital era

Durst marked its presence in Barcelona by underlining its twin priorities of growth and innovation. As the South Tyrol based company prepared to celebrate its 90th anniversary next year, it used the event to highlight financial expansion, tangible progress on sustainability and the unveiling of its new G3 platform, which it described as a milestone in digital label production. In India, Durst is represented by Chennai-based Newgen Printronics India. Durst CEO Christoph Gamper opened the presentation by stressing that Durst remained privately owned, with no public listing or ven ture capital involvement. “We are a private com pany with EUR 422 million in sales revenue, 4,200 active installations worldwide and more than 550 label presses in the field,” he explains. The company employed more than 1,150 peo ple, held around 300 patents and operated through 33 subsidiaries, joint ventures and asso ciated companies in 129 countries. In India, Durst is represented by Chennai based Newgen Printronics India.

Simplicity and performance
Thomas Macina, director for global sales labels and flexible packaging at Durst, outlined the framework guiding development of the new G3 platform. “Every machine we design is guided by three words, simplicity, reliability and perfor mance. This is what the market needs,” he states. He added that converters no longer wanted digital presses limited to promotional work. “Label converters want digital to take on main production, not just short campaigns. That means solutions must be simple to run, reliable in output and high in performance.” Macina described the G3 as the continuation of a cycle of innovation that began with the Tau 150, advanced with the Tau 330 and was consol idated with the RSC platform. “The G3 platform is a milestone for us. It continues the productiv ity leap we began with the Tau 330 and the RSC, but with a completely new foundation,” he says.

Automation and reliability
Martin Leitner, director for product manage ment labels and flexible packaging at Durst, pre sented the technical details of the new press. “With G3 we offer two models, the Core running 61-metre/min at up to 340-mm width, and the Peak reaching 100-metre/min at widths up to 510-mm,” he explains. Both printed at 1200x1200-dpi and supported UV or LED inks with an extended CMYKOVG gamut. Automation was a central feature. “We have automated setup for substrates and registration, so even challenging materials are handled with less waste and faster changeover,” Leitner says. The redesigned interface simplified operation for new staff, addressing an industry-wide skills shortage. To reduce downtime, Durst developed a material edge protection system combining mechanical and software controls. “It helps eliminate the risk of damage to printheads, cut ting service interruptions,” Leitner explains. The G3 also incorporated the Hawkeye inspection system, which used AI to detect and compensate for defects in real time. “Our Hawkeye inspection corrects and compensates on the fly, pushing print reliability to new lev els,” he says.

Hybrid flexibility and digital ecosystem
Durst highlighted the configuration flexibility of its hybrid platforms. Converters could inte grate up to six flexo stations, offset or screen printing units and advanced die-cutting mod ules. Leitner explained that this allowed con verters to tailor presses to specific brand contracts and reconfigure them as requirements changed. Improved register control and auto mation in die-cutting extended the efficiency of hybrid workflows. Both executives stressed that Durst was build ing a digital ecosystem extending beyond hard ware. ERP integration, webshops, colour management, ripping satellites and analytics were becoming integral. Leitner described a case where an American customer printed around 75 kilometres a week of variable data labels, with volumes doubling every few months. “The machine can print fast, but the software environment needs to grow also,” he says. Durst decentralised ripping and added ren dering satellites to speed workflow. It invested in more than 100 software engineers and expanded customer success management ser vices. New tools such as Durst Insights enabled data tracking for downtime, operator perfor mance and overall productivity.

Sustainability and future direction
Carbon footprint certification was now availa ble across all Durst digital presses, providing converters with documentation of emissions over a machine’s lifetime. “Brands are starting to ask what is the CO2 footprint of that label,” Martin explains. “We go back to our suppliers to acquire the data on inks and machines, so we can provide customers with the full picture.” Durst recognised that most emissions occurred during the operational life of its machines. This was why features that reduced waste, increased speed and improved reliability were central to its sustainability approach. Summing up, Leitner described the compa ny’s mission. “The direction is clear, to lead the conversion from conventional to sustainable digital label production,” he says.