Innovative Label for Colombian Coffee Sold in Arabia

Suprapak's experience in shrink sleeve production was a differentiating factor in obtaining the results achieved with Cofique coffee, and has been a key element in expanding the presence of its packaging materials to more than twenty countries around the world. “To our specialization in this type of product, and especially in shrink sleeves as narrow as 14 millimeters (which very few companies in the world can offer), we add our ability to produce short runs, comply with flexible delivery times, and provide personalized attention. All these factors have allowed us to grow and consolidate clients in countries such as Spain, the United States and England, among many others,” says Samuel Harf.

Competitive Quality

This shrink label for Cofique coffee comprises a set of properties that put Suprapak's technical capacity to the test. Diego Fernández explained the technical complexities faced during the production process to Mundo PMMI: “We managed to integrate all the finishing possibilities into a single job. It is a completely enveloping label, with an embossed brand name that allows consumer to feel the texture in the word of the coffee; with a matte registered lacquer in the dark printed areas; with cold foil over the silver brand and over it a different color to differentiate the 3 coffee varieties, in addition to transparent areas to show the coffee beans clearly”, Diego Fernández explained to Mundo when referring to the technical complexities faced during the production process.

This profusion of elements implied a very precise control of the register, to avoid any interfere of effects. "This label contains almost everything we can do on a machine, and it implied the challenge and pressure to respond to a customer entering a new market," says Juan Fernando Herrera. Suprapak responded with all his technological weaponry, including a recently acquired Mark Andy P5 flexographic press; top quality raw materials for the films from its vendors, Klöckner Pentaplast and Bonset American Corporation; inks from Nazdar, Zeller+Gmelin and Sun Chemical; and foil from Mastertech. The choice of different lineatures and the use of analog prepress were also key, all backed by the experience and professionalism of its of technicians and printers.

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Suprapak vendors are part of a quality chain in which the company acts as an ally when evaluating and updating of many of its developments. "Suprapak has become a pilot plant for many of our suppliers, which has been very beneficial for us and has allowed us to go one step further in offering our customers new possibilities for improvement and finishes in their products," highlights Diego Fernández.

Flexographic UV printing guaranteed an optimal anchoring on the material, a high level of gloss, and the possibility of integrating finishes during the process, including the application of cold foil. “On the Mark Andy P5 press in particular, we can say that its characteristics and technology assured us an excellent register. This is indispensable in a job like this, where one side is printed first and then the matte and varnish finishes that provide the brand setoff are applied in the second pass,” explains Diego Fernández. Thanks to the quality achieved in the printing process, the client, Saudi Goody, granted authorization for the label to be entered this year in the annual national print quality competition organized by the Colombian Association of Graphical Industry Communications -Andigraf-, where Suprapak has been a winner in previous years.

Crossing the Tunnel

The print consistency of a shrink label is tested as it is applied to the packaging by passing through a heat or steam shrink tunnel. High temperatures can adversely affect the performance of the inks, films, varnishes or foils used. “It is necessary to guarantee good anchoring of the inks when printing, and sometimes we use varnishes to prevent them from adhering to the packaging. It is also essential that the materials offer a good level of shrinkage for the label to adhere perfectly to the packaging. If the materials show very high caliber variations, they can jam the machine. If the caliber is too low, the labels tend to break," says Juan Fernando Herrera, referring to the application process onto glass containers.

But this is not the only difficulty. Since the containers are cold when entering the tunnel, they absorb part of the radiated heat, which prevents the labels from contracting properly and causes wrinkles and other imperfections. “Therefore, it is essential to find a balance between temperatures and speeds, and the recommendation we give some of our clients is that they pre-heat the containers to ensure better performance of the labels,” explains Juan Fernando.

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The matte finish is another aspect that proves difficult during application of the label. “The challenge is inside the tunnel because, depending on the area where it receives the heat, that matte finish can become milky or opaque, or detach," says Juan Herrera. The strategy against this obstacle consisted of establishing in advance the best conditions for the sleeves applicator machine and the resistance tunnel with three chambers, in such a way that the matte finish on the outside of the label did not suffer as much from the heat conditions. “We also address this challenge in the design itself, defining the places where the label bends and forms, thus eliminating the need for a person to turn the packaging manually to receive the heat in a certain way and guarantee that the matte varnish will work properly,” notes Juan Fernando Herrera.

Masterful Work

In developing the high technical complexity label for Cofique coffee, the dedication and professionalism of Suprapak's human team was essential. They interacted permanently with the customer’s packaging design engineers. Suprapak received the container and its mechanical drawings to determine the label’s dimensions, which the design team translated into art. Suprapak designers then worked with the client to agree on some details and anticipate the distortions the label could suffer in the application process. Later, before starting the prepress, assembly and press stages, PDF sketches of the blue prints were made and client approvals obtained, followed by a Sherpa sample with a very close approximation to the printing result. Reviewing the process stages, Diego Fernández states that, "In the Cofique coffee label case, all the credit goes to our team, who fully offered their support and experience."

Samuel Harf, addressing the company's origins, remembers how that professionalism was built: “Little by little we adapted our technologies to those that were appearing on the market to build converting and printing equipment. We started to build our own presses. Then we imported a small machine from Italy, later an eight-color machine from Brazil, until we finally settled on the Mark Andy machines, which have given us excellent results. Parallel to these technological developments, we train the people who work with us and who know all this technology very thoroughly. It has now been two generations from the moment we started to manufacture shrink labels, and all that knowledge and experience, which have been transmitted through time, are probably the greatest asset we have as a company.”