Europe has historically been on the cutting-edge of label printing trends. From sustainability and regulations to digital printing, this region has been resilient and opportunistic when planning for the future.

Opportunities have been met with challenges, too. Much like in North America, label suppliers and converters have had to grapple with trade concerns, tariffs, and supply chain difficulties. All of this occurs with customers wanting higher quality label products than ever before.

“Global issues, like the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, coupled with inflation, have had an impact – as did the Covid pandemic,” explains Timo Donati, European sales manager, Mark Andy. “The availability of electronic components became more difficult, and prices for raw materials, like steel and electronics, have increased significantly. These developments have affected investment planning and delivery times.

“However, we remain optimistic,” adds Donati. “Mark Andy has a strong structure in place and is well prepared for these challenges. In fact, we’re proud to say that we increased our market share in Europe during these difficult times, which shows the strength and reliability of our technology and support.”

According to Donati, the European label market has changed quite a bit in a short period of time. There is growing interest in customized presses, such as hybrid machines with 8-color inkjet and six or more flexo units. Plus, multi-web presses are also growing in popularity. 

Europe has seen a greater transition from conventional UV curing to LED or hybrid systems, as well. In these cases, operators can use both LED and UV cassettes depending on the varnishes or inks needed. 

“Press widths are also increasing,” says Donati. “More customers now invest in wider machines like 17” (430mm) or more.  This shows that print shops are looking for higher efficiency, flexibility, and automation in their production departments.”

Greater demands

The trend toward enhanced technology is designed to meet demand for more complex label applications. In Europe, multi-layer labels, such as those with three or more layers, are increasingly in demand because of new regulations and the need to place more information on the label. 

“There is also a clear rise in special applications like linerless labels and RFID solutions,” comments Donati. “Many customers ask for better solutions for variable data printing, especially with barcodes or QR codes. In general, print runs are getting shorter, and the number of different SKUs is increasing rapidly. This pushes the need for more flexible and efficient production technology.”

To meet many of these requirements, automation will play a significant role in future of European label printing. “Automation in the production environment will continue to grow in importance as it becomes more difficult to recruit and retain skilled staff,” remarks Donati.  “Many print shops already ask for systems that reduce manual steps and operator dependency, but this is not just a European issue – it’s global. We also foresee AI technologies being integrated step by step to improve process control and efficiency.”

While flexo remains a very strong and important technology in the European market, hybrid printing technology will impact the coming years.  “Hybrid presses combine the advantages of digital – like variable data and short runs – with the finishing and inline converting capabilities of flexo,” notes Donati. “This combination brings high flexibility and cost-efficiency. More customers are now looking at hybrid systems as a future-proof solution. So, while flexo stays essential, hybrid will play a bigger and more strategic role in the next phase of market development.”

Sustainable future

Sustainability is now a key factor for most of Mark Andy’s customers in Europe. Europe has long been seen as 5-10 years ahead of the North American label market when it comes to the environment. 

Today, printers want to reduce waste during make-ready and the production process.

“Material savings and energy efficiency are very important to them and their customers,” explains Donati. “LED curing systems help reduce energy consumption, and we see them being installed more and more. Also, many of our customers are now monitoring the entire production workflow, using tools like Mark Andy’s own sMArt link, to optimize performance and reduce their environmental footprint. This also supports more transparency and better planning in production.”