Luciano Venturi (left), owner of the company, with a machine operator at the new Alprinta 74V.

With a million and 500 thousand hectolitres of (Denomination of Controlled Origin) wine, Verona is Italy’s first province for the production of DOC wines. A natural vocation of the area that has favored Grafiche Seven SpA’s debut as a wine paper label producer.

Ever since, the company has come a long way and now also counts important customers in the soft drinks, mineral water and oil sector. It has in fact been able to look beyond, extending both the range of labels it can make (roll-fed, in mould and sleeve) as well as the printable materials (paper and plastic), choosing to accompany it sheet print machines, ideal for middle-to-small production lots, roto-offset lines that proved to be competitive in terms of versatility as well as in start-up, print and format change speed.

This, summing things up, is the path taken by Grafiche Seven that continues to invest in research and technology in order to satisfy the new needs and demands.
«Five years ago we installed new machines for offset and screenprint of self-adhesive labels, since the market, and in particular the wine market, was moving in that direction. », president Luciano Venturi tells us. «The year following in turn we bought the Muller Martini A74 offset press to be able to also print onto plastic supports. », the president adds.

«But after having noticed that our panorama of reference was changing even further, particularly in relation to the progressive demand for plastic labels, we didn’t hang around and suited our production capacities accordingly; we had to be even more competitive in terms of prices, print speeds, flexibility of format change and delivery times.
This is why, when we found out that Muller Martini had come up with a variable format roto-offset, capable of rapidly changing jobs and at the same time offering higher speeds, shorter machine start-up time and better product finishing (thanks to cutting and offcut recovery stations) we immediately saw the opportunity of strengthening our offer and recovering shares of the market».

The second rotary offset press
«The experience we gained over the years in offset technology and our faith in Muller Martini, that has shown itself to be a reliable and dependable partner, guided our decision. It was a choice that was almost obligatory», Venturi continues, «also in virtue of some considerations of a general order: years ago, in fact, runs were higher, about 15-20 million labels for mineral water or milk; nowadays, due to the increasingly number of promotional campaigns, the graphic variants have multiplied and consequently the production lots have been reduced ».

Label production on Alprinta 74V.

In this case, offset technology can offer interesting opportunities. «At all counts, the first Muller Martini press», Grafiche Seven sales head Marco Bellandi underlines, “allowed us to enter the roll-fed plastic label market. With the purchase,of Alprinta 74V (further development of the installed machine at present) at the end of 2006 not only will we be able to increase our production capacity by 40-50% compared to the one of a sheet fed machine, but we will also be able to offer ourselves as a “solution provider” in the sleeve sector that is continuously developing, by ensuring among other things the technical and graphic consultancy needed in the product launch phase.
The new variable format Alprinta 74V, with a print width of 74 cm and a speed up to 350 m/min, also enables us to create in-mould labels and sleeves of guaranteed quality, adequately responding to the image demands of the mineral water, fruit juice and dairy sectors».

Thanks to recent investments, Grafiche Seven will be able to provide roll-fed and sleeve BOPP labels (from 35 to 47 micron), BOPP in-mould labels (from 75 to 90 microns) and PVC, PET and OPS sleeves (of 45, 50 and 60 microns). With this offer the concern will have new opportunities for growth and development.

Daniela Binario
(Quelle: Italia Imballagio, Converting Nr.3-4/07)

A Touch of Class Founded in 1969 by the current president, Luciano Venturi, Grafiche Seven SpA has developed over the years from a smallscale craft- to an industrial concern winning sizeable shares of the Italian market: currently it can boast customers the tenure of Acqua Minerale San Benedetto, Birra Peroni, Bolla, Cantine Pasqua, Carma, Conserve Italia, Gaudianello, Gruppo Italiano Vini, Latte Trento, Levissima e San Pellegrino (gruppo Nestlé), Maniva, Newlat, Olitalia, Piccini, Rocchetta, Sant’Anna, Spumador, Toschi, Uliveto, Zonin, Zuegg... The Verona based concern (that in 2003 obtained UNI EN ISO 9001:2000 certification) can make labels, catalogues, brochures, flyers and books, offering a series of additional processes to embellish the materials including relief, lamina gilding, burnishing, inline and off machine lacquering - and thanks to the buy-up of Rotoseven in 2002 - the concern can offer pressure sensitive labels, made with offset print, screenprint and typographical print technologies. All the processing phases, from the graphic concept to the final product, are carried out inhouse (in the preprint, assembly, print, lacquering, cutting, blank preparation and packaging sections). The entire process is controlled by a computerised system, linked to a series of latest generation auxiliary devices. The company, that pays a lot of attention to innovation, can also count on a modern R&D laboratory, capable of sampling the most particular of colors and carry out various analyses on raw materials and finished products.

An ad hoc configuration for Alprinta 74V  «Alprinta variable format 74V - Muller Martini sales manager Andrea Pirola explains - is an 8 color reel-to-reel machine (of which 6 offset and 2 flexo), set for operating with corona treatment. Configured for the print of both paper and plastic film, it is fitted with a longitudinal cutting station and features hot air UV drying ovens (for the two flexo units). It works with automatic register control systems, automatic inking control and turnaround bar for front and reverse side printing in one single run».