Actega, manufacturer of specialty coatings, inks, adhesives and sealing compounds for the print and packaging industry, is looking to build on the past year’s achievements and successes of its Actega Metal Print business, responsible for bringing the pioneering EcoLeaf sustainable metallisation technology to market.
New Managing Director of Actega Metal Print, Harald Jasper, who took up this leadership position in January, predicts continued success in 2023. With his extensive industry experience, Jasper will implement his own expert vision and strategies as well as maintain some of the innovative approaches to advancing EcoLeaf’s success established in 2022 by Stephan Plenz. Thorsten Kröller, Actega Chairman, acknowledged that Plenz has provided an invaluable outside-in look on EcoLeaf technology, with major product and cost improvements made under his vision, ensuring that they are future-proofed against ever-changing customer demands.
The success and appeal of EcoLeaf can be largely attributed to the impressive sustainability benefits of its foil-less decoration process for metallic embellishments. Initial calculations from Actega’s Life Cycle Assessment find that EcoLeaf can achieve a carbon footprint reduction of more than 50% compared to cold and hot foil processes.
However, this unique metallisation process not only delivers a more sustainable production model for labels and packaging printers and the brands they serve, but also positively impacts costs and production times without compromising quality. It is all of these benefits combined that make EcoLeaf such an attractive and potentially transformative technology for the industry. This potential has been realised by many brands and printers in 2022, which have already incorporated EcoLeaf into their production facilities across Europe.
Paolo Grasso, Sales Director for EcoLeaf at Actega, explains: “2022 has not been without its challenges but, despite this, it has been a year with a lot to be proud of. Some of the most significant developments on the road to EcoLeaf’s market adoption were the announcements of our first digital partner, Springfield Solutions, and our first OEM partner, AB Graphic International (ABG). In addition to these significant and valuable collaborations helping us drive the conversion to sustainable metallisation forward, numerous other forward-thinking companies committed to orders and installed EcoLeaf units in 2022.”
Advances in developing EcoLeaf metallic embellishments for use across even more packaging applications continued in 2022. Trials in 2023 include its use for decorating shrink sleeves, in-mold labels and tube laminates. By exploring this wide-ranging variety of applications, the Actega team aims to bring the benefits of this innovative technology to as many businesses and printed products as possible in the future.
“Overall, it has been a rewarding year for Actega Metal Print and the EcoLeaf story continues to be one of success. We are excited to maintain this positive outlook in 2023 with new management driving the company forward. We are confident that EcoLeaf’s market adoption will, once again, increase next year and the entire Actega Metal Print team is fully committed to making this happen. Being able to see the many benefits of this ground-breaking technology continue to deliver results for our customers, brands and the wider industry is what drives us, and we are sure many more will benefit from embracing EcoLeaf technology in 2023,” concluded Grasso.
