Jürgen Langbein GmbH, a manufacturer of gourmet sauces, has equipped its packaging lines with large character coders from Diagraph.
Direct printing replaces labeler
In 2018, the Jürgen Langbein plant decided to simplify the labeling of cardboard boxes and replace it with direct printing. In the company, the labels of the bottles and jars have long been provided with MHD using printers from Allen Coding. Since they were very satisfied with the service and the equipment, the new printing systems were also to come from Allen Coding.
Direct printing is very economical compared to labeling
In an initial test installation on a packaging line, a Diagraph IJ4000 large character coder was mounted, which to date provides up to 10,000 cartons daily with a high-resolution print image.
At the same time, the printer is extremely economical, because almost 340,000 prints are made with one bottle of ink. Bernd Deukert, Production Manager at Jürgen Langbein, tells us: “Compared to labeling, there is also no need to stock labels. In addition, label rejects and high wear on print heads were very costly for the label printers.”
Print data comes directly from the merchandise management system
The more than 200 different print images for the cartons are all stored in the enterprise resource planning system (ERP) and are sent directly to the printer. Since different products are packed on the line every day, this means a huge time saving. There is also no longer any need for line downtime when changing label rolls by hand.
Some facts about the Diagraph IJ4000 large character printer
The Diagraph IJ4000 produces printed images up to 100 mm high. Up to 4 print heads with different print images can be controlled with one controller. The ink can be refilled centrally at the control during operation. Network connection is easily possible to avoid operating errors.
Large character printing catches on
Following the successful deployment at the Kaltenkirchen plant, the packaging line at Menzi in Versmold, a sister company, was also equipped with a Diagraph IJ4000. In the meantime, the second packaging line at the Kaltenkirchen plant has also been converted to large character coding and is running to our complete satisfaction.
Mr. Schäfer, the area manager for labeling, summarizes the experience with direct printing as follows: “We are the premium company among soup manufacturers, and quality is our top priority. With Allen Coding, the quality of service has always convinced us, and the new labeling systems are also exactly to my taste.”
