PETpla.net Insider 10 / 2020

LABELLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 10/20 www.petpla.net 50 An enduring partnership PE Labellers and Spumador, part of the Refresco Group, have been working together for nearly 40 years. Their successful relationship has been founded on collaboration and continuous innovation and improvement. Well-established Italian bottler Recoaro, which was founded in 1927, was acquired in 2016 by a com- pany with an even longer pedigree: 132-year-old Spumador, a long- standing Italian beverages enterprise, with an international reputation. The two companies are part of Refresco Group, a Euronext-listed company, which is headquartered in The Neth- erlands and is the largest independ- ent beverage bottling company in the world. It has a total of 60 sites in Europe and North America, focused on manufacturing fruit juices and soft drinks for retailers, and contract manufacturing for A-brands. Spumador alone produces 1.3 billion bottles a year in five plants in Italy, across 24 brand lines. Bottled products range from carbonated and still drinks to mineral waters, and from juices and soft drinks to alcoholic drinks. Products are offered across a range of packaging formats, includ- ing disposable and returnable glass, aseptic and standard PET, and bricks and cans. Its distribution extends across large-scale channels, the Horeca channel and discount stores. Recoaro Terme, in the province of Vicenza, is known for its min- eral spring waters. They come from springs in the heart of the Small Dolomites, whose mountains protect the springs from pollution and impart a distinct chemical makeup, with a balanced mineral salt content and low levels of sodium. Recoaro brand water is packaged and distributed in bottles of various shapes and sizes. PE Labellers Group was established in 1974 and is headquartered in Porto Mantovano, Mantua, Italy. It has been known as a leading producer of auto- matic labelling machines for nearly 50 years; it has been working with Spuma- dor for almost 40 years. The birth of the partnership Tullio Tiozzo, Managing Director at Spumador “The collaboration was born in the 1980s, when we felt the need to rely on a flexible and innovative supplier that could guarantee excellent after-sales service,” said Tullio Tiozzo, Spuma- dor’s Managing Director. “Our compa- nies have had a very similar develop- ment, targeting innovation, which the markets demand year after year. This way of doing business has rewarded both our companies, making them a point of reference in their sectors.” The relationship that has evolved is based on respect and sharing knowledge. Bruno Negri, Senior VP, PE Labellers “We are proud to play an impor- tant role in the Recoaro production chain,” said Bruno Negri, Senior VP of PE Labellers. “Listening to customer needs and meeting every produc- tion requirement have proven to be the most successful factors over the years. Even before being a winning business strategy, it was the PE phi- losophy. It’s in our DNA.” Among the innovative design solu- tions PE has created over the years are rotary labelling machines com- bined with independent self-adhesive stations; cold glue for fiscal and guarantee seals; linear sleeve models with thermo-retraction tunnels; special optional solutions such as optical orientation systems; label presence control; and correct position verifica- tion of applied labels. Machines are designed as ergo- nomic solutions and strongly oriented toward energy saving, as demanded by companies operating in beverage, food and dairy, personal and home care, and the chemical and pharma- ceutical industries. Meeting changing demands Packaging method standards in the mineral water market and the bev- erage market in general have become highly demanding. Bottlers who use PET increasingly require lighter bot- tles, with rPET and new formats that are both ergonomic and with a strong appeal and image. Glass is also making something of a comeback, requiring new formats and attractive labels. “The market requires continuous development, both in the shapes of the bottles and in the labels, which should have increasingly greater impact on the eyes of consumers, says Tiozzo “Today, in order to meet the challenges posed by an increas- ingly competitive market, we must continue to invest in new technologies to enable the raising of the standards of productivity and reduce produc- tion costs. We require more flexible machines and faster format changeo- vers. Modular machines are the answer to current needs.” Two new P.E. Labellers S.p.A. Hall 7 | Booth 348 SL (Smart & Lean) – Modular Rotary labeller