Pharma Impurity Conclave 2023

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Sappi and PrintCity win the prestigious PrintStar 2014 Bronze award in the packaging category.

The goal of this innovative project was to demonstrate the possibilities of "Value Added Packaging" in as realistic a way as possible: The El Drago sample packaging was used to provide branded product manufacturers, designers, printers and print finishers with inspiration about how today’s technologies, substrates and processing solutions can be used in an optimised and efficient manner throughout the entire packaging value chain. The polygonal premium packaging design used for the El Drago submission validates that it is not out of the realm of possibility to produce an exclusive design with exceptional shelf appeal in an industrial inline production environment.

Complex finishing begins with the substrate
Sappi, whose 350 g/m2 Algro Design SBS carton was used for one of the two packaging options, believes beginning with a bright white carton board is the key to delivering a high quality finish and lower transport volumes while ensuring sufficient rigidity of the box to withstand handling and protect the product. The special shape of the packaging, with its filigree bevelled and inwardly curved sides, provides the ideal backdrop for the special-effect finishes with reflective features that were used in this project.

In producing this package, materials and surfaces such as leather, aluminium, chrome and gold were reproduced as realistically as possible. A silver laminate, hot foil stamping, multicolour pigments, gloss and matte varnishes, structural embossing and raised/blind embossing were extremely effective in highlighting exotic dragon motifs. "The El Drago sample packaging is perfectly designed to raise brand awareness and enhance the perceived value of the product it contains,” says Lars Scheidweiler, Product Group Manager for Rigid Packaging at Sappi. “The packaging must appeal to all of a prospective buyer’s senses, and that's exactly what it does!"

"Congratulations and thanks go to all the people who have contributed their significant passion, creativity and expertise in a successful collaboration to produce a wonderful example of Connection of Competence in practice," enthuses Rainer Kuhn, Managing Director of PrintCity GmbH. "Third place in such a competitive environment is good, but it is also an incentive for all of us to improve even further with a goal of getting the gold next year! We've still got a few more interesting concepts up our sleeves."
PrintCity is a strategic alliance of well renowned companies operating in the fields of printing, packaging and publishing via a 'connection of competence' across the entire value chain. PrintCity’s mission is to promote and support the value of print and packaging.

Sappi Europe is the leading European producer of coated fine paper for premium magazines, catalogues, books and high-end print advertising. With a head office in Brussels, Sappi Fine Paper Europe is known for innovation and quality. The range of graphic paper grades includes Magno, Quatro, Vantage, Royal, Galerie, GalerieArt and Jaz. Algro, Fusion, Leine and Parade are the brands for special labels, top liners, packaging paper as well as boxes. Sappi papers are manufactured in ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certified factories and all our plants in the EU are EMAS-registered. The Sappi Europe factories have product chain certifications in line with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programmes for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC).

Sappi Europe is a division of Sappi Limited (JSE), a global company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. Sappi Limited has over 14,000 employees and production sites in seven countries on three continents, sales offices in 50 countries and customers in more than 100 countries worldwide.