ACTEGA, a manufacturer of specialty coatings, inks, adhesives and sealing compounds for the print and packaging industry, has announced the year’s achievements and successes of its metal print business, responsible for bringing its Ecoleaf sustainable metallization technology to the market.
The business predicted continued success in 2023 with Harald Jasper, Managing director of ACTEGA Metal Print, set to take on a leadership position in January. With Jasper’s 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 this year by Stephan Plenz.
Thorsten Kröller, ACTEGA chairman, announced the appointment of Harald Jasper as the new general manager of ACTEGA Metal Print. A founding member and a key player in developing this innovative technology at ACTEGA Metal Print, Harald’s expertise has been integral in establishing Ecoleaf’s current structure.
Kröller expressed his gratitude to Stephan Plenz, who has provided an 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 found that Ecoleaf can achieve a carbon footprint reduction of more than 50% compared to cold and hot foil processes.
This unique metallization 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.
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 announcement 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 metallization 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 Metal Print team is fully committed to making this happen,” concluded Paolo Grasso.
