On 17 March 2026, Gallus anounced that Italian label specialist Artes Etichette installed the world’s first Gallus Five digital press in December 2025, just three months after it was shown at Labelexpo in Barcelona. The hybrid press, according to the Gallus press release, is already enabling Artes (based in Arcisate, just an hour north of Milan) to migrate a significant portion of its conventional workload over to digital, thereby saving setup time and materials.
Within months of installation, Artes is leveraging the industrial capacity of the Gallus Five to handle a growing share of its production, particularly for food label applications, while also producing labels across chemicals and detergents, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and durable goods. For the new press, routine jobs are 10,000 linear meters, while it has been successful at runs up to 60,000 linear meters.
The Gallus Five is increasingly becoming Artes’ preferred platform, “Quality is being taken for granted,” states Luca Airoldi, CEO of Artes. “There isn’t a customer who says, ‘make me less beautiful labels for a lower price.’ Labels must be perfect, and the Gallus Five delivers the precision required to hit that standard every time.”
Developed jointly with Heidelberg, the Gallus Five was designed to bring inkjet and flexo hybrid production into mainstream production at scale, addressing volume-driven markets where consistent, industrial-level speed and efficiency are critical. The press uses a newly developed Heidelberg Saphira UV05 ink set with a high-pigmentation formulation that cuts ink consumption and lowers the total cost of ownership.
According to Airoldi, the ability to respond quickly to urgent jobs, thanks to the inherent nature of digital printing, is a key advantage. As he explains, “The Gallus Five allows us to meet challenging delivery times. When customer demands are urgent, quality and dependability are paramount. With this machine, it is very difficult to make mistakes.” Operating at up to 100 meters per minute, the Gallus Five’s combination of color stability, predictable registration, reduced waste, and shorter makeready times significantly streamline operations. Airoldi adds, “With conventional technologies, if you have four or five colors, you need to factor in time to start up. With digital, you save time in setup and materials. There are no ink leftovers, no startup waste. This means that a complex job that may have previously required several hours of preparation can now be started in around 30 minutes.”
The new installation builds on nearly five decades of experience Artes has with Gallus machinery, dating back to traditional flexo and letterpress systems from the 1970s. In recent years, the company’s pioneering digital experience is impressive, with the installation of two Gallus Labelfire presses in 2018 and 2022, followed by Europe’s first Gallus One in 2024.
The new Gallus Five was printing within weeks of its December 2025 installation date, before year-end, and entered full production at the beginning of 2026. The press now operates two shifts per day, for a total of 15 hours’ production, and is already running at full capacity. According to Artes, the installation process was smooth and efficient, supported by its prior experience with Gallus digital technology, close collaboration with Gallus technicians, and the broader Heidelberg customer support network. “The installation was very fast and well-coordinated, without any problems. We already have experience with the Gallus One, so we prepared everything before the machine arrived. It was all quite quick and simple,” Airoldi explains. Furthermore, its modular, flexible design under Gallus’ System to Compose platform concept also enables Artes to scale and adapt production as application requirements evolve, supporting greater flexibility and long-term investment security without disrupting existing operations.
“Seeing the Gallus Five deliver immediate, measurable impact for customers like Artes, as well as providing all-important assurances for long-term success, reinforces how Gallus, as a system integrator, is successfully supporting converters in deploying digital production reliably in real production environments,” concludes Dario Urbinati, CEO of Gallus Group. “Artes Etichette’s success demonstrates how hybrid technology has moved beyond potential and niche applications to become a true industrial production solution. Innovations only matter when they create tangible value for customers, and this installation clearly shows how the Gallus Five enables converters to scale digital efficiently while maintaining the highest quality standards. As more customers begin to realize these benefits, we’re excited to see this technology drive the next phase of smart, connected printing at an industrial level, across the label industry.”
