Live, close-up experiences: The KURZ LABEL WEEKS in-house trade fair exceeds all expectations
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After two years of pandemic-related trade fair cancellations, LEONHARD KURZ wanted to finally make the future of surface finishing come to life again. KURZ LABEL WEEKS - a multi-week in-house trade fair on the premises of the company’s Fürth headquarters - was ultimately created from the desire to bring the industry together at a large-scale in-person event. After some initial skepticism whether the format would be accepted by customer and partner companies, as well as representatives of the specialist media, one thing has become clear: The KURZ LABEL WEEKS were a complete success and not only exceeded all expectations but were eventually even extended.
A total of almost 400 visitors from 19 countries accepted the invitation to Germany. They were all able to get a first-hand impression of KURZ’s extensive expertise - not only as a provider of sustainable transfer products, but above all of efficient, innovative machines. Various demonstrations offered visitors the opportunity to experience the advanced technologies live and up close. A particular highlight was the possibility of implementing individual tests on site. Visitors were able to send their own substrates and designs to KURZ in advance - and these jobs were then implemented together with KURZ employees in Fürth.
Consistently positive feedback
“I find such an in-house approach much more informal and pleasant than a large trade fair,” explains Birger Christiansen, Managing Director of Ellerhold Glücksburg GmbH. “LABEL WEEKS also inspired us to focus even more on sustainability.”
KURZ LABEL WEEKS opened on June 20, 2022 and was originally scheduled to end on October 28. However, due to the continuing high level of interest, consistently positive feedback, and the continuing high demand for individual appointments, the fair was quickly extended by a further six weeks until December 9, 2022. Christopher Gabel, Managing Director of Goetz + Müller GmbH, was equally enthusiastic about the event: “I really liked the format, as we could discuss all possibilities in a relatively private setting and take the time to find out about all the different aspects KURZ presented.” Marco Jannsen, Operations Manager at Ellerhold Glücksburg GmbH, adds: “We left with plenty of excellent suggestions and will now try to implement as many of them as possible.”
Impressive design, high quality, sustainability
Digital finishing was one of the focal points of the in-house trade fair, and the Groups latest metallization machines were presented live at the trade fair: The DM-UNILINER 2D with inkjet technology by the KURZ subsidiary MPRINT and the DM-UNILINER 3D from the subsidiary STEINEMANN DPE. Both modules offer the greatest possible flexibility as they can be used independently of the existing printing system and process.
Another highlight was the presentation of the material-saving DISTORUN® cold transfer unit, which enables the reprinting of free surfaces on already processed transfer products - entirely with sustainability in mind. In general, KURZ attached great importance to cold-transfer finishing - not least because it represents a long-lasting alternative to laminates. The KURZ LABLE WEEKS portfolio was rounded off by a presentation of KURZ’s diverse hot-stamping finishing solutions, which set products apart from the crowd with their impressive array of colors, plus diffractive as well as semi-transparent and haptic effects.
More than just a label
Functional labels with added value for manufacturers, brands, and customers are also very much on trend. In this segment, KURZ presented a brand-new security label developed in cooperation with its subsidiary SCRIBOS, which offers reliable protection against counterfeiting and at the same time allows end customers to integrate various interaction options or bonus programs. To retrieve the stored information, the label’s QR code simply needs to be scanned with a smartphone.
Thermotransfer technology, which also had its own section at KURZ LABEL WEEKS, also falls into the product safety category. It is already possible today to achieve efficient and sustainable label designs with Thermal Transfer Ribbons (TTR). LEONHARD KURZ has further advanced this technology and implemented additional properties (TTR Unique UV and TTR Unique VEROSPEC®), which can be used to equip labels and other TTR prints with customer-specific security features.
A successful format with future potential
It goes without saying that the host is delighted with the successful event. Just like its visitors, KURZ also leaves the trade fair with plenty of ideas and inspiration. Markus Hoffmann, Member of the Board, Senior Vice President Business Area Industrial & Business Area Application at LEONHARD KURZ, sums up: “If you want to remain successful in the future, you have to make the right decisions today. We had the privilege of talking to many of our customers in great detail during the KURZ LABEL WEEKS. This allows us to work out what we need to do in the next few years in order to continue to make our customers successful in the long term.”
