SMART DESIGN

34 | L&L
(L-R) Giuseppe Cillario, Gianmario Cillario,
Luciano Cillario, Gian Franco Cillario
press is automatic and visually checked
for quality using BST’s inspection system
just as the presses in Italy do. Currently
it is the only press of its kind in North
America.
Cillario fully intends to increase both
PS and offset capability in 2013. He says,
'This strategy gives clients options rather
than our business being un-switchable.'
One of the main advantages to pressure
sensitive labels is the improved efficiency
in bottling application. Wet-glue labels
must fight for performance, but in some
cases can be more cost effective. Much
of the organic growth in the business
has come from wet-glue opportunities
while new business has typically been
pressure sensitive. By offering both
technologies, Eurostampa NA is able to
deliver whatever a client prefers.
SERVICE INNOVATION
‘The first two years starting out was
tough,’ admits Cillario. ‘To establish a
relationship with confidence it took three
years to prove that Eurostampa was in
fact capable of helping big brands find
solutions.’
It was only a matter of time before
potential clients realized that service,
reliability and credibility are taken
seriously within the Eurostampa culture.
Cillario says, ‘It's a challenge to be a
leader. Quality is a fact. You have to be
able to offer service.’
For this reason Eurostampa uses a
proprietary system to ensure there are no
mixed labels. The repercussions found
with applying the incorrect label to a
package, particularly bottles of alcohol,
can be devastating and put the brand
in serious trouble. When servicing such
massive businesses with huge volumes
of labels, accuracy and security on
delivery and on the shelf is imperative for
a brand’s equity.
If a customer chooses they can
include a discrete data matrix code, or
QR code, on any Eurostampa printed
label, which holds the part number and
the job number of the label and brand.
All labels are run through a specially
LABELS&LABELING
engineered Prati conveyer machine
equipped with vision systems where
the codes are automatically scanned
and incorrect labels tossed aside. This
highly effective process eliminates any
possibility for labels to be mixed.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Cillario explains Eurostampa’s 50
percent growth last year: ‘It’s about
the culture; we make sure everyone
is engaged. With more machines and
continued investment, we need our
employees to embrace flexibility and
be willing to put in the overtime – and
feel good about it and the company.
‘The customer is the core of our
business and the mentality of our
people both in Europe and the US
reflects on our service. Satisfied
employees are naturally customer
oriented and are willing to pay attention
to the little details that make a big
difference.’
The company regularly reinvests
profits back into the business, making
associates feel their importance and
experience first-hand that the business
is more than just a profit center.
For production consistency, general
quality and associate comfort, the
entire plant is monitored closely
for humidity and temperature. The
converter recycles what it can and
is powered 100 percent by wind,
paying extra for this alternative energy
sourcing. Any solvents are re-cleaned
and used again and again.
INTERNALLY GLOBAL
Communication is essential. Being
linked closely to headquarters in Italy,
standardizing and improving quality
together has allowed the US operation to
produce at the same level as its European
operations. The parent plant provides
ample support both through modern media
and by transferring employees between
locations for regular training and knowledge
sharing. The plants have a set weekly video
conference to promote camaraderie and a
sense of unity.
Eurostampa NA recently transitioned to
use a proprietary ERP system developed
by the company’s Italian engineers. The
shift has helped to further settle the lines of
communication between the two locations.
The changeover required seven people from
Italy to install the system, staying in the city
for a few weeks. Cillario says, ‘Training is
extremely valuable.’
Some 400 employees work at the
headquarters in Cuneo, Italy, found in the
northern region of the country best known
for truffles and real Parmigiano cheese, in a
300,000 sq ft facility. It too earned its stripes
in the market through wet-glue production,
eventually investing in flexographic
capability. For consistency and effectiveness
the R&D process and investment, and
high-level training will remain in Italy, from
where resources can be extended to other
locations.
In February 2011 Eurostampa acquired a
Glasgow, Scotland-based converter, further
expanding its geographic footprint. Its
longer term global outlook includes Brazil,
where the company has had a presence
since 2004. Already the Italian company has
a sales office in India and is planning to have
manufacturing capability by 2013. Mexico is
viewed as a possible opportunity as well.
With the continued investments made in
capital equipment and human resources,
a double warehouse and a complex,
interconnected ERP system, it’s clear that
Eurostampa NA is here to stay. The double
sided print process capability has already
proved to be a successful strategy that
brings value to the converter’s decision to
enter the competitive US market and gives
the geographically spread converter the
global edge to service large international
beverage brands.
THE EUROSTAMPA building in North America