SMART DESIGN

LABELS&LABELING |95
GUSTAVO ALTERMAN between two Mark Andy presses
at Artes Gráficas Raal’s factory in Buenos Aires
Ravi and Raal
combine in Bolivia
A PARTNERSHIP between Grupo Ravi and Argentine converter Artes Gráficas Raal has created a dedicated
label printing operation in Bolivia, as James Quirk reports
Artes Gráficas Raal, a label converter based in Buenos Aires,
Argentina, has partnered with regional packaging giant Grupo
Ravi to open a label printing operation in Cochabamba,
Bolivia.
The partnership combines Artes Gráficas Raal’s expertise
in self-adhesive label production and Grupo Ravi’s local
infrastructure in Bolivia. It represents Ravi’s first foray into the
self-adhesive label printing sector and provides Raal with local
presence in a market that is experiencing rapid growth (as
reported in L&L 6 2011).
The division – called Labels Bolivia – is housed in a
dedicated facility within Grupo Ravi’s headquarters in
Cochabamba. Grupo Ravi – which is part of Industrias Ravi
and has operations in Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Dominican
Republic, El Salvador and both Buenos Aires and Tierra del
Fuego in Argentina – produces a wide array of flexible, rigid
and metal packaging products, plastic bags, and metal bottle
caps and containers.
Artes Gráficas Raal, meanwhile, has over 45 years of
experience in self-adhesive label production. The deal
owes much to the ambition and boldness of the Argentine
converter’s general manager Gustavo Alterman; as well
as to Grupo Ravi’s swift response when presented with an
opportunity that allows it to further diversify its product range
and take advantage of a growing local market.
COCHABAMBA
In 2009, Artes Gráficas Raal received an enquiry from YPFB, the
Bolivian operation of automotive lubricant manufacturer YPF. Raal
began to see the potential in the Bolivian market, and – knowing
there was little label production in the country – decided to create
a local presence in order to be more competitive with pricing and
lower deliver times.
Despite not having a local partnership in place, Raal purchased
a Mark Andy flexo press and sent it to Bolivia. The bold move paid
off, with an agreement being reached with Target, a manufacturer
of telephone cards, to rent a small area of its factory to house the
press. With the YPFB contract won, production began and Raal’s
label sales manager Romina Morgenstein relocated to Bolivia to
oversee operations.
Once the contract with YPFB had been completed, the
companies parted ways and Raal needed to find a new facility to
house its burgeoning operation. Alterman was put in touch with
Grupo Ravi, cited as a company that was interested in moving
into the self-adhesive label market, by a mutual contact – Andreas
Stuardo, a Chilean who carried out installations for Mark Andy in
South America.
Raal, in urgent need of infrastructure support and a location
to house the press, met Grupo Ravi’s Jacobo Lichtenfeld. An
equal partnership was established that would combine Raal’s
expertise in self-adhesive label production and Grupo Ravi’s local
JULY 2012 | L&L