Gallus is the world market leader in narrow web presses and Heidelberg has for decades been the undisputed leader in offset presses, so you may be forgiven for thinking that Ferdinand Ruesch, former third generation owner of Gallus and now Heidelberg’s biggest individual investor – with nine per cent of the company – would be sitting back enjoying the Swiss mountain air. That though is not the Ruesch way, and as the grandson of the company’s founder he is determined to carry on the family ethos of working hard to create and deliver the best solutions possible for the market.
Gallus was founded in 1923, was taken over by Ferdinand’s father in 1956, Ferdinand himself took over in 1991, in 1998 Heidelberg took a 30 per cent stake, and two years ago Ferdinand swapped his 70 per cent stake for nine per cent of the press giant. During that entire period Gallus has maintained its position at the top of the label tree, both in the technology and in sales, its presses are best sellers.
Its ECS340 and RCS330 presses are universally popular, in fact the former has been installed at more than 400 printers since it was launched five and a half years ago, and the uptake rate is increasing from its current level of almost two a week, which the company says is unmatched by any other vendor. Now the company has caused a major stir as the first fruit of its collaboration with Heidelberg is launched – the digital Labelfire, shown at drupa, and which Ruesch and all of Gallus believes will go on to become a best-seller.
Ruesch says, “Gallus is moving forward. We are not sitting on our laurels, we are not expecting to stay at the top of the tree just because we have been used to being there. We know we must provide our customers with technological solutions that will enable them to meet the evolving needs of the market, and in many cases to drive that demand. Our commitment to providing the means for our customers to produce the highest quality label print remains unwavering, of that printers can be sure. We are launching new solutions like the Labelfire so that our customers can address emerging opportunities, in that case for short run work.”
Ruesch and Gallus content that Labelfire is cost effective for runs up to 5000 linear metres, which he says is 80 per cent of the Australian market. He says, “The advantage of no makeready, no plates, instant printing, variable data, and short runs match the increasing demands of the brands’ marketing departments for versioning, for promotions, for just in time, for market product testing. Labelfire is a technology that will work for Australian label printers, who have traditionally been early adopters, eager to work with the latest technology. Printers using Labelfire on an eight hour shift can expect to produce more than two dozen jobs if necessary.
According to Ruesch a major benefit for its customers now that Gallus is officially under the Heidelberg umbrella is that the level of service is as high as it can be. He says, “The footprint that Heidelberg has, in Australia and around the world, is unrivalled so Gallus customers can be assured that the level of service they are now receiving is unsurpassed.”
One of the major benefits of being part of the Heidelberg group is the cross utilisation and implementation of technology. Labelfire for instance uses the same Fujifilm inkjket printing technology that Heidelberg has on its Primefire 106, the world’s first B1 sheetfed folding carton inkjet press. Ruesch says, “Heidelberg has shown that it is engaging with digital. It will do whatever it takes to ensure its customers have what they need, and so does Gallus. The investment that Heidelberg is making is beneficial for Gallus printers, we leverage the knowledge and the technology. And as run lengths continue to come down Gallus printers can work profitably.”
It is not just in the hardware that Gallus benefits from being part of the Heidelberg group. Ruesch says, “The future is Print4.0. where digital connection delivers real benefits. Gallus is now able to utkuise the Heidelberg MIS Business Manager, and the Heidelberg Cerm business management and automation solutions, as well as the Prinect workflow. These are all proven software solutions that Gallus printers can make use of.
With the Labelfire just released Gallus is also about to launch another new press, which will be a wider web width than it has produced before, at 440mm (17”). James Rodden, Business Area Labels, Head of Sales, Oceania Region, says, “With the shorter web paths we can have a wider web width, especially as there is less waste. This important new press is being launched at the Gallus factory in St Gallen in September.”
As the population grows Gallus sees no let-up in the pace of growth for the label market. Ruesch says, “Labels are growing at 6-7 per cent every year, and this will continue. This means there are tremendous opportunities for label printers, and for Gallus. We have no doubt that now being part of the Heidelberg group we will be better positioned than ever before to serve our customers and meet the demands of the market.” Certainly there is clear evidence of the continued energy and the commitment of the Ruesch family to Gallus, a commitment which will likely make the companies presses the continuing number one choice of label printers in Australia and around the world.
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