Scan-Figus invests to grow its label and ticket business

One of the leading label printers in Sweden, Scan-Figus, based in Gothenburg, has completed an extraordinary programme of investment that has seen a move to a new purpose-built 5000 square metre factory unit and the installation of a whole raft of new technology including nine Gallus presses hooked up to a sophisticated Matho waste extraction scheme, and pre press technology for EskoArtwork. Nick Coombes reports.

The company, now in its second generation of family management, with P. Magnus Olsson taking over from his late father Sture who founded the company in 1967. It wasn’t long before Scan-Figus established contact with Gallus, another family business with whom it has remained on the closest terms for 40 years, beginning with the acquisition of Gallus R160B letterpress machines, and culminating in the most recent Gallus EM 410, which is one of four that works alongside five Gallus EM 280 presses. Flexo capability is from three to seven colours, and all the Gallus lines are fitted with ABG Vectra turret rewinders.

“We use the Gallus EM 280 presses for special products, while the Gallus EM 410 lines tend to concentrate on labels,” explained Olsson, who claims to have spent in excess of SEK 50 million on Gallus equipment alone, and now has a production facility in which no press is older than seven years.  “Our business is 50:50 tags and self adhesive labels, and all of our presses have water base/UV combination capability,” he added. With no print training school in Sweden, companies have to be self sufficient for new staff. Olsson praises Gallus highly for the support and tuition it offers both onsite, and at its demonstration and teaching facility in St Gallen, Switzerland. It is no surprise, therefore, that it has been chosen by the Swedish Label Association as the location for its new Diploma course for the practical training of flexo printers.

Magnus Olson now runs the company that his father founded in 1967

Olsson, who studied and practised Law prior to joining the business in 1987, was instrumental in the recent factory move. The company’s previous site was the target of a compulsory purchase order, which enabled Scan-Figus to negotiate successfully for its new facility. It offers 2000 square metres of production space, 2000 square metres of warehousing, and 1000 square metres for administration. The building is laid out to facilitate workflow, and Olsson is quick to comment on how much better the teamwork is at the new plant. “Working in a modern plant with the most modern flexo machine-park in northern Europe has really caught the imagination of the staff, and boosted performance,” he said.

The company has prided itself on its ability to handle special materials since the 1970s. Many consider that tag printing is simple. Olsson refutes this, and points to the tonnage of ‘queue tickets’ he exports around the world as evidence that it requires special skills.

For runs up to 10,000 running meters he uses the Gallus EM 280 presses, above that the Gallus EM 410 lines take over. Label markets currently served are predominantly industrial, but the food sector holds an attraction. “I need to be sure the margins are as attractive as the volumes suggest before pitching for the business – we are specialists and want to stay that way,” he said, acknowledging that the trend towards more colours in food packaging would be attractive for his multi-colour presses and would lift turnover beyond its current SEK 75M (€8M) level.

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