Saikang 'Brand New Equipment, Innovative Model'
On December 2, 2025, the Labelexpo Asia 2025 opened at the Shanghai New International Expo Center. At this year's exhibition, Flint Group, together with its subsidiary SEI Group, launched the groundbreaking new digital printing product-the Ecolyne digital press-for the first time globally. They also introduced a brand-new business collaboration model for domestic label printing companies, making digital printing no longer a high-threshold, high-cost technological "luxury," no longer an exclusive "patent" of large label printers, but a widely accessible technology that benefits label companies of all sizes.
Flint Exhibition Booth Map
At the exhibition, Label君 had the honor of interviewing Flint Group CEO Mr. Pepyn Dinandt, Siegwerk CEO Mr. Walter Benz, and Siegwerk Global Sales Director Mr. Hans Gerinckx. Let's follow the perspectives of these three individuals to delve into the strategic considerations and industry insights behind this new product launch and the brand-new business cooperation model.
01
Major New Product Makes Entry No Longer 'Full of Restrictions'
Currently, the global digital label printing market is in a phase of continuous expansion and is expected to maintain its growth momentum. This burgeoning international trend brings unprecedented opportunities and transformations to the label printing industry. However, for the Chinese label printing market, dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises, the costs of equipment investment and trial-and-error can be like two towering mountains, standing in the way of digital printing transformation and still deterring many enterprises. In response to this, the Siegwerk Ecolyne digital press has been introduced, providing label printing companies with a new option.
SeiCon Ecolyne Digital Press New Product Launch
"In many regions of Asia, especially in China, the label printing industry is undergoing rapid changes. Small and medium-sized label printing companies have a growing demand for 'shorter runs, faster delivery, and higher quality,' and there is an urgent need for a high-quality, entry-level, and cost-effective digital printing device to help them not only gain digital label printing capacity but also tap into the mid-to-high-end label printing market," explained SeiCon CEO Mr. Walter Benz. "To meet these pressing needs of small and medium-sized label printing companies, SeiCon has accurately grasped the market pulse and is launching the Ecolyne digital press globally for the first time in China, hoping that this equipment will bring more new development opportunities to users in China, Japan, India, and Southeast Asia."
Saikang CEO Mr. Walter Benz interviewed by Label World
"In the past, Saikang has always focused on the mainstream market, carefully developing a series of mainstream devices, including high-quality equipment with high-speed operation capabilities and high added value, achieving remarkable results in the mainstream sector. However, the entry-level market also has many unmet needs. Based on this, we have assessed the situation and proudly launched this new Ecolyne digital printer, hoping to fill this gap with professional and considerate service, enabling more users to acquire high-quality equipment with minimal investment, further expanding our market presence and increasing market share," said Mr. Hans Gerinckx, Saikang's Global Sales Director.
It is reported that the Ecolyne digital printer is designed specifically for high-quality label production and represents a fully managed digital label printing solution. The device features a printing width of 330mm, a printing speed of 25m/min, and a high resolution of 1200×3600dpi, capable of handling a variety of substrates, including coated paper, uncoated paper, synthetic paper (PP, white or transparent), PET, and metallized film. Additionally, the machine uses food-safe dry toner technology and is available in two configurations: 4-color (CMYK) and 5-color (CMYK + white). The unique design and excellent performance of the Ecolyne digital printer offer label printing companies new hope for breaking through traditional production bottlenecks.
Ecolyne Digital Printing Machine
02
Innovative Model Makes Breakthroughs No Longer 'Out of Reach'
The uniqueness of the Ecolyne digital printing machine lies not only in its outstanding quality but also in its distinctive subscription-based capacity model, which is highly valued by label printing companies. "This innovative business collaboration model breaks the high-cost barrier of traditional equipment procurement. Companies do not need to invest a large sum of money upfront to purchase equipment; instead, they can flexibly subscribe to the capacity they need based on their actual production requirements. Whether it's for handling short-term small-batch orders or long-term large-volume orders, capacity can be easily allocated, optimizing resource allocation, effectively reducing operational costs, and enhancing the company's competitiveness in the market," explained Walter Benz, CEO of Siegwerk. "This 'capacity-centric' model allows label printing companies to shift their focus from 'equipment ownership' to 'printing performance,' which is exactly what many emerging label printing companies are seeking."
In addition to business model innovation, this 'leasing' service model also helps label printing companies keep up with technological development trends, ensuring that their digital label printing production lines are always equipped with the latest features. "Currently, digital printing technology is evolving rapidly, with new equipment constantly emerging with increasingly powerful functions, while print quality and efficiency continue to improve. The speed of these upgrades puts considerable pressure on some label printing companies. If a company has just invested a large sum in a set of equipment, it may soon face the risk of technological obsolescence and market elimination, rendering the initial investment wasted. This uncertainty makes companies more cautious in equipment investment and hesitant to take the step toward digital printing transformation.
Hans Gerinckx, Global Sales Director of Sikon, Talks with Label Journal
"Our idea is to allow label printing companies to acquire high-quality digital printing equipment through a 'lease instead of purchase' model. During the lease period, companies don't need to worry about the equipment rapidly devaluing due to technological iterations. In the future, whether the company wants to continue focusing on toner technology or switch to inkjet printing technology, Sikon has the most professional solutions and technical team. With this flexible leasing model, companies can easily make the switch, embrace new technology effortlessly, and always stay at the forefront of digital printing technology, securing a strong position in the competitive market," added Hans Gerinckx, Global Sales Director of Sikon.
Sikon's innovative concept, centered on 'equipment sharing and pay-as-you-go,' not only helps companies embark on a hassle-free label production journey but also makes technological breakthroughs more accessible. This greatly reduces the financial pressure and operational risks for label printing companies, allowing more small and medium-sized label businesses to easily enter the field of digital printing, enjoy the benefits of technology, and promote the industry's accelerated transformation toward digitalization and intelligence.
03
Increasing Investment to Ensure More Solutions Take Root
Excellent equipment and innovative models rely on continuous, in-depth technology R&D and strategic planning. Flint Group, as one of the well-known comprehensive solution providers in the printing industry, leverages its profound technical expertise, large and diversified customer base, and forward-looking market insight to provide Sikon with comprehensive, multi-layered support.
"Flint Group has always been very optimistic about the Chinese printing market. Many years ago, we began investing in factories in China and gradually expanded our production scale. Since Sikon joined in 2016, we have seen the enormous potential of the Chinese label market. Sikon has excellent products, and Flint Group has been assisting Sikon in providing customers with higher quality and more diverse solutions," said Pepyn Dinandt, CEO of Flint Group. "Today, we are launching this innovative equipment and introducing a new subscription capacity model, which is a strategic decision based on in-depth research and precise understanding of the Chinese label market. We believe that the launch of this innovative equipment and subscription capacity model will bring new vitality and opportunities to the Chinese label market."
Mr. Pepyn Dinandt, CEO of Flint Group, was interviewed by Label Jun.
"In the future, Flint Group will continue to move forward hand in hand with Chinese customers, increase investment in China, continuously optimize products and services, provide Seeco with more resources and funding, help it achieve breakthrough progress in technology research and development as well as market expansion, launch more innovative digital printing solutions, and promote the Chinese label industry to reach a higher level."
When companies no longer worry about investing in equipment, and when the 'leasing' model enters label printing enterprises, an unprecedented opportunity for industry transformation has arrived. We believe that the launch of Seeco's Ecolyne digital press and the promotion of a new innovative concept centered on 'equipment sharing and pay-as-you-go' will bring multidimensional, deep-reaching positive changes to customers in China and other parts of Asia, driving the Asian label printing industry toward a more efficient, innovative, and sustainable direction. Let's look forward to it!