The top international brands meet at the German Design Award to reward and innovate their innovations. With graphics alone, you hardly have any title chances here, but the label manufacturer Avery Zweckform from Oberlainden has made it - thanks to a catchy idea.
With labels alone - creative design manager Thomas Amann doesn't fool himself - little fame can be earned at the German Design Award. Because the internationally renowned award, which the German Design Council in Frankfurt / Main awards every year, not only awards stylish design, but primarily innovative products. It is all the more remarkable that the label inventor and market leader Avery Zweckform from Oberlainden has nevertheless won the award for excellent product design. With a technical world first.
Avery Zweckform's business has changed in recent years. Instead of ready-made labels, the company primarily offers self-adhesive label templates that the customer can design, label and print out independently. The software for this is available free of charge on the Internet.
Clever trick against paper jams
In the A4 area, where Avery is the market leader and has numerous frequent users, there was a problem, as Amann reports: incorrect feeding by the printer. "If you had many sheets printed, there was a risk that several would be fed at the same time." The result was the classic paper jam. "We wanted to solve that and we did it." The reward for this is the German Design Award.
But the way there was not easy. "The problem is the many individual rollers in the customers' printer devices," explains Amann. Guide rails and printer rollers gather dust, wear and lose grip over time. And this is where the Avery innovation comes in: Instead of preparing the label on the front, the back was given a three-dimensional profile. A gigantic task, as the product designer explains: "We had to find a solution that worked for all common printer manufacturers and models - whether laser or inkjet."
Extensive tests in Oberlainden and the USA
So it was tested and tested. In the test laboratories in Oberlainden and in Brea near Los Angeles / USA. "The most common printer devices from the office and home are located there," explains Amann. "We tried until we got the best possible result everywhere."
How did that work? On the back of each sheet, a layer was applied on the side, which enables the best access for all types of rollers. In order to visually integrate this layer, a clearly visible tire tread was chosen, which should show that this blade has grip. Amann: "This unique design is self-explanatory."
Pioneering for the international design landscape
To avoid paper jams on all common printer models, the label sheet comes with a trace of 3D lacquer.
© Avery Zweckform
The brand design, now protected as "Ultragrip", was very well received by the international top-class jury at the German Design Award. In 1953, the German Design Council was founded as a foundation on the initiative of the German Bundestag. It supports the economy in consistently achieving brand added value through design. According to his own admission, he honors the award for innovative products and projects "that are groundbreaking in the German and international design landscape". This time over 5500 submissions from over 100 countries participated. The focus this year was clearly on sustainable design and sustainable product innovations.
Florian Huber (40) is equally proud of the company's technical innovation. "We are very pleased that with the patent-pending Ultragrip technology we have not only launched a world first that noticeably improves the printing of label sheets for our users, but also with the 3D design designed as a tire track have brought a new dimension in design, ”says Director E-Commerce, Marketing & Business Development at Avery Zweckform. "The creative process and the investments in our location to develop this innovation and bring it to series production with our great workforce in Oberlainden have paid off."
"Nothing was left to chance"
The development of the grip arch was not easy, because the nature of the 3D paint had to meet many requirements. It can only be applied thinly so as not to make the individual sheet too thick. It must be temperature-resistant. He must not stick to the next sheet. And much more. "A lot of details had to be paid attention to," says Amann. “Nothing was left to chance.” For almost two years, the work was done and tested - and millions of euros were invested in a suitable printing press.
It quickly became clear to Amann that this development also had ideal potential. The product designer had already won awards with his previous employers such as Rösle, Villeroy & Boch and Occhio. He is completely convinced of the Ultragrip: “It is a really good idea, and there is so much work involved. That is why we said: we will submit it. ”With success.
"The customer," says Amann, "does not question how much effort is involved in a product. The only thing that counts for him is that it works. ”That makes the award all the more beautiful. "Because it shows that we did something really good."
