Levissima invests in Sidel EvoDECO Roll-Fed Labeller

Levissima, part of Sanpellegrino Group (Nestlé Waters), needed to address the growing demand for bottled water in Italy with a new complete line, producing its re-designed 1.5-litre bottle of pure, Alpine water. With the help of its long-standing partner, Sidel, Levissima was able to improve the quality of its label application while simultaneously increasing the output capacity. This is an achievement that took advantage of the new EvoDECO Roll-Fed, the latest addition to Sidel’s labelling portfolio.

(Photo courtesy of Sidel)

The inhabitants of Cepina in the heart of the Northern Italian Alps have always enjoyed the purest water. In the early 1900s, doctors, surgeons and distinguished professors started to appreciate the therapeutic properties of this water: it is pleasant to drink, easy to digest, and remarkably diuretic. As such, it quickly became well-renowned beyond the boundaries of the valley and – in the 1930s – it started to be sold under the name of Levissima, from the Latin adjective levis, meaning “light”.

Today, Levissima is the favourite natural mineral water for over ten million families in Italy[1], as such ranking among the top three bottled water brands in the country, both in terms of value and volume.[2] Through the modern production plant in Cepina, Levissima water is bottled as pure as it flows from the spring.

Sidel installed an EvoDECO Roll-Fed labeller with two stations, running on every other bottle, handling lightweight containers and ultra-thin labels. (Photo: Sidel)

Growing demand for healthy bottled water in Italy

Overall, bottled water in Italy – traditionally consumed to accompany meals and throughout the day – is expected to continue to grow in the future. Due to local consumers’ search for healthier lifestyles and convenient prices, bottled water – containing no sugar or calories and having functional characteristics – is outperforming other types of soft drinks and is projected to reach 10.6 billion litres by 2022.[3]

This is why Levissima needed to increase its production capacity for still water, while handling a re-designed 1.5L bottle, now with a shorter neck but still in the brand’s iconic squared shape, produced at a high output speed of more than 46,000 bottles per hour (bph). “We were familiar with the high quality and hygienic standards provided by the Sidel equipment. The competences and the customer-centric approach shown by their team during the commissioning and the installation phases, together with smooth project management were helping further to reconfirm our trust in the company”, explains Franco Simoncini, Plant Manager at Levissima. The long-standing partnership between Sidel and Nestlé Waters also contributed to the success of the installation. Most importantly, Sidel could offer the Italian water bottler the ideal solution with its new EvoDECO Roll-Fed, equipped with two labelling stations, able to combine the output speed required with a precise label application on a squared 1.5L bottle.

Top productivity and a sustainable footprint to protect the brand

Launched in March 2018, Levissima’s new corporate identity is brought to life in the re-designed bottle and label of the leading Italian water brand. The pure and light mineral water has its origins in an extraordinary natural environment, coming from the ancient glaciers in the heart of the Alps. The top of the Alps are present on Levissima’s new logo and label^[4], which is now designed on transparent film. The colour of the logo is reflected on the new green cap, shaped ergonomically and therefore easy to open for consumers.

To tackle Levissima’s specific challenges connected to the new bottle and label, Sidel installed an EvoDECO Roll-Fed labeller with two stations, running on every other bottle, handling lightweight containers and ultra-thin labels. The ergonomics of the entire solution have been optimised for performance and efficiency, with all main components fully visible and accessible during production. With no need to disengage the station, this open design is particularly beneficial during changeover and maintenance. The label application on Levissima’s new squared bottles is carried out with a pad-to-pad transfer, ensuring a very stable and accurate process, even at high speeds, thus addressing the two most important points for the water producer: excellent label application and high reliability.

The new labeller is equipped with unique features leading to improved uptime: the cleaning of the EvoDECO Roll-Fed is performed automatically during production by a system installed on the vacuum drum, which is built in lightweight sectors for easy changeover and maintenance operations. This system removes any glue residuals for an overall higher performance. The labeller also comes with an automatic label extraction system, protected by a Sidel patent, ensuring that no downtime occurs due to a missing bottle or labels not being properly applied on the bottles, thus supporting a smooth and consistent flow of production. With the new, patented vertical melter and the laser engraved glue roller, glue is melted on demand and circulated at a precise temperature. This reduces glue consumption for better overall quality and improved sustainability.

(Photo: Sidel)

Combining food safety with high performance

As Levissima wanted to significantly increase performance and production capacity, with no compromises on food safety, the Sidel Matrix™ Combi came as the natural choice. Integrating blow moulding, filling and capping processes into a single system, the Combi reduces operating costs and uses up to 30% less floor space compared with traditional standalone equipment. Using fewer component machines, the solution offers up to 4% higher efficiency levels than standalone machines, on top of lower energy consumption and faster format changeovers. This results in a reduction of operating costs by up to 12%, saving labour, raw materials and spare parts.

The Combi supplied to the Cepina site is equipped with a Sidel SF100 no contact filler, ensuring optimum uptime and the highest productivity. The reduced filler enclosure allows for utmost hygiene, while minimising use of water and chemicals during the external cleaning process. This is how the solution achieves full food safety – a highly important factor for Nestlé Waters.

Contributing to energy savings and optimised uptime

The Sidel Matrix Combi at Levissima’s site also features OptiFeed^® – a cap feeder that is based on a patented waterfall technology, combining elevation, orientation and high-speed feeding with energy savings. The latter is achieved due to the individual cap-elevating system that eliminates the need for compressed air during cap extraction for better quality caps and reduced environmental footprint. With ease of operations and maintenance at its core – due to the reduced height, easier accessibility and durable materials – OptiFeed also features an integrated inspection system, ensuring 100% caps quality.

The highly flexible EIT® (Efficiency Improvement Tool) is also part of the solutions Sidel supplied to the leading Italian water brand. Automatically recording 24/7 raw production data, EIT calculates a wide array of KPIs to help measure performance, analyse production issues, detect efficiency loss sources, and perform root cause analyses. It is designed to ultimately decrease unplanned downtime, reduce waste and costs, and increase Levissima’s output. By giving employees at all levels of the organisation real-time access to relevant and actionable information on production-related issues, it makes sure that the quality of the water as well as the line capacity stays on the desired level. - SIDEL