1. How do companies find your software solutions? What is your marketing strategy?
Elitron is a manufacturer of automatic dieless cutting solutions which has been in the business since 1984. In 1994 we decided to invest in a strategic internal software house so that the core of our machines was developed inside of our company.

Elitron is one of the few companies to provide solutions that are being used across different industrial sectors: from the footwear industry to the sing and display and from the packaging to the general industry. Our solutions reflect our vision: we focus on listening to what the customer needs and then we build a dedicated solution around those needs in order to provide each customer with a competitive advantage.  

Our go to market strategy allows us to reach customers at many touch points: we have dedicated sales teams and business partners in more than 50 countries worldwide that are constantly reaching out to potential customers introducing them to our brand; we are also frequent exhibitors at the main industry related trade fairs and we adopt a targeted content strategy on and off line.

2. What do you understand about the process that allows your software to be better, faster, easier to use?
When we start to design and develop a software, we think of those who are going to use it and we try to simplify the way they currently work.  Our softwares are easy to use and with user friendly, modern and sleek interfaces because we believe that when something is easy, then it makes our work more productive. However also the functionalities play a very important role; therefore, to make the users’ experience even smoother, we decided that our software had to be open and integrated with the most relevant graphic and design tools.

3. Can you explain more about Elitron’s Seeker System PRO and the Video Projection System?
Seeker System PRO is Elitron patented vision system and consists of a dual camera system with powerful image processing software which automatically scans the working area, recognises printed images and loads the corresponding saved cutting files.

Seeker System PRO allows the user to process different materials simultaneously (PVC foam, vinyl, composite materials, etc.), saving tons of time by freely positioning them over the working area. The operator can therefore complete more jobs and carry out preparatory activities, while the machine processes the current job. With Seeker System PRO Elitron automatic cutting solutions are basically provided with a real eye.

The Video Projection system allows the virtual die path to be displayed tight on the material so that the operator can freely position each one of the shapes to be cut and therefore his ability to optimize the material consumption is enhanced. Thanks to this device it is possible to achieve dramatic savings in terms of material yield and labor costs because, for example, the operator canquickly assess if wasted materials can be re-use for samplings and prototypes instead of being just trashed out.

4. How do you stay ahead or up to date with the newer technologies?
Elitron has always been investing heavily in R&D. We have 2 separated divisions which are constantly working on Electronics and Full Production Automation respectively. In addition to those internal activities we constantly cooperate with our clients and from their needs we build solutions that very frequently were then widely adopted by many industry players. Some other times, instead, that know how allowed us to build solutions for different industries and address needs that other competitors could not address just because they lacked the cross-industry background.   

5. Elitron has become more and more professional software (TwinCut, Airo Panel, and Seeker System) over the last few years, and a growing number of companies are beginning to adopt it. What are the contexts in which Elitron is particularly suitable?
Elitron’s cutting solutions are highly sought after by those companies that are trying to achieve a leap in efficiency, process reliability and automation. All of our patented technologies are aimed at making the life easier to the operators so that they can work better and more cost effectively. Seeker System allows the operator to freely position the sheets on the working area and to perform jobs on different materials with a single go; Twin cut automatically balances the workload of each cutting head so that the job is performed in the shortest time possible with no bottlenecks what so ever; AiroPanel allows for multiple sheet unloading, perfect stacking on the pallet and, more importantly, complete absence of nicks and attachment points thus providing a higher quality output.

6. What’s your opinion on ‘Elitron Cutting Edge Packaging Solution’ that helps optimizing the digital finishing process for the packaging industry?
Kombo TAV-R which represents the top notch in Elitron’s product portfolio dedicated to the packaging industry is the only solution that is capable of providing real 24/7 automation while, at the same time, allowing to effectively cope productions characterized by short and quick turn-arounds.

Kombo TAV-R is the only automatic cutting solution that incorporates an entirely automated material handling system, which moves the production queue to and from the cutting table, that is tailored around every customer’s production layout.   

7. In the coming years, what are the development/software solutions that you will focus on? What can we expect from Elitron?
We are confident that in the coming future the portion of the industry that we serve, especially for what concerns the sign and display industry, will increasingly be shifting to digital in order to accommodate their current demand trends.

As a supplier we want to reinforce our brand positioning as The Providers of top tier technologies in terms of automation and overall workflow integration. Our latest solutions are moving in that direction and this is also the direction towards which the market as a whole is pointing to.  

8. Tell us, what is your journey in reaching the success of your company?
Elitron’s secrets to success have been:
-    Willingness to provide its customers with solutions that would have given them an actual competitive advantage
-    The understanding that finishing is not an industry per-se but rather a piece of a bigger whole and as such it needs to take into account what happens before and after along the production chain.
-    The background in the leather goods industry. Leather is quite of a complex material to process because, compared to paper, it’s a natural, not standardized material and the needs for its optimization are higher given its higher pricetag. Many of our patented solutions for the packaging industry are coming from the knowledge we gained while serving companies in the footwear business.

9. What are the current trends in Packaging Industry? Which current trend has been exploited by your company?
What we have perceived from our customers, and therefore what the market is telling us, is that demand fragmentation is increasing, production runs are becoming shorter and delivery requirements are getting tighter. Therefore, the jobs that can be performed with the traditional die cutting method are getting fewer and less profitable.

Companies in the FMCG industry are posing an great deal of attention to the packaging as a key driver of differentiation. Gone are the days when one size fitted all and with them all the traditional high volume technologies. What many companies in the corrugated and converting industry are now doing, is shifting towards being able to deliver low volumes but high margins solutions thus adding additional revenue streams with all the possibilities that automatic digital solutions can offer both pre and post printing.

10. Elitron automation strategy will focus on, especially with regard to the cutting processes in digital printing industry. Can you explain the strategy behind this?
As of today, with regard to cutting and digital finishing, we proved to be ahead of the competition with technologies and patents that no one else can boast. Our focus in the near future will be about improving execution and taking advantage of those technologies to build up a global presence.

11. What is your packaging dream? Can you share your key plans for the future?
We live in a region which, albeit not widely known, is famous for its natural landscape. Allowing our trade partners to reduce and optimize the consumption of materials for packaging is one of our greatest commitments.

We would love to get to the point where packaging and paper consumption were all coming from 100% recyclable sources.