Why the Xaar Versatex Printbar is a smart digital step for label production

By Tom Mooney, Product Manager, Xaar

As businesses demand more creativity, flexibility and traceability from labels, the Xaar Versatex Printbar offers a practical way to add digital capability to existing analogue production.

Premium labels need to work harder than ever before. They need to create shelf impact, carry more information, support shorter runs and faster changeovers, and increasingly accommodate variable data without slowing production down. For many converters, that means adding digital capability in a way that strengthens what they already do well, rather than forcing a complete change in equipment or workflow.

This is where the Xaar Versatex Printbar comes into its own. It gives label and packaging producers a practical way to add embellishment, high-opacity white, braille and variable data to existing analogue presses and finishing lines, while drawing on the printhead and fluid-handling technologies that sit at the heart of Xaar’s inkjet expertise.

A practical route into digital

Tom Mooney

The appeal of the Versatex starts with its ease of integration. Rather than asking converters to rethink an entire label printing or converting line, the printbar adds digital capability to what is already there. It can be installed within a web-based system to introduce varnish embellishments, high-opacity white and variable data, and it comes with a fully integrated control cabinet, built-in maintenance and standard workflow tools. For those printers under pressure to improve flexibility without introducing unnecessary complexity, this offers a realistic production upgrade without the time, cost and challenges of full-scale development.

A digital upgrade only earns its place if it makes commercial sense too. It must contribute quickly, run reliably and fit around the needs of the pressroom. The Versatex does that by giving converters a practical way to add higher-value effects and data driven functionality without replacing the analogue platforms that still deliver the bulk of day-to-day volume.

Creativity in embellishments and tactile features

Embellishments remain one of the clearest ways to add value in label and packaging production. Textured effects, high-build varnishes, foils and high-opacity whites continue to define premium work across sectors such as wine and spirits, cosmetics and personal care. What matters is not simply being able to create those effects but the ability to introduce them efficiently and consistently enough for real production. The Versatex brings digital embellishment capabilities into existing lines in a way that helps converters broaden their product offer without taking on the drawbacks of more complex traditional methods.

The Versatex’s High Creativity mode strengthens this further. By allowing both high-build and standard varnish laydown in a single pass with the same ink, converters have freedom to create gloss and matt contrasts, tactile textures and more elaborate premium effects without adding unnecessary process steps. In practical terms, this gives greater creative flexibility while still protecting throughput and press efficiency.

Strong whites, high laydown and the technology behind it

Thanks to Xaar’s technologies and printhead architecture, the Versatex Printbar can deliver 85 per cent opacity at 50 metres per minute, giving label converters brilliant whites and strong visual impact in a digital format. It also offers modes for high productivity, high quality, high build, high opacity, braille and high creativity. That breadth of capability is useful because converters rarely need only one thing from a digital printbar. They need a system that can handle a range of premium and functional applications while maintaining quality and uptime.

Using Xaar Nitrox printheads alongside Xaar’s High Laydown, Ultra High Viscosity and TF Technology, the Versatex ensures stable jetting, high-build varnish effects and reliable handling of demanding fluids. This is what allows digital embellishment to move beyond a visual demo and into production reality. When converters invest in premium effects, they need consistency, repeatability and robustness, which is exactly where the Versatex delivers.

Braille as a production capability

Braille adds another important dimension to the opportunities for added value in label production. As accessible packaging becomes more important, the ability to print tactile information cleanly and efficiently matters to a much broader range of brands and packaging producers. The Versatex addresses this through an enhanced braille mode and high laydown capability that form more clearly defined dots at production speeds. Capable of handling fluids with viscosities of up to 1000 centipoise (cP) at ambient temperature, around 100 cP at jetting temperature, the Versatex can achieve builds of 190 to 200 microns at 25 metres per minute, making braille a practical production capability. It allows the same digital platform used for premium embellishment to support accessible and regulated print applications, giving the Versatex broader relevance on the line and helping to justify the investment through a wider range of real-world uses.

Moving into variable data, coding and marking

The Versatex Printbar is also playing a growing role in coding and marking. The Versatex Black extends the platform into high-definition black variable data printing and supporting 1D and 2D barcode printing for serialisation, authentication codes and supply chain tracking. This is becoming more important as traceability requirements become tighter and more producers need reliable, scannable codes at production speed.

With GS1 Sunrise 2027 approaching, this is increasingly relevant as labels often need to do two jobs at once: provide premium visual impact and carry machine-readable information that can be scanned reliably in the supply chain and at the point of sale. By combining High Laydown capability with TF Technology, the Versatex Black delivers stable jetting, high-contrast codes and reliable scanning across a range of substrates and production conditions. Label converters now have a practical way to add coding and variable data without impacting on established workflows.

Adding digital benefits to analogue label print

Taken together, these capabilities show how the Versatex Printbar adds the many benefits of digital inkjet print to existing analogue print lines. From premium effects and high-opacity whites, to braille and variable coding and marking data, converters can invest in a well-supported, production ready digital solution that can bring more creativity, flexibility and future relevance to the equipment already on the production floor, without needing a brand new press platform. In a market where labels need to do more than ever, the Xaar Versatex Printbar a smart next step.

This article is an advertorial; the featured company created the wording and paid for its placement. It has been checked by Whitmar Publications to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.