COMPANY PROFILE

We specialise in the design and manufacture of labels, tags and identification systems, mainly for use with variable information printers. We place emphasis on working with printer manufacturers, as we believe a clear understanding of the equipment our Customers use is essential for the supply of a trouble-free product.

Origins

Piroto was established in London in the early 1970's as a price-marking label manufacturer. A French based Pan-European industrial labelling group acquired the company shortly after, to become their UK outlet for French label and label applicator products. This was an interesting parentage, as the group was totally vertically integrated, manufacturing base raw materials (self-adhesive papers and inks) through label presses, and a wide range of label and tag products to label application systems. 2003 marked a new era in the history of the company, as it was taken over by the then, Sales Manager, Leigh Mann, who has been with the company since 1989.

Markets

Our major markets are food processing, food retailing, non-food manufacturing, raw meat and fish processing, specialist pharmaceutical manufacturing, distribution, leisure and travel.  Based in the UK, our products are used in an ever-increasing number of countries and industries across the globe.

Products

Our products are market based and manufactured from both self-adhesive and non-adhesive materials, which we source globally.  They need to work well with many printing systems, including direct thermal, thermal transfer, desktop and cold-fusion laser and inkjet. We place a lot of emphasis on quality and consistency of product, which depends on our robust standard operating processes and a high level of co-operation where everyone can rely on each other.

Specific products include a range of traceability products, under the brand name TOTRAC, which includes abattoir tags that we developed specifically for the Meat and Livestock Commission, when BSE first became evident.  New additions to our product range include; metal-detectable tags (for high-care food processing plants), Variable Printing System (which has enabled us to offer yet another new dimension to our printing capabilities, including sequential numbering and bar-coding) and Electronic Label Inspection (which allows us to ensure the integrity of each label within the roll).

We have worked on an RFID tag for use in the food distribution chain of a major UK retailer, the development of a thin thermal laminate for hand-held portable printers, special luggage tags and tag dispensing machines for left luggage and hotel concierges. 

Production

Our 30,000 sq. ft. factory in Northampton (occupied since 1999) was fitted out to our specifications, with emphasis on controlling airborne particulates. We have always held a strict no smoking policy and operate under high standards of hygiene and cleanliness. Manufacturing equipment is based around a maximum printing width of 330mm, but includes narrower presses more suited to shorter runs. Flexibility in production is important in maintaining reliability and consistency of supply and most processes are duplicated. Our main printing process is flexo; using both water-based and UV ink technology.

Staff

Team Piroto consists of over 35 staff, bringing skills and experience from many relevant industries, including adhesive tape manufacturing, wall paper printing, carton manufacturing, food retailing, distribution, computer hardware manufacturing, label applicator manufacturing and engineering.  Working under the Kaizen philosophy of continuous improvement, we constantly strive to each fulfil our part in delivering the best possible service to our customers.  Each area is serviced and supported by a dedicated Regional Sales Manager and in-house Sales Co-ordinator, working together to build relationships and provide a first class service to our customers.

Mission

"We make labels and tags to make your lives easier"