Business Management - Productivity/Process Improvement

Clean, clean, clean! It is one of the keys to successful package printing. The substrate must be substantially free of contaminants to stand any chance of providing consistent high-quality printing. Various systems are used to help keep printing surfaces clean, including static control systems and web cleaning systems. Although George Zuments, president of Web Systems, Inc., points out that static control and web cleaning are separate systems, they typically work in conjunction with each other. Static control systems are used to enhance the cleaning process by reducing or eliminating static levels. Static poses two problems relative to web cleaning. First, static can

It’s been 10 years and quite a ride for Wrightstown, Wis.-based Coating Excellence International (CEI). During the past decade, the company has expanded seven times, grown from 13 to 380 people, and is now set to expand into a second plant. In the grand scheme of things, 10 years is not a long time. So, going from $1.9 million in sales for 1997 to a projected $170 million for 2007 is remarkable. What started out as an extrusion coating operation has become a 600,000-sq.-ft. facility with nine flexo presses, three offset presses, two adhesive laminators, four extruders, and a variety of rewinders and slitters.

RONKONKOMA, N.Y.—In today’s environment, digital workflow processes such as plate making should be simpler not more complicated. Optimizing the Digital Plate Package for Flexography is a series of seminars, demonstrations and hands-on sessions where attendees will learn to un-complicate digital plate pre-press and production in order to achieve optimal results. The two-day program, August 2-3, is limited to 25 people and is hosted by Clemson University’s Department of Graphic Communications. Joining Clemson’s faculty will be top industry presenters such as Mark Mazur (Dupont Imaging Technologies), Mark Samworth (Artwork Systems), David Chinnis (Flint Group Printing Plates) and Dr. John Anderson (FTA). They will teach

Standards and RFID Converting Equipment Standards and their impact on smart label converting equipment is questionable, according to machine manufacturers. Much of today’s RFID converting technology can produce tags and labels of a variety of frequencies. However, there are a few points to consider when looking to purchase RFID converting apparatuses. First, it’s important to remember that, while notable advances have been made in smart labels and their construction, RFID in general is still a developing technology. This means converters need equipment that can develop along with the progress made in RFID. “Converters should purchase converting equipment that permits them to evolve with the on-going evolution of

ATLANTA—MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems’ Ajax, Ontario, converting facility was recently honored for its outstanding safety performance by the Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC). Earning the PPC’s Chairman’s Safety Award, the Ajax facility, which is part of MeadWestvaco’s North American converting operations, was singled out for its commitment to safety excellence at the PPC’s annual awards banquet held this past March in Atlanta, Georgia. MeadWestvaco’s Ajax facility was presented with the PPC’s Chairmanâ’s Safety Award for logging 747,610 hours without an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recordable incident. This award is given annually to the North American facility that works the most hours

BUMP TREATING IS a way of life in a package printing plant. Re-treating substrate surfaces before going to press helps provide a consistent and predictable print quality. Skipping it can leave a print job littered with pinholes, poor ink adhesion, and other printing blemishes. Progress made in recent years in surface treating equipment has extended the longevity of treatment applied following extrusion, but printers still rely on bump treatments for successful runs. In fact, according to Ralf Weber, marketing, Erhardt + Leimer Inc., the trend in surface treating leans more toward multiple treatments. This is due to several reasons, Weber said, including: • Increased printing

Thermal transfer printing offers printers and converters easy money-making opportunities, among several other benefits. WITH ALL THE talk about variable data printing these days, packagePRINTING went straight to the experts to find out the fundamentals of thermal transfer printing and what it can do for today's package printers and converters. pP: What are the main benefits that thermal transfer printing offers printers and converters? Amy Schmitt, IIMAK marketing communications manager: Advantages include: • Flexibility—Changing variable data is quick and easy when managed electronically. This significantly reduces downtime when compared to hot stamp or ink imprinting. Unlike hot stamp or ink imprinting, there are no

Packaging companies reap the benefits from software designed to better manage their business/production processes from start to finish. MOST OF TODAY'S successful packaging converters and printers have one thing in common: a modern business/production software solution. These software applications support companies with one plant or several, making it easy to manage current business and production processes from quotes through shipping, all the while increasing efficiency and adding dollars to the bottomline. To get a better understanding of what today's business/production software can do for packaging companies, packagePRINTING recently spoke to several converters and printers about their success with some of the most popular

As the quality of metallic inks improve, their roles in package printing are greatly expanding. LIKE HOWARD CARTER, who unearthed the sparkling splendor of King Tutankhamen's tomb 81 years ago, package printers are discovering a valuable glimmering brilliance of their own: metallic inks. The shiny, eye-catching inks have been used for years due to their ability to make packages stand out on store shelves and to create a certain air about packages. Gold inks pop off the shelf and give a look of tradition and richness. Silver inks give a similar appeal, and can also make the product appear cutting edge

Print shops welcome cost-saving opportunities by bringing ink technology in-house with the help of suppliers. WHAT'S COOKING IN more of today's in-house ink kitchens are cost-cutting management practices and first-rate capabilities. Many converters can attribute this to special contractual agreements between ink suppliers and print shops. The agreements, many developed more than a decade ago, have helped converters bring inking competency and ink professionals on-site, allowing them to focus on printing during a time when the ability to handle more short-run jobs and fast turnarounds is imperative to stay competitive. From the beginning Ink agreements run the gamut, ranging from complete overhauls of the