September 2002 Issue
Gravure quality in the short run
If you're looking for a U.S.-based folding carton converter offering the benefits of sheetfed gravure package printing, you should look no further than Shorewood Packaging's plant in Englewood, NJ. As a matter of fact, you would be wasting your time looking according to Shorewood Packaging's Account Executive Bill Martin, who says that the Englewood plant is the only U.S. facility that offers sheetfed gravure package printing. More than likely though, a consumer products manufacturer is not looking specifically for sheetfed gravure printing. However, if it is looking for color consistency from run to run, with relatively short production runs, then sheetfed gravure
Keeping Up With the Competition
More and more package printers are turning to contract converters. A LONG-TIME customer approaches you with an idea for a cool new package. Everything is going perfectly—until you notice the whole project hinges on the use of a corona treated substrate. Too bad you don't have corona treating capabilities. So your mind starts racing through all the possibilities … Your first instinct is to turn down the job, but why risk losing a customer? You can shell out the money for a new system—you'll definitely use it again—but that takes valuable time and capital. You can recommend the use of a different
Printing Quality - Ace in the Hole
"THE BOX INDUSTRY'S emphasis on visual appearance, spurred by printing and graphic design enhancements, will increase and continue to be a driver of growth." So says a study released earlier this year by The Freedonia Group titled, Corrugated & Paperboard Boxes to 2005. Folding carton converters' businesses will benefit the most from the improved printing capabilities, with the study indicating the largest growth in this segment—albeit, a modest 2.5 percent. The growth will come from increased use in the durable-goods markets, along with a general emphasis on innovative packaging designs and visually appealing graphics content. Consumer goods manufacturers are drawing up battle lines
Tomorrow is Right Around the Corner
As interest in computer-to-sleeve technology expands, manufacturers are preparing to meet the impending demand. Despite availability for a number of years, computer-to-sleeve imaging has yet to become the established force in the industry that many predicted. packagePRINTING sought out industry insider Ian Hole, business development manager for Esko-Graphics, to provide some insight and answers as to the present status of CTS and when it can be expected to "take off." According to Hole, CTS technology is already poised on the runway and simply waiting for clearance, to bring package printing to new heights. pP: We are just starting to see some movement in the
Tougher, Bolder, Better
The need for versatility has spawned a growth of new thermal transfer ribbons. Many converters have come to accept that when working with thermal transfer printers, you can't always get what you want, especially in terms of the wax/resin materials being fed through the press. Inevitably, there are a slew of basic limitations with most of these ribbons where performance in one area may be top of the line, but in other areas the same material may be lacking fundamental qualities. For example, a wax resin may have good chemical resistance, but may smudge or scratch when rubbed. Or a ribbon may work well
Web Offset is Keeping Pace
Technologies such as shaftless drives and sleeves are leading the way for web offset productivity. WEB OFFSET PRINTING is feeling the pressure coming from the improvements being made in flexographic printing. However, similar to the other printing processes, web offset is continually making strides to reduce makeready times and improve productivity. And it's doing this while playing off its inherent strengths and capabilities for high-quality printing. Ted Barry, vice president of sales for Matik North America (a U.S. distributor for Codimag and Giebeler), lists some of web offset's competitive strengths as: printing characteristics similar to gravure and superior to flexo where fine screens
