Ray Mackura

Combining in-line processes provides the key to distinctive products. COMBINING A VARIETY of processes in package-printing applications is being seen more and more often. This does not mean that it's becoming routine—by any sense of the imagination—just more popular. Commenting on last year's TLMI Awards Competition, Ray Mackura, technical marketing manager for Avery Dennison, Fasson Roll North America and a judge in the competition, said, "The use of combination printing is becoming quite common, and printers are getting really good at it." The reason why combination printing is not routine (and hopefully, will never reach such a stagnant milestone) is that it provides a

Despite losses in market share, paper labels continue to dominate. by Kate Sharon, Associate Editor WITH ALL THE talk about film substrates, it's easy to forget that paper is still the most widely used material for packaging labels. Films, and their sister substrates synthetic papers, often take the limelight thanks to the mounting popularity of shrink materials and the need for evermore durable labels. In the end, however, paper's simplicity and practicality persist. "Paper is still the dominant label type, with over 70 percent of the market by volume," said Paul Bailin, an industry analyst and author of a study called "World Labels," soon