Digital printing for flexible packaging and folding cartons using HP Indigo

BIRMINGHAM, U.K.—HP announced that print service providers (PSPs) operating HP Indigo digital presses have new business opportunities as a result of additional press features, partner finishing solutions, and expanded media capabilities for packaging production introduced at Ipex 2010.

HP is highlighting new end-to-end solutions that help label converters, packaging converters and other PSPs gain new business in the market for digitally printed labels and packaging. Industry research firm InfoTrends expects this market to grow from $1.95 billion in 2009 to $4.05 billion by 2014.

Using the expanded range of substrates compatible with HP Indigo 5500, 7500, and WS6000 digital presses, customers can add new applications for flexible packaging and folding cartons.

“Today, HP is extending the digital transformation from labels to flexible packaging and folding cartons,” said Alon Bar-Shany, vice president and general manager, Indigo division, HP. “With HP Indigo presses’ substrate versatility and our expanding network of partners, the value proposition for what our customers can offer in the packaging space has never been more compelling.”

HP Indigo solutions integrate with new partner solutions for lean, just-in-time packaging manufacturing. HP’s new end-to-end packaging workflows also eliminate many of the makeready waste and platemaking environmental concerns associated with analog offset and flexographic printing.

More flexibility in flexible packaging
The HP Indigo WS6000 Digital Press is currently in use at converting facilities worldwide, creating flexible packaging jobs for food, beverage, beauty, and other products. At Ipex, HP announced new solutions for the WS6000 model in flexible packaging production.

HP is exhibiting the HP Indigo WS6000 printing on flexible packaging films as thin as 0.47 mils. When using common substrates, packaging converters also can use HP Indigo presses to print on the non-food-contact side of flexible packaging film for food and beverage products.

Starting with HP SmartStream Labels and Packaging Solutions, powered by EskoArtwork, the new flexible packaging workflow exhibited at Ipex includes laminating equipment from AB Graphic International, with compatible laminating films from ACPO Ltd. and D&K Group.

Several HP Indigo-certified flexible packaging substrates are available, including films from Exxon Mobil, Hanita Coatings, NORDENIA, and Walki, as well as newly certified substrates from Charter Films and Innovia Films.

“HP Indigo technology provides Foster Packaging with the print quality of gravure, without the minimum order quantities, lead time or set up waste and costs needed for gravure or flexographic printing,” said Joe Foster, president and managing director for Foster Packaging in Dunleer, Ireland, and Cape Town, South Africa. “Our company supplies exquisitely eye-catching flexible packaging for consumer packaged goods that are converted with specialized lamination and pouch-making equipment aligned to our HP Indigo WS6000. The response to our digital printing capabilities has been amazing, especially when customers see that we can serve them in quantities that meet their just-in-time supply chain needs.”

Complete solutions for folding cartons
HP offers both sheetfed and web-fed digital presses engineered to support printing for folding carton substrates up to 18 points or 450 microns thick. Now, for the first time, HP Indigo sheetfed presses can pursue the folding carton market using intuitive, advanced HP SmartStream Labels and Packaging color management and color matching features.

HP has crafted a complete solution for folding carton production, working with HP Graphics Solutions Partners who are leading providers of finishing equipment for packaging, including AB Graphic, Brausse Group, Epic Products International, Kama GmbH, and Kompac Technologies. Users of HP Indigo sheetfed and web-fed presses can combine their printing operations with partner solutions to create a flexible, fast carton manufacturing infrastructure for offset-quality, just-in-time manufacturing.

Leading folding carton board suppliers also support the newly expanded HP Indigo offerings, with HP Indigo-certified substrates available from Iggesund Paperboard, M-real, Sappi Fine Paper, Stora Enso, Tulis Russell Papermakers, and more.

“For folding cartons, HP Indigo not only gives brand owners the ability to increase sell-through rates with different, compelling graphics, it enables mid-tier firms to compete more effectively on the shelf with high-quality, full-color graphics they might otherwise find too expensive to print using offset printing,” said Jay Dollries, president and chief executive officer of Innovative Labeling Solutions in Hamilton, Ohio.

More information on new packaging solutions from HP is available at www.hp.com/go/Ipex.