Apples and Oranges

Gravure printing has long been known for its high quality. According to Dean Hoss, president and CEO of Pyramid Global, in his “Why Buy Gravure” presentation at the Packaging and Label Gravure Association’s (PLGA) ninth operational conference, gravure print reproduction translates into better product appearance. Versus flexography, gravure offers higher resolution print, consistency across the print web, and repeat print-run consistency. “Gravure’s quality is hard to beat. When it’s done right, when the engravings are proper, it’s there,” says Jim Lepp, executive director of the PLGA.

However, the increasing use of flexographic printing and its lower cost of production has, over time, created the perception that if you want to employ gravure as a printing process, you are going to pay a premium for it—a perception which isn’t completely accurate. According to Lepp, although there is a price difference, there may not be as wide a gap as some think. “Basically, I think gravure is doing well. It has a strong niche that it is well in control of. I think as the gravure industry continues to address cost issues, it will continue to do better and better,” he says. Though he cites cost as an issue, Lepp states, “I’m not sure that if everything was accounted for, apples to apples, that that’s really the case. It would be hard to argue against that perception. That’s the going perception today: flexo is close in quality at a lower price.”

Not sitting still

The gravure market, like other print process markets, has responded to market/industry trends. In the case of gravure, like every other package-printing segment, more and more package printers are faced with shorter makeready times to accommodate the increase in short print runs. At the PLGA operational conference, Michael McKeown, general manager of Amcor Flexibles, stated that historically, gravure has been sold on the economic benefits, particularly of long runs. However, gravure was considered more expensive, particularly considering the nature of shorter runs and the typically long lead time associated with gravure.

At the same time, other technologies have captured some of gravure’s market share, particularly flexo. With flexo, quality and technical capabilities have improved dramatically, lead times have been reduced, and this technology, and others, have proven to be a better option for certain ­applications. That doesn’t mean gravure has remained stagnant while all this has been going on.

“[Gravure is] addressing it on a number of levels,” says Lepp. “The hardware manufacturers have done a lot of work to put quick changeover features into the presses, just like the flexo press guys have. So the gravure press manufacturers aren’t standing still. They have a lot of features for quick changeability.” McKeown stated that during the last 10 years, the gravure market has developed fast changeover presses, laser-engraved cylinders, and plastic cylinder bases. “I think sleeves and lower-cost cylinders are going to address that cost issue, so that when an end user wants to make changes which require new cylinders [or] new engraving, that those costs will come down accordingly. And we’ll be able to beat that quick change and be able to survive in the shorter run markets,” says Lepp.

According to Eric Grabau, director of operations at Sleeveco, the company addresses this trend through continued reinvestment in equipment. “Servo drives in equipment continue to be the most technological advancement to reduce waste,” he says. He adds that Sleevco has also incorporated narrower presses to match shorter run lengths, and presses that yield faster changeover.

Marketing is key

According to McKeown’s presentation, gravure has not marketed its advancements as well as flexo has. He stated that what the gravure market must sell to brand owners is quality in graphic reproduction, consistency, and shelf impact. The importance of marketing the positives of what the gravure market is doing is critical. “I think there’s more perception of cost difference than there really is, and I think gravure has to overcome that by explaining [that] to their end users,” says Lepp.”

Grabau says that traditional flexo companies are showing increased interest in gravure presses and engraving to get a better understanding of an engraved cylinder versus a flexo plate. Doing a better marketing job is the way to get the message out.

“Basically, the industry is going through some efforts in cost control and cost reduction, to improve its ­competitive position,” says Lepp. “With that and the quality it ­provides, I think the industry is going to grow ­significantly. ­Everyone wants high quality. Gravure has to sell itself as being the affordable alternative to deliver that high quality.” n