Still Going Strong

Wolk says, “Flexo is getting better but still doesn’t rival gravure for most customer reproductions. Flexo does compete with simple art, but cannot match gravure for high-end art.”

Magen adds, “Flexographic printing is second to gravure,” he says. “We recommend it mainly for short or one-time runs.”

So quality-wise, flexo is still in the rearview mirror, but cost-wise, going gravure means you’re going to pay for it. Kirchhoff says one challenge affecting gravure printers right now is “the need for rapid changeovers to accommodate smaller print runs with multiple SKUs.”