HP Announces Winners in Printing Competition

ROSEMONT, Ill.—HP announced the winners of the second HP Indigo Digital Label & Packaging Competition at an awards gala held during the Labelexpo Americas trade show. The competition recognizes HP customers from around the world for their commitment to excellence and innovation in digital printing.

HP launched the competition in 2007 to promote quality and ingenuity in the digital label and package printing market, and invited HP Indigo press users to submit jobs that represent the distinctiveness of their company, prove their progressive printing capabilities and showcase an impressive execution of a digital production challenge. All submitted entries were produced on HP Indigo presses and were showcased at Labelexpo 2008.

“This competition allows HP Indigo users to share the outstanding and effective applications they are able to produce for a wide range of industries with HP technology and recognizes the customers who have excelled in digital production,” said Alon Bar-Shany, vice president and general manager, Indigo Division, HP. “We are very pleased with the number of entries we have received and continue to be amazed by the creativity and success of our customers.”

Categories included wine, beverages, spirits, household, industrial, food, pharmaceutical and nutraceutical labels; shrink sleeves; flexible packaging; unique application; and innovation. The entries in these categories were judged by a panel of independent, industry-recognized experts, including Chris Lyons, publisher, Package Design Magazine and RFID Product News; Nick Van Alstine, president, Macaran Printed Products; Michael Jackson, chief operating officer, Ramsey Division, Southern Graphics Systems; and Michael Ferrari, associate director, Corporate Research and Development, The Procter & Gamble Co.

“After reviewing more than 140 contest entries from HP customers around the world, there is no doubt that digital label and package printing is a growing, viable industry,” said Ferrari. “Judging these entries was very difficult, as each of the entrants did a superb job of showcasing the unique benefits of using digital printing technologies to provide innovative, effective solutions for their customers.”

New Zealand-based converter Hally Labels won the Best of Show Benny Landa award for its entry in the food category, a label printed for Miada Corporation. HP Indigo Digital Label and Package Printing Competition Best of Category winners include:

• Wine – S.A. Litho Labels (South Africa)
• Beverages – MPSDigital (U.S.A.)
• Spirits – Fort Dearborn Company (U.S.A.)
• Household – Innovative Labeling Solutions (U.S.A.)
• Industrial – Dion Label Printing Inc. (U.S.A.)
• Food – Hally Labels Ltd. (New Zealand)
• Nutraceutical – Hally Labels Ltd. (New Zealand)
• Shrink Sleeves – Tadbik (Israel)
• Flexible Packaging – Innovative Labeling Solutions (U.S.A.)
• Unique Application – Impresora Silvaform, S.A. DE C.V. (Mexico)
• Innovative Use of Substrate – Etiquettes Profecta Labels (Canada)

In addition to the Best of Show and Best of Category awards, several companies also received certificates of special recognition, including:
• Innovative Labeling Solutions (U.S.A.), for its execution of graphic elements
• Etiquettes Profecta Labels (Canada), for its self promotion leveraging variable data printing (VDP) technology
• Prestige Label (U.S.A.), for sustainable packaging
• Artes Graficas Modernas S.A. (Argentina), for innovation
• NOSCO (U.S.A.), for its entry in the pharmaceutical category
• Gold Coast Graphics (U.S.A.), for market exploitation of VDP technology