Converter Perspectives: 
Digital Printing in Packaging

Among companies that have some type of color digital as part of their production now, and that plan to purchase new or replacement equipment in the next 12 months, stand-alone EP presses such as HP Indigo or Xeikon are the top choices for label converters. As seen in Figure 5, 42 percent of those that expect to make a purchase say they expect it to be a high-end color EP press. While the sample is small—just 26 companies, with multiple responses were permitted—it is notable that inkjet alternatives are much less often chosen, with 2 votes each (7.7 percent) for stand-alone inkjet presses and conventional presses with color inkjet module attached. For folding carton converters and flexible packaging converters, the numbers of companies planning to buy new or replacement color digital equipment are too small to be statistically useful except for anecdotal guidance. Again color EP systems lead, cited as a planned purchase by 11 out of 15 folding carton converters (73 percent).