Packaging Graphic Production in a Flat World

What does the fall of the ­Berlin Wall in 1989 have to do with getting packaging graphics from a computer screen onto a folding carton or label? Until I read Thomas L. Friedman’s 2007 book, “The World Is Flat,” I would have said the two were not at all related. However, having read the book, I can see a direct correlation—and so might you.

Wikipedia describes the book as an international bestseller “analyzing the progress of globalization with an emphasis on the early 21st century. The title is a metaphor for viewing the world as flat or level in terms of commerce and competition, as in a level playing field—or one where all competitors have an equal opportunity.” According to the book, the dismantling of the Berlin Wall was the first of ten forces that, combined with other forces of technology and innovation, helped to “flatten the world” and make it possible for a customer service representative in India to explain my Visa bill to me in Buffalo, New York.

Friedman explains how from 1989 through the first half of this decade, a number of concepts and enablers have occurred to make it practical, for companies to expand beyond their own four walls, and tap into global resources in efforts to improve whatever it is they produce. So, combine these enablers with the vast amount of fiber-optic cables installed around the world that provide virtually free high bandwidth communications, and you have the makings of a level “business” playing field.

The book is full of examples of companies that have taken advantage of this technical leveling of the business world to improve the level of services they provide. One such example is how JetBlue Airlines uses hundreds of motivated stay-at-home mothers in the Salt Lake City area as home-based booking agents. Another is how an entrepreneur and McDonald’s franchisee in Colorado Springs has created a drive-through order taking service that allows a team of order takers in Colorado Springs to take drive-up orders from multiple McDonald’s restaurants anywhere in the country and transmit the order to the delivery window 30 feet ahead of where the order was taken.

For years, those who created packaging graphics and provided prepress services had invested heavily to improve their workflows and expand the level of services and value they provided to their customer. These efforts have been supported by companies such as Adobe, EskoArtwork, and Kodak to name only a few, that have developed comprehensive workflow tools making the very labor-intense process of creating and managing production art and prepress files as streamlined as possible. I have had the privilege of working with some of the most impressive “propeller heads” at design and prepress companies who have taken these tools to levels of automation that would make General Motors envious.

The degree of efficiency and quality at many of these companies is very impressive, but there is always room for improvement and they are always being pushed by their customers to make it faster, better, and cheaper. So, the question becomes: Is the time now upon them to build on their technical, workflow, and process expertise—and take advantage of the new flat world—to forge partnerships with offshore companies that can do the digital grunt work for art and prepress production?

For the past year I have found myself in conversations where the topic of outsourcing some graphics production has come up. The motivations of those considering outsourcing range from simple cost-cutting measures and wanting to grow their businesses through increased capacity and service offerings, to wanting an overseas presence without having to go over there and buy a company. The smaller companies are working to keep up with the bigger ones, while the bigger ones are looking for ways to be more nimble like the smaller ones. So, being the entrepreneur that I am, the revelation hit me (it only took me a year to recognize it) that the time is right for a comprehensive study to address the technical and business issues around outsourcing packaging graphics and prepress services.

This summer I will be conducting confidential interviews with business owners and management personnel throughout the packaging supply chain including brand owners, design firms, trade shops, and printers to gauge their thinking on outsourced graphic production services by themselves, their suppliers, and their competitors. I expect a wide range of insights will be brought to light. How flat is the packaging graphics world that we work in daily? Is it more unique than American hospitals that use the flat world to have radiologists in India and Australia operate and read CAT scans?

If the flat world is something you are interested in learning more about I encourage you to read Friedman’s book. If you are interested in learning more about the study I encourage you to contact me. Both endeavors are sure to make you wonder, next time you look at something just peaking over the horizon, how far away it really is. pP

Kevin Karstedt is president of Karstedt Associates, Ltd. and has been involved with digital packaging graphics production since the early days of computer graphics. Karstedt Associates works with companies all over the “flat world” in the development and use of digital workflow technologies and digital printing. Karstedt can be reached at kevin@karstedt.com.