Printing for Corrugated Packaging: What's Ahead for Color Digital Printing?

One final note, however, concerns the results for the direct printing of corrugated by color digital. Expectations for such printing have much lower tallies than is true for digital printing of laminates, as seen in the preceding figure. That said, a top story from the FESPA show in London last June was the introduction of the HP Scitex 10000, a huge flatbed using a new, variable drop size inkjet technology (HP's High Dynamic Range technology), one that yields impressive full color print directly onto corrugated media's kraft liner. Not surprisingly, a stated objective of HP Scitex for its 10000 system is the replacement of short run litho lam in packaging and displays. On that, we have to note that we saw at FESPA some beautiful primary packaging printed by the HP Scitex 10000—sturdy boxes for consumer electronics, all printed on what looked like C-flute corrugated. InfoTrends' opinion is that even in direct printing of corrugated, color digital printing will have a growing role as a resource for short runs of fine color graphics. pP