Business Management - Industry Trends

The market will see continued growth, driven mostly by an increasing demand for stand-up pouches. FLEXIBLE PACKAGING FACES a bright outlook for 2004. Currently, flexible packaging—a $20 billion industry—is the second largest packaging category in the United States, according to the Flexible Packaging Association's Web site. Furthermore, industry experts and studies only expect the market to see continued growth over the next several years, despite a slowly recovering economy. "There's going to be continued growth in the market," said Dennis Calamusa, president of ALLIEDFLEX Technologies, Inc. and a sales and marketing consultant providing global flexible packaging machinery to the North and South American markets.

Synthetic labeling materials are grabbing the attention of converters with their durability and versatility. WITH ITS UNIQUE shell, the nine-banded armadillo is the only mammal in the animal kingdom with armor. Made from plates of bones, its armored shell is coated with a layer of horny skin, protecting the creature from most impending harm. Even with the armored shell, this seemingly awkward animal is very versatile, able to run and even swim. Within the package-printing industry, there is a similar anomaly. Like the armadillo, synthetic labeling materials provide durability and protection for tough applications, along with added versatility. Synthetics Converters are increasingly

Package printers want ink options for less, according to the 2004 packagePRINTING Annual Ink Usage Survey. by Kate Sharon PACKAGE PRINTERS WANT one ink supplier with superior products, and plenty of options, at bargain prices, according to the 2004 packagePRINTING Annual Ink Usage Survey. That's not a novel concept, but it's one of many areas where 2004's survey results differed from last year's. Other areas where most of this year's respondents had a different point of view than last year's included the most important ink issues and capabilities, and what specialty inks they employ. With help from industry ink suppliers, packagePRINTING set out

Shrink stock continues to steal the spotlight in the world of labels. TO EFFECTIVELY MARKET a consumer product, follow these directions: apply brightly printed shrink label to a smartly-shaped container and watch it fly off the store shelf. Okay, it's not that easy and maybe shrink sleeves aren't that good. But shrink labels are growing at an astounding rate, and their brilliant, 360° graphics and ability to contour to sleek container designs appeal to consumers. Simply put, shrink labels look good and sell their products. Endless possibilities Body labels such as shrink sleeves are expected to grow at a clip of about

Thermal transfer printing is a proven, versatile printing process that continues to expand its reach. THERMAL TRANSFER PRINTING is a proven, industrial printing process that can be tailored to meet a wide range of application needs. Its tracks can be found in everything from coffee bags, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, snack foods, prepared foods, and processed meats and cheeses, says Glenn Breslauer, director of IT marketing for Bell-Mark Corp. (Pine Brook, N.J.). One of the reasons for this widespread use is its ability to print variable information. "Thermal transfer allows a package to be coded with variable information in real-time," states Breslauer. "Not only

FLEXIBLE PACKAGING CONTINUES to be an area for growth opportunities in the package printing industry, even in an economic recovery that is spotty at best. Several market drivers for this growth potential were identified in a study done in 2002 by The Freedonia Group titled, "World Converted Flexible Packaging." These drivers include: the expansion of end-use markets such as snack foods, pet and prepared foods, and pharmaceuticals; the continuing trend for conversion of rigid packaging to new flexible packaging alternatives; the need to reduce packaging costs and volume; and the increased use of stand-up pouches and liquid flexible packaging. The Flexible Packaging Association's

One flexible package printer looked across the Atlantic to save its shop. ALMOST TWO YEARS ago, Lawson Mardon USA Inc., an Alcan Packaging Company in Bellwood, Ill. realized it was at a competitive disadvantage. Other companies in the flexible food packaging industry were beginning to deliver flatter, clearer products. Suddenly, some of Alcan's most important customers began scaling back their orders. To make matters worse, Alcan needed to increase capacity, but because of its location in a residential area, there was no room for expansion. Alcan's management team contemplated integrating, for the first time in the history of the site, solventless, off-line

Package printers are looking for as many different ink options as possible, according to this year's ink usage survey. by Sean Riley, Associate Editor If package printers decided one thing last year in terms of ink use, it is that there is no such thing as too many options. More so than in any other year, converters who responded to packagePrinting's annual ink usage survey are looking for more ink options and ink suppliers in an allout effort to create unique applications that jump out at consumers. Last year, 60 percent of respondents said they use a single supplier for all of

Flexible packaging players continue to regroup in order to ensure future growth. by Susan Friedman, Editor Though consultants say consolidation activity in the packaging industry is slowing, the face of the flexible packaging industry continues to be changed by mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures. In packagePRINTING's annual Top Flexible Packaging Converters Survey, such past participants as Duralam, Pac One, and Rex Int'l are now part of larger players' umbrella portfolios. And International Paper's flexible packaging division, sold to Exo-Tech Packaging LLC in 2001, is now called Exopack. Of the estimated $19 billion flexpack market, more than $14 billion in total sales is represented in the

packagePRINTING went straight to its readers to explore trends in specialty, application-specific, and hybrid ink usage. by Kate Tomlinson, Assistant Editor THIS YEAR, packagePRINTING's annual ink survey spread its wings to cover more emerging usage trends. Among the findings: hybrid ink systems, while fairly new to the scene, are beginning to carve a niche for themselves. And, as printers expand their substrate capabilities, the use of application-specific inks is becoming commonplace. In addition, the tried-and-true specialty ink market continues to grow and release new products. Despite online purchasing's growth in many segments, the numbers show package printers are still fairly hesitant about this buying