What products and companies were most sought-after in 2001 by packagePRINTING readers? Here's the scoop on the year's most-wanted technologies, ranked below based on responses to both editorial features and display advertising.*** TOP 10: Prepress Equipment 1. Anderson & Vreeland—Photopolymer plate processing systems, rubber plate molding presses, flexo platemaking materials, digital imaging systems and software 2. DuPont Cyrel—Photopolymer plate and prepress systems, including Cyrel FAST thermal technology 3. BASF—Nyloflex® and nyloprint® equipment combinations for processing flexo and letterpress plates and sleeves 4. MacDermid—Sheet, liquid, digital, and water-wash photopolymer plates, platemaking equipment, sleeves, and plate mounting systems for flexo printing 5. CreoScitex—PDF-based packaging
Gallus Inc.
Will combination presses boldly go where relatively few have gone before? by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor THOUGH COMBINATION PROCESS is now and will continue to be a strong contender in the package print market, that strength, at present, is concentrated in narrow-web applications, and configurations most commonly involving flexo/screen pairings. While machines outside this perimeter have been built, they are relatively rare. Here, suppliers summarize combo print possibilities for not-so-fully explored worlds. New World: Wider webs/CI formats Today's platform combo presses afford printers a considerable luxury: choice. The combo press's ability to print using different methods, in whatever order necessary, means the printer can
For minimum day-to-day operation and clean-up hassles, follow these five steps to long-term letterpress maintenance. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor 1. The line-up The path to relatively painless letterpress printing begins before the operator even reports for duty. How the press's daily "To Do" list is constructed plays a major part in the number of cleaning and changing procedures required, and therefore serves as a great opportunity to conserve print "energy." Ko-Pack Service Engineer Pat Bowdy counts job planning as the printer's first shot at the shortest downtime possible. He recommends configuring job sequence to minimize color changes, as well as planning ahead
Rotoflex slitter/rewinders ease tension for CCL Label. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor With recent design and print triumphs such as Dannon's drinkable yogurt shrink sleeve and the award-winning Spinformation® pharmaceutical label construction, CCL Label has continued to command the attention (and business) of leading consumer products companies. CCL's penchant for high-end, high-impact labels recently led management at its Shelton, CT-based facility to a search for new, specialized slitting/rewinding equipment to better handle the latest in label manufacture. Early this year, Shelton determined its production load—90 percent film-based labels—demanded more efficient, up-to-date slitting/rewinding capabilities. After examining the options, CCL decided to procure equipment common
Demand for screen retrofits multiplies as printers look to satisfy process-savvy manufacturers. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor WHILE THERE IS no easy-out clause when adopting a new print method, screen retrofits allow printers to make a significantly smaller leap of faith (and finance). And with manufacturers gaining awareness of its unique benefits, job-specific or brand-specific requests for screen will make the retrofit an even more appealing option. Path of less resistance Screen printing, in its nature, is a more niche-oriented process. As Gary Teeter, after market applications engineer for Mark Andy explains, "Printers likely to retrofit…are typically looking to expand production capabilities in
McCoy Packaging's "Kuleto Villa" wine label poured on enough printing charm to ace two categories and capture Best of Show honors in packagePRINTING's 15th annual Excellence Awards. by Susan Friedman, Editor If McCoy Packaging's Best of Show-winning strategy was to forge an indelible impression in the judge's minds, it succeeded, hands down. McCoy's "Kuleto Villa" wine label repeatedly stood up to its competitors in packagePRINTING's 2001 Excellence Awards, initially nabbing first place in the Labels—Flexo (Process) category, where judges singled it out as a difficult printing, diecutting, and embossing job well executed. "[This label] holds beautiful register at 175 line screen," commented judge Roy
By partnering with other processes, web offset reaches its maximum productivity value. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor THE QUALITY OF web offset printing has never been in question; its economy, however, has had its naysayers. But the new generation of web offset looks to be fueled by interdependence: using offset in conjunction with other processes to provide high quality while rationing costs. Given its in-line capabilities and speed advantage, web offset's doors may soon open to many more printers. The move to multi-process was certainly witnessed by last year's Labelexpo attendees. RDP Marathon, for example, highlighted its LF-series of variable repeat web presses, which
packagePRINTING congratulates the winners of the 2000 TLMI Awards Competition, offering a special toast to Adams Label & Tag for its Best of Show-winning wine label. By Susan Friedman, Editor The 267 North American and International entries in the 2000 TLMI Awards Competition bested last year's entry draw by 33 percent—making victory even sweeter for this year's honorees. "We were glad to see the increased amount of entries," says RotoMetrics' Steve Lee, chair of the Awards Competition Committee. Quantity was up, but so was overall quality, illustrated in part by the definitive rise in multi-process label entries. "There was lots of good competition," states
Despite the many benefits of UV flexo technology, industry insiders are hesitant to treat it as the package printing cure-all. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor THE BIG BUZZ surrounding UV flexo printing has abated slightly over the last year or two. The process' benefits —improved print resolution, less makeready time and waste, better adhesion to film substrates—have been well publicized. But with developments in water-based flexo, suppliers and converters alike have begun to wonder exactly what share of the package print pie UV flexo merits. So what to make of UV flexo's mantra of rivaling offset? From its first appearance on the industry scene,
Labels—Flexo (Line) First Place LSK Label Co. El Dorado Hills, CA M.G. Vallejo 750 ml Press: Gallus/Arsoma EM-280 Plates: DuPont Cyrel Anilox Rolls: Harper Dies: CompuDie Substrate: Technicote Ink: Akzo Nobel Judges' Comments: Nice combination of flexo printing with foil stamping/embossing. The sharpness of this entry's line work stood out. Second Place MPI Label Systems Stockton, CA Island Essentials Sunblock Press: Mark Andy 2200 Plates: DuPont Anilox Rolls: Harper Dies: Avis RotoDie Substrate: Fasson Ink: INX International Third Place Tape & Label Engineering St. Petersburg, FL Spring Valley Brewer's Yeast Press: Mark Andy 4150 Plates: DuPont Cyrel Dies: RotoMetrics Substrate: Green Bay Ink: Water
