October 2001 Issue
Eye on Integration (CAD/CAM Systems)
While its design capabilities are constantly evolving, the modern CAD/CAM system has yet to reach its potential as part of the manufacturing process. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor THE FUTURE OF Computer Aided Design extends far beyond the lines and angles of a diecut pattern. As the converting industry strives to maximize efficiency within the manufacturing process, the communication among all information systems driving production becomes critical. While CAD/CAM systems continue to improve graphic and design capabilities, the ultimate hope for CAD technology is its complete integration with the other information systems employed in packaging manufacture. The big picture "A well-designed CAD/CAM system
How the Bigger Get Better II
At prepress trade shop Southern Graphic Systems, "to measure is to know." by Terri McConnell, Prepress Editor Last December, I was tickled to see Denny McGee—a man named one of the 1990s' "ten most influential people in the packaging industry"—address a room full of his peers with a giant piece of cheese on his head. McGee, hosting the Educator Seminar Series, was playfully hammering home the point that someone has been messing around with the printing food chain. Markets are moving, demands are changing, and we can't expect to find our profits in the same place we found them yesterday. No single group of
Multi-Market Appeal
Mid-web presses buy printers a ticket into a wider arena of end-use markets, while enhancing existing capabilities. by Jessica Millward, Associate Editor THOUGH NOT THE ingenue of the press world it was a few years ago, the mid-web press still attracts its fair share of attention as a "new kid" of printing technology. Combining many of the best features of both narrow- and wide-web technology, the move to mid-web has expanded the product portfolios of several package printers. Board beginnings In the case of flexographic wide-web converter Plastic Packaging, Inc. (PPI), headquartered in Hickory, NC, the company's desire to enter the lightweight
The Envelope Please ... 2001 TLMI Awards
The 2001 TLMI Awards bestows its highest stamp of approval on a flexo process promotional label by Valley Forge Tape & Label. by Susan Friedman, Editor PEEL AWAY The trappings, and the big winner in the 2001 Tag and Label Manufacturers Institute (TLMI) Awards looks a little familiar. "Once again, flexography took Best of Show," enthuses Steve Lee, VP/director of technical support at RotoMetrics and chair of the TLMI's Awards Competition Committee. Valley Forge Tape & Label's coup of this year's Best of Show honor, achieved with "Stamp Out Hunger," a flexo process promotional label, follows Adams Label & Tag's capture of top accolades
TLMI Converter of the Year
Label Technology President John Bankson can savor individual and collective accomplishments as his company turns 15. by Kate Tomlinson, Assistant Editor Congratulations are in order for Label Technology on several counts. As the company marks 15 years in the business, and revels in the installation of its latest printing press, the personality and personal touch of president and co-founder John Bankson deserve particular acclaim. Bankson's entrepreneurial spirit; positive "can do" attitude; and dedication to delivering consistent high quality and service in printed labels and packaging films have led Label Technology to outgrow two previous manufacturing facilities; skyrocket both its sales and employee base; and
