THE BUSINESS OF VISCOSITY BLOG

People that claim print is dead are exaggerating the demise of the industry. Sure, newspapers and magazines have struggled to maintain readerships, but they are many areas where the print industry continues to thrive.

Look around you. Chances are, you see something that required some form of precise commercial printing. Whether it is a mailed advertisement, a potato chip package, a book, or a billboard, the color and clarity of that printed product relied on carefully managed formulations and viscosity control.

There was a time not too long ago when corrugated printing meant adding blue or black logos and text to the plain cardboard box a product was shipped in. Or adding to the front of a pizza box the two-colored cartoon imagery of a chef tossing dough as he sported the stereotypical mustache and goofy hat.

That’s not the case anymore.

Like many other technologies over the past decade, corrugated printing has evolved to become much more advanced, incorporating high-definition imagery, a wider range of colors, and more intricate shapes and designs.

Sustainable packaging is quickly becoming a feature that consumers expect to see associated with their favorite brands.

In its article, “Booming Boards, Big Growth,” the July 2016 issue of FLEXO Magazine addressed this trend in packaging, stating: “Sustainability is no longer a just nice to have, but is now seen as a necessity for attracting consumers and protecting market share – i.e. it is now an expectation, not a differentiator.”

You may already know this, but the packaging and other materials you produce for your clients all play a central role in establishing their brand identity and helping to drive sales.

Think about how important packaging is to a brand like Coca-Cola. Since the 1890s, the brand’s famous “Coke Red” color has adorned bottles (glass and plastic), aluminum cans, wooden crates, cardboard boxes, corrugated store displays, paper signs, and countless other materials.

Every industry is looking for ways to maximize production and reduce costs without impacting quality. Packaging manufacturers and printers are no different.

Achieving these goals in packaging and printing can be difficult, though. Clients expect quicker turnaround on projects in order to get more products into the marketplace at a faster rate. Inks, materials, and specifications can vary greatly from job to job, leaving many projects vulnerable to human error. And the growing popularity of specialty packaging and print jobs introduces even more variables into the printing process.