Digital Labels Printing for the Trade

2003.12.12 | 12.12.12

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Respecting the Needs of the Trade

Profecta Labels uses an HP Indigo ws4500 and Rotoflex Vericut2 combination to produce small-volume print runs and reduce downtime on its conventional units. By Chris Mc Loone, Package Printing, May 2007.

Digital Labels Printing for the Trade More Updates ...

		Short-run printing is a reality today for any package printer, and a converter’s ability to adapt to this reality will go a long way toward customer retention. Being able to offer customers the option of shorter runs is the equivalent of offering them a new product–such as a new substrate, a specialty ink, or the ability to soft proof. However, integrating the shorter jobs into conventional press runs can be a challenging proposition. On the one hand, no one wants to turn down business, but on the other hand, fitting the shorter job in between two longer runs means more planning and make ready. Profecta Labels, Boucherville, Quebec, addressed this challenge by investing in a digital press and associated finishing equipment.

		HP/Rotoflex combination Fifty percent of Profecta’s business comprises short runs of less than 6,000 linear feet, and that number is –growing because businesses seek to have little inventory and greater flexibility to change the designs in order to stay ahead of the competition, explains Roberge. The addition of the HP Indigo press means Profecta can now offer the option of shorter runs to its customers. “The Indigo has opened up a market we couldn’t have touched before. Now we are seeing new orders from existing customers, and new clients are bringing different applications,” says Roberge. “We are now in a position to offer the best of both worlds: flexo for long runs and digital for short runs.”

		Profecta has found that the HP Indigo/Rotoflex Vericut2 combination enables it to do small-volume print runs from start to finish, reducing downtime on its conventional units. When the two machines are combined, according to Roberge, a streamlined label production facility is formed, capable of meeting short-run, on-demand requirements for all segments of the label market.

		By switching the small runs Profecta had been running on its flexo presses to the digital press, “we have substantially reduced the downtime and also have opened up a lot of hours for longer runs on the existing flexo presses,” says Roberge. “This should retard the purchase of new flexo equipment for some time.” Other resolved issues include faster turnaround, increased quality of print, reduced waste, and simplified proofing process. “The proof the customer receives is output on the HP Indigo on the actual substrate, eliminating any confusion or misinterpretation,” Roberge adds. “By reducing the waste and [downtime], we have begun to penetrate new markets with new and existing customers.”
		Profecta’s Vericut installation includes a laminating station, dual rewind shafts, and a servo–driven flexographic printing unit for spot varnishing and printing. Working with the same principles as semi-rotary die cutting, the unit includes first impression positioning with the advantage of flexible plates. Read Full Article

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