The nuances of label printing explored
The MMS Power Lunch Roundtable format was a novel set-up and it seems to have worked well at the Label Table. The print expert, Denver Annunciation of Janus International, and the vendor expert, Parag Bagade of Avery Dennison, were joined by Sandeep Zaveri of Total Print Solutions, Sandhya Shetty of Synergy Packaging, Ankit Doshi of I Think Ink and Sandesh Dhareshwar of Vimal Art Printery., Associations
08 Apr 2016 | 4310 Views | By Rushikesh Aravkar
The 90-minute discussion was a crash course in label printing, which covered diverse topics such as the entry barriers in labels, profit margins, hidden costs, how to go about investments, pros and cons of investing in a digital machine etc.
Annunciation kicked off the conversation by responding to the offset printer’s view of label printing being a high margin business. He said, “Opportunities are huge in the label business. However, the margins, even though they might appear high, doesn’t mean high profits because we are selling a label with negotiations for each paisa. So higher margin percentages don't really mean high profits.”
Adding to this, Zaveri stressed on the fact that in label printing the raw material cost including plates, anilox and inks are huge when compared with offset.
Dhareshwar is the director of Goa-based Vimal Art Printery, which specialises in offset –printed packaging. Dhareshwar, who is keen to tap the pharma label market, inquired about investing in a flexo press.
Speaking about an ideal investment pattern for a new entrant in label printing, Zaveri said, “If you are investing for the first time in a flexo press, go for a brand new machine. Your second machine onwards can be a pre-owned machine once you learn the machine operations and settings and are capable of thoroughly inspecting a secondhand machine.”
Annunciation concurred saying that the first two flexo machines at Janus were brand new, followed by the pre-owned.
Zaveri added, “If you want to enter the label printing segment, go for high-end letterpress machines like Iwasaki to test the waters. You just need a skilled operator. The plate and other raw material costs are very low.”
Shetty sought advice on the vexed issues of cold foiling on flexo presses and rotary screen. She observed, “These technologies are not fully baked and service support from the vendors is weak. Nobody knows why it doesn't work when it doesn't work.” To which Bagade responded, “In such cases, you must bring all the vendors and material suppliers at one table. When each one of them is involved in a discussion a unified solution can be reached and the issue can be resolved with perfection.”
All the panel members agreed that in order to achieve hassle free printing you need to maintain a fixed set of suppliers. Rather, try to minimise your supplier base. In the case of cold foiling, make sure the vendor who supplies the foil also supplies the adhesive. “In offset printing, the plates and pressroom consumable should come from the same manufacturer. That way you have a minimum number of guys to catch hold of in case of an issue,” added Doshi.
Doshi also spoke about the anti-counterfeiting market which holds immense potential.
Speaking about digital printing, Zaveri said, “Not everyone needs digital. Janus has invested in digital label printing and I get my short-run jobs done from Janus.” Annunciation said, “Mudrika, Total Print Solutions and Synergy, among others have tied up with us to get their short run jobs printed on Janus' Indigo.”
Finally, Zaveri highlighted LMAI’s efforts to counter underpricing in the label market and reverse auctions. “An independent agency will check the balance sheets of the LMAI members. Also, LMAI is working on a costing booklet to help the label converters arrive at the right cost for their products.”