The International Packaging Conclave 2016 was held in the sidelines of PackPlus 2016 at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi on 29 July. The conclave focused on the theme ‘Print optimisation and colour management in flexible packaging’.

During his speech, Ray highlighted on the following:

Generic attributes of brand management:

• Developing promise
• Honouring and sustaining the promise
• Positioning the brand
• Differentiating the product from competition
• Creating quality image
• Emotional connectivity with customers
• Creating customer loyalty from impulse/ inquisitive buying to repeat purchase
• Creating customer perception of the product and quality
• Brand management builds corporate image

How does a brand help?

• It influence and persuade customers for quick purchase decision
• Eliminates search cost for product
• Enhances customer loyalty and commitment
• Signifies certain product features and quality
• Reduces monetary and social risk

“Strong brand organisations have higher market share,” Ray said.

Brand owners expectations from flexible packaging industry:

• Unique feature to stand apart and shelf appeal
• Speed to market from concept to consumer
• Safe Packaging
• Compliance to regulations
• Anti-counterfeiting feature
• Sustainability
• Lower packaging cost to make the brand affordable
• Frequent design changes
• New pack formats
• Strong commitment to brand colour reproduction

Evolution of flexible packaging:

• Rigid packaging to flexible packaging
• Paper to plastic
• Big packs to small packs
• Foil-based structure to metalised film
• Adhesive lamination to extrusion lamination
• Thinner structure with new generation polymers
• Barrier coating instead of metalised or multilayer polymeric film
• Modified atmospheric packaging and vacuum skin packaging
• Compositional changes in packaging material to make it recyclable
• Bio-degradable and oxo-biodegradable plastics

Evolution of printing and its future trend:

• Indirect imaging to direct imaging (gravure, flexo, offset to digital)
• Solvent-based to water-based
• Move to compliant packaging
• Lower energy consumption (LED Flexo, EB Flexo)
• More variations in designs and lower design change cost
• Incorporating anti-counterfeit feature in printing
• Higher speed and lower down time for better overall equipment efficiency
• Shorter runs
• New laser engraved cylinder technology for better imaging and lower VOC
• New practice for colour measurement; instead of LSD – one digital standard