ProLabel chooses digital

New tools enable label converters to properly evaluate the place of digital printing in a conventional print operation. Danielle Jerschefske reports

ProLabel, located in Miami Gardens, Florida, opened its doors in July 1995. Cuban-born ProLabel owner Ramon Fernandez guided the small business to specialize in quick response label production for the food and beverage, nutraceutical, cosmetics, durable and industrial markets of the region. Initially business grew with flexographic technology using a seven-inch Mark Andy, eventually expanding to a servo-driven Aquaflex ELS machine – and more recently supported by a Xeikon 3030 digital dry toner press. 

Like many of North America’s label converters, ProLabel has been studying the advance of digital print technology. The ProLabel team attended Labelexpo Americas 2010 to study the various digital technologies, walking the show floor, reviewing the Technology Workshops and quickly eliminating many of the desktop options since the converter’s ‘short runs’ are far longer than what these machines are designed to viably produce.

Last year Fernandez solicited the assistance of Karstedt Partners, a digital print consultancy firm that released a digital print Commercialization Assessment Report (CAR) for the narrow web label sector in May 2011. The report is unbiased to any single printing technology, digital or analog, and offers an objective view on the value of digital printing in a converters’ own environment.

‘Eventually we decided on a Xeikon 3030 because the company and staff communicated well, and the technology matches with our business model and strategy,’ says Ramon Fernandez. ‘The quality coming off the machine is phenomenal and we liked that we don’t need to pre- treat substrates.’

This is the second time the converter has gone down the digital printing road and Fernandez was determined to make it a success.

Opportunity to diversify

The electrophotographic dry toner-based Xeikon 3030 is the entry level digital press within the supplier’s 3000 series for the label and packaging markets. It’s capable of running up to 13 inch material with a 12.7 inch image area at 30ft/min with up to five colors including an opaque white.

ProLabel took on a computer savvy employee from outside the company and trained him to run the machine. Finishing is completed on a Grafisk Machinfabrik DC 330.

ProLabel has found its customer base to be highly receptive when given up-to-date details of how digital print technology has progressed in recent years and what it can offer a brand. In some cases clients have opted for digital printing because they preferred the way it looks.  Marketers are also finding the cost benefits realized with less inventory, combined with the personalization and on-demand capability to be highly valuable.

The Xeikon press also offers ProLabel the opportunity to diversify into cartons to offer a one-stop shop.

iVAT

Karstedt Partners’ digital print CAR for the narrow web label sector comes with a proprietary spreadsheet called the Investment Value Assessment Tool (iVAT) which provides interactive calculation of a particular digital technology when evaluated with and against conventional operating parameters such as cost, price sensitivity, product mix, equipment and more. This tool allows the converter to formulate multiple ‘what if’ scenarios with their own operating values and volumes to see what impact a digital asset plugged into their business would have.

The iVAT comes preloaded with industry averages of the various processes – flexo, offset, gravure – and has the ability to compare across multiple digital technologies. It also has a forecasting tool to allow plug and play adjustment of sales revenues and an ROI action model.

Fernandez says, ‘Working with Karstedt Partners and going through the iVat with our own figures was valuable in reinforcing our ideas and assumptions. The spreadsheets gave us accurate data to work from, helping us better understand our business and how digital could best fit – or not. You don’t know what you don’t know.’

ProLabel realigned its workflow with the support of the LabelTraxx MIS, which allows the integration of conventional and digital workflows. With both flexo and digital technology the converter is able to take on any run size and has the opportunity to diversify into the short run carton market as it picks up pace. It has proved to be a wise investment.

Pictured: ProLabel owner Ramon Fernandez with the Xeikon 3030

This article was published in L&L issue 3, 2012