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The packaging segment has seen many changes in recent years, and they all left their mark on the printing technology used in the manufacture of packaging. To meet the needs, a lot of print styles are designed for printing that can be fully integrated with the digital development process. A growing number of colors and expensive equipment and technology upgrading print products leads to the need to reduce make-ready time by changing the printing plates. For the production of high-quality cardboard boxes today simultaneously they apply several printing methods (such technique is possible, for example, in "hybrid" vehicles, the so-called printing and finishing lines) (Kozak et al., 2008). An important role is played in such cases flexographic printing, which in the coming years may be ahead of the offset and become a leader in the production of packaging. The other popular printing method is digital printing. To make a new product design, it is more efficient to use digital printing on the initial stages, and then pass to flexographic printing when the quantity of product on the shelves becomes larger.
When talking about graphic design deals with the press, it often refers to the offset printing. This is not surprising, because offset printing makes around 80% of commercial printers in the United States (the remaining share is almost entirely covered by the gravure printing) market. But when it comes to the manufacture of packaging, starting from boxes of cornflakes and labels for canned and ending labels for wine bottles and wrappers for candy, the flexographic printing gets about two-thirds of the US orders (else again falls mainly on the gravure printing) (Kozak et al., 2008).
The product and packaging that must be developed, will be produced in Tongbai County of Nanyang, Henan, China. The package will be small and designed for the green tea which will be also produced and delivered to the US. The product will just appear at the market; the quantity will be moderate at the beginning. That is why printing method must be at the first stage cheap, but producing attractive packaging to attract attention. Design and the package must sell. It is important that consumers feel it, see the product on the store shelf. The packaging design for the product should be not only beautiful, but also practical. In developing the design of packaging, the designers are guided primarily by common sense. Packaging should amaze, but to be ergonomic and user-friendly for consumers, so that they not only were led to "wow effect", and become loyal customers.
In the traditional printing industry, there are 3 major (classic) printing method: flat (offset), high and deep. Offset printing advantages and disadvantages are well known to professionals, printers, and customers printed products. So when the question arises in the company that would have anything to print, or to purchase its own printing press, it automatically means that we are talking about the offset. Meanwhile, all over the world (except the 1/6 part of it) is actively developing such a printing industry as flexographic printing. And flexographic printing development is much faster than the offset, constantly expanding the area of its application and capabilities ("Flexible Packaging & Print Packaging", 2016).
Flexographic printing is a type of letterpress printing, which uses elastic (flexible) printed forms and low viscosity ink. Flexographic printing machines are originally designed for printing on packaging materials, and have virtually no restrictions on the type of substrate material. Typically, the material choice is based only on the process that is needed to create a product package. Furthermore, it is possible to print on special media with a rough texture, such as for example cloth. As mentioned above, the plate run of flexographic forms is very high, which leads to cheaper products for large print runs. The unique feature of the flexographic printing is the ability to almost arbitrarily change the length and width of the print. It allows to use the form of the size that is required for printing. Furthermore, in some cases it can further increase the productivity in comparison with the offset machine. For example, for an offset machine immaterial whether nesting box has the maximum size and occupies only 75% - still will be the performance of the machine 13,000 boxes per hour, whereas flexographic machine in this case will operate in a half times faster. Thus it is clear that from an economic point of view, the purchase of flexographic machine is fully justified: the initial investment needed to purchase the full range of much smaller, and the price / performance ratio makes it an incomparably shorter payback time, with adequate load. Initially, flexographic printing machines are designed for primarily packaging materials. Today, most of the packaging is in the order portfolio of flexographic machines. In addition to the current conditions are very demanding customers print quality required short runs and high efficiency. That is why most of its actively develop by narrow web machines, which are able to satisfy all these requirements ("Flexographic Technical Association", 2016). The main advantages of this technology include:
a wide variety of media types for printing;
saving money when printing long runs;
It has the ability to print on thick materials;
Possible to use water-based paints;
There is the possibility of combining after-sales processes in a single line.
The disadvantages of this technique are:
there is no way to print small text fonts;
with small circulations it is economically unprofitable;
Quality depends on the equipment used.
Digital printing is a manufacture of printed products using "digital" equipment, printing directly from the electronic files received from station workers Digital printing allows to color and black-and-white prints of very high quality print This is used in the production of brochures, business cards, as well as flyers, posters, postcards and invitations.
Digital printing (offset printing) this is the most rapid and inexpensive method if low-circulation print order. Before printing the order, it is possible to see it by printing a trial version, which cannot be done with the offset printing method, as necessary prepress, which takes time and is very expensive. Print a test version of the digital printing method, it is possible to make changes immediately prior to the fulfillment of the order. Also, digital printing allows to personalize the information and enter the numbering ("Digital Printing vs Offset Printing", 2016).
The main advantages of digital printing
Efficiency.
Printing small and micro circulation.
Printing variable data (personalization).
The possibility of operational changes.
The main distinguishing feature of digital printing by offset, is that digital gives the opportunity to get trials. Although this option cannot replace a color proof. The advantage of digital printing, is the speed of manufacture of the finished product. Although, on the positive characteristics, it has a number of significant drawbacks. The most important of them is that printing must be only on smooth paper, and offset and most of the design papers, cannot be used. The main positive characteristics of digital printing:
Excellent print quality;
High speed of production;
Possible use in the production of the small circulation of the material.
For Devices such production is sufficient relatively small areas (ot50m2) and mains.
Disadvantages are:
Use only coated paper and some kinds of design;
Increasing cost of long runs
References
Digital Printing vs Offset Printing. (2016). Printingforless.com. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from http://www.printingforless.com/Digital-Printing-Explained.html
Flexible Packaging & Print Packaging. (2016). Esko.com. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from https://www.esko.com/en/solutions/digital-flexo/flexible-packaging/
Flexographic Technical Association. (2016). Flexography.org. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from https://www.flexography.org/
Kozak, G., Wiedemann, J., Beuchelt, W., Kügler, K., Rüßman, B., & Daniel, A. (2008). Package design now!. Hong Kong: Taschen.
