There was a time when packaging was used for a sole purpose of packing stuff. As the behavior of humans towards many other things has changed over time, packaging for different consumer products has also changed. Everything has become more targeted because the buyers nowadays are smarter than a few years back. There are certain things that every smart buyer keeps in mind when looking for any cosmetic, beverage, bakery product or even popcorns. Packaging is one of the necessary things that can persuade buyers to buy a specific product. Therefore, vendors put great emphasis on the packing of their products. A common saying among packing engineers and vendors is Great things always come in great packing. Here we will share some very useful and interesting information about printing technology used in cardboard boxes. We will also put light on the latest trends which are shaping trends of printing tech in the coming year.
Direct flexographic printing is simplest and cheapest form of corrugated printing. In this type of box printing entire image or graphic is applied directly to the surface of the box. Direct printing is very cheap and can be used for various applications. It provides a fine quality finishing and being cheap doesn’t mean it lacks in giving the final quality product. Whether you need it for a small or large number of press runs, the price is going to be relatively very cheap and in range. It provides three color choices as one, four or six. You can choose any number of graphic for your packing. The better-corrugated material you use the better print quality you are going to achieve.
Screen printing is another well-known printing technology. This printing methodology works with the help of a screen mesh which forces ink with a special injector. The screen mesh works in a combination of stencils to put ink at the right pixels where it needs to be painted while saving other areas of the surface. Screen printing is relatively a good method of making a branded impression with the help of packaging. It provides more accurate, up to the mark, and shinning colors and easily fits any layer. This printing methodology has been very much trending keeping in mind its high quality. But where it has so many benefits, screen printing is also costly comparing to flexography. The quality and overall finishing however it provides is also greater.
It is called offset because in both the upper methods of box printing directly print on the surface. Whereas in lithography or litho lamination, offset printing machine is used to print the desired design onto the box. The design is first coated with the liner board. Afterwards, this coated liner board is laminated onto customized boxes. The final step now is to die-cut the box into its final shape. Lithography is most widely used approach and is believed to keep its charm in upcoming years as well.
As it seems obvious from its name, digital printing is all about printing high-quality images, graphics, and designs on custom boxes using digital techniques. Digital technology is the cheapest, yet most quality oriented methodology and gives high-end final products.
The last one but definitely not the least printing technology is rotogravure or simply gravure. The process of offset printing and flexography is the same. Only the main difference is that in both of offset and direct, the rotary printing press is used whereas in rotogravure cylindrical press in used to laminate image onto the printing surface.
Why are printed boxes important? Because innovative, catchy and aspiring printing grabs the attention of the buyer and can promote the brand in several ways. There are many technologies used for printing of packaging boxes, but here we will list only the 5 most famous ones. Let’s move straight towards our topic of interest before wasting any more time.
