Digital

Harris & Bruno International Announces Entry into the Digital Embellishment Market with the ZRX

Press release submitted on behalf of Harris & Bruno International

Harris & Bruno International, renowned for its high-quality coating equipment, proudly announces its groundbreaking foray into the digital embellishment market with the ZRX. This innovative product signifies a revolutionary advancement in digital embellishment technology, by combining analog and digital technologies on a single B1 platform.

President Nick Bruno expressed his enthusiasm: “We’re extremely excited to enter the digital embellishment market with the ZRX. This step is a testament to our commitment to innovation and our reputation for building solid and reliable machines. The ZRX is not just a new product; it’s a game-changer in the industry, for embellishing both coated and uncoated papers, which has been a challenge up until now.”

By combining the trusted H&B Chamber-Anilox System with state-of-the-art digital inkjet technology, the ZRX enables a seamless single-pass embellishment process on uncoated media, setting a new benchmark in the industry.

Another significant advantage of the ZRX is its elimination of the lamination process, in response to the growing global pushback against single-use plastics. The ZRX allows for remarkable embellishments without the need for the lengthy and costly lamination process, aligning with environmental concerns and consumer preferences.

With the ZRX, users can perform flood coating, digital spot coating, and foil stamping all in one pass, reducing the time and complexity involved in the embellishment process. This innovation leads to significant time savings and operational efficiency, as there is no longer a need to transfer sheets between different machines.

For more information about the ZRX and its capabilities, please visit harris-bruno.com/zrx. Harris & Bruno International also invites you to witness the unveiling of the ZRX, visit H&B at the upcoming DRUPA 2024 event, in Hall 16, Booth 16D03.

Creative Toolkit Shows Off Finishing Services

By Jeff Peterson, editor-in-chief, PostPress

Poor Richard’s Press (PRP), a commercial printer in San Luis Obispo, California, has provided printing services in Northern California for over 75 years. Over the past several years, PRP’s clients have been asking about additional services, including special finishes and embellishments. With this in mind, the company recently decided to add digital spot UV, digital foil and lamination capabilities to its line of services.

To help educate and promote the company’s new capabilities, it was important to create a self-promotional tool. From this, the design of a “Creative Toolkit” was born.

“It’s important as printers to remember that just because we may have plenty of print knowledge, the people who purchase from us often don’t have a convenient way of learning,” said Bella Skinner, Poor Richard’s Press marketing manager. “We saw the need for a tool that is both educational and displays a wide array of the services we provide. We also wanted to ensure we designed it in a modern and appealing way where people would want to keep the toolkit and use it repeatedly.”

Production

Graphics for the Creative Toolkit were accomplished in-house by Skinner. Her goal was to ensure the piece encompassed PRP as a whole and would be appealing to both the designers and marketers of the world, as well as act as a useful and functional tool. PRP used black elements on the toolkit to provide a sleek, uniform look to all of the items.

Due to the nature of the piece, an array of paper was used. The outside folder element is a 100# cover uncoated midnight black. Most of the inside covers of each booklet were printed on 100# gloss cover.

“To create a unique contrast, we made the inside pages of our toolkit items vibrant and colorful,” Skinner said. “The overall design process took lots of trial and error to ensure a cohesive yet impactful design.”

The toolkit’s purpose was to show the capabilities of PRP’s new equipment and services. The different pieces within the Creative Toolkit included digital foiling, lamination (soft-touch, gloss and matte), spot UV, diecutting and binding (coil and screw).

The kit included a paper sample book with several coated and uncoated samples in different paper weights; a spot UV Sample book explaining the process with several colorful, raised spot UV samples included; a foil sample book; a sample of both offset and digital printing; as well as samples of PRP’s embroidery capabilities and a leather sample that showcased the company’s latest engraving capabilities. All of the sample books in the Creative Toolkit included a black digitally printed cover with soft-touch lamination and raised spot UV coating, creating a cohesive look to all the pieces. The printing was accomplished on a RICOH 9200 digital press and a Heidelberg Speed Master 52 offset press. The spot UV was done on a Duplo DDC-8109 spot UV coater and the soft-touch lamination and foiling was done on a Vivid Matrix MX-370p. The foil was supplied by Crown Roll Leaf. The diecutting was done on an Intec 9000.

“The toolkit is unique because it utilized a vast number of the machines we have in our shop,” stated Skinner. “Not only did we use some of our newest printing equipment, but we utilized our Epilog laser engraving machine and our 6-head embroidery machines as well.”

Design and production challenges

The different books fit into a folder utilizing a black cover stock and raised spot UV coating, giving it a consistent black-on-black look as with the other covers. Skinner insisted on using the black stock and having white edges on the folder simply was not an option. PRP had to figure out a way to include a QR code and target marks on the paper to properly register the spot UV and diecut. To accomplish this, a hand-placed label was added to the corners so every sheet could be digitally printed and the finishing machines could read the marks and QR codes. “Luckily, we had amazing Cal Poly Graphic Communications interns help with the tedious task of hand placing the labels,” commented Skinner. “In the end, it was well worth it. The sleek look of the black outside folder outweighed the extra time put into the creation.”

Customer response

Poor Richard’s Press has had overwhelmingly positive reactions from clients and its team members on the Creative Toolkit. Its project managers and sales team enjoy utilizing it when explaining the various services and print finishing options offered by PRP.

“We have found that our Creative Toolkit is excellent at upselling our print finishing services,” concluded Skinner. “When we show a gorgeous foil or spot UV sample next to a plain print, our clients are easily impressed! In fact, we have had such success with this piece, we find ourselves running through our inventory and having to make more quite
often!”

Selling and Marketing Digital Embellishments

By Jeff Peterson, editor-in-chief, PostPress

Digital embellishments are a growing segment of the total print embellishment industry. What has been interesting to see is that the growth has had little impact on most other embellishment techniques, such as hot and cold foil or screen spot UV coatings. Many of the digital applications have been on new projects for which, in the past, the designers likely would not have chosen foil or spot coatings based on run size.

Several current members of the Foil & Specialty Effects Association (FSEA) that have been traditional print finishers have stepped into the digital embellishment arena. They have found that, in many cases, selling digital embellishments takes a different approach than traditional methods. Kevin Abergel of Taktiful sat down with Steven Roberts, president, and Bryce Poremba, sales manager, at Elite Print Finishing in Burlington, North Carolina, to discuss the addition of digital embellishment technology at Elite and how it has been implemented into the current print finishing business.

How has the addition of digital embellishments to the operation opened up new business opportunities for Elite Print Finishing?

Roberts: There was a moment of “what just happened” when the JETvarnish was installed. It definitely has been a positive addition to Elite Print Finishing and for our team. There were a few challenges out of the gate, like anything, but it absolutely opened up new markets for us. It opened up new discussions with existing accounts prior to the new technology going in, and one of big positives was that it began feeding other processes downstream in our operation. It provided us more diecutting, film laminating and other processes – both on the commercial and packaging side.

Poremba: I think Steven hit on it – it’s advanced our business in other ways. The JETvarnish has been awesome for me as a salesperson. We bought the press right before the COVID-19 pandemic, so as a salesperson I wasn’t able to get a lot of meetings set up. Having a new piece of technology with cool samples meant we were able to go in and show companies something they had never seen. All of a sudden, it gave us a reason to start a conversation, a reason for us to get on a Zoom® call and send out samples, a reason for us to get in the door. It was a great way in the door that also advanced our business in other ways as well. Overall, it was a blessing in disguise.

Roberts: It certainly re-energized what we were doing, and I think it had a very positive effect on our core customer base.

What specific markets or industries seem to be a good fit for this kind of finishing – meaning digitally-based embellishments?

Poremba: We definitely see some overlap with what we currently do, so it allows us to go to our current customers and have a new application – something that jumps off the shelf even more than what we’ve done in the past. However, it doesn’t work for everyone.

I would say the biggest space that we see growth in right now is probably the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries. There is so much competition on the shelf in those two industries that it seems like everybody is competing with each other to make the most vibrant and exciting carton. Sometimes the difference can be that embellishment, that person being able to pick it up and touch and feel 3D-raised coating on the front that really makes it stand out above the competition.

Roberts: A lot of brand owners are putting their product into a carton. So, the look of the carton, in a lot of cases, is going to build a perception that’s going to be the winner on the retail shelf. Shelf appeal is key.

College recruiting is another potential new market. All of these universities are competing, not just in football and basketball. They are competing to get students enrolled so they can capitalize on the dollars coming in. The touch and feel of the materials can be a huge selling point. With a lot of brands, they look at it as if it feels better, it must be better. That has been one of the biggest differences – that digital embellishments not only affect the visual sense but the touch sense as well.

One of the obstacles of offering digital embellishments is making sure the artwork is designed correctly. How has this challenge been handled when working with customers?

Poremba: It is a completely new technology, so there is a learning curve. I’m familiar with the technology and have been there through the hurdles as the press was new and we were learning how the different coatings go on different substrates or the different foils react better with certain things. I have a good understanding of the technology, but that’s still hard to sometimes translate to customers and their designers because it’s new.

We have brought a designer on board who is 3D-certified. Sometimes it’s easier just to hand it over to that team member. And we have the customer connect over a Zoom meeting to answer questions, which we do for beginner projects. Our 3D designers have developed a generic PDF that converts to an artificial intelligence (AI) file and explains to our customers how to build a generic template with 3D varnish as well as 3D foil.

Elite Print Finishing offers a 3D certification program for designers. Explain what that is.

Roberts: It is a win-win situation. We are bringing designers into our facility and then having them qualified. At the end of it, they get a certificate that they can market to their customer base. And, subliminally, hopefully, Elite is getting better artwork out of the gate.

As with any process, there are limitations with digital embellishments. How can limitations, such as substrate choices and font size, be communicated by designers and buyers?

Poremba: From a broad perspective, the difficulty has been who we’re selling this technology to. In the past, as a trade finisher, our sales team has met with somebody who controls outsourcing for diecutting, foil stamping, etc. Many times, this is a buyer who is familiar with the technologies and knows our presses. It’s very simple, right?

Now we are having to go after either the sales team or the design team at our printing companies or packaging companies, and we’ve had to teach ourselves how to connect with those people. We have to change the way in which we sell to our customers.

Roberts: With foil stamping, we can pretty much provide any color out there under the sun. With digital foils, we now have about 13 different foil colors. Also, there certainly are limitations to using uncoated stocks. If a customer wants an uncoated stock, we will try to steer them to a lamination or a GPA stock that’s out there that we have tested.

Another limitation with digital embellishments can be run length. We certainly run into those roadblocks where the quantity makes better sense to do it conventionally. This is what we have to get across to our designers, so they understand the advantages and the limitations.

Poremba: When we first bought this technology, we thought that it was going to be our solution for 50 sheets or 100 sheets. Then we started to see that there was this whole other group of customers who want to capitalize off the 3D feel and different look that digital embellishment gives.

Explain a few of the major benefits of digital embellishment technology?

Poremba: I think the major benefit is the 3D effect capability of digital. From the foil side, we are not making an impression on sheets. So, for projects where there is print on both sides, there are advantages. But on the foil side, we also have the challenge of a limited number of foil colors that we have to choose from. For certain jobs, we stick with the traditional foil stamping and then utilize the 3D digital coatings.

Roberts: I love foil. I’ve been foiling for a long time, and I love the full effect. However, I absolutely love what the 3D varnish does. We are not talking about just giving someone an embossed look – we’re talking about really transforming the inks.

This article was transcribed from a portion of a recent FSEA/Digital Embellishment Alliance podcast and edited for style. Thank you to Kevin Abergel, Taktiful (www.taktiful.com) and Steven Robertson and Bryce Poremba, Elite Print Finishing (www.epfink.com) for their assistance with the podcast and article.

To watch this complete video podcast and others on digital embellishments, visit www.fsea.com and click on the Digital Embellish link. It will provide access to the Digital Embellishment Alliance website community where FSEA/DEA members can have access to the video library, DEA groups, and other resources.

Football Frenzy: Putting the ‘Wow’ Factor in Season Tickets

By Erin La Row, editor, PostPress

Fall is here and that means the start of football season – a busy time for the team at Consolidated Printing, Inc., a division of FineLine Technologies, located in Van Buren, Arkansas.

Consolidated Printing, also referred to as CPI, is a full-service commercial printer specializing in producing event tickets. The company has served organizations and events from nearly every field of the sports and entertainment industries. From souvenir tickets to parking passes, no project is too big or too complex for CPI. The CPI team prides itself on ensuring projects have that “wow” factor clients and sports fans love.

CPI was tasked with producing the Las Vegas Raiders’ 2022 season ticket books. The Raiders used the ticket books to honor past Hall of Fame players by incorporating their pictures into the design of each game ticket, along with an array of special embellishments. After each game, the tickets could be removed to create a commemorative player card. The result was a striking ticket book that wowed the judges of the 2023 FSEA Gold Leaf Awards. CPI’s ticket book project received Gold for Best Use of Digital Foil (Varnish Adhesive).

All of the art was created in Photoshop and the project was built in InDesign, using multiple layers for the foil and spot coating on each ticket. The entire project was printed digitally on a Xerox® iGen and a Xerox® Iridesse® Production Press. The board stock was a X16-point Candesce C1S. Each book included 15 different ticket types with 13 unique game art types with each ticket and book personalized.

Each game ticket included unique raised digital spot coating and raised digital foil that was accomplished on a Scodix Ulta 2 press. The names of the Hall of Fame players and the year they were inducted were reversed out of a raised silver metallic foil with a spot textured coating over the illustration of the player in uniform.

The front covers for the ticket books were foil stamped on a Gietz foil stamping press using a textured foil stamping die for the background of the cover with reversed-out areas of flat foil stamping in the Raiders logo and the words “2022 Season.” A bright silver foil from Kurz Transfer Products was used. A second pass embossed the Raiders logo in perfect register. The engravings for the job were supplied by Owosso Graphic Arts, Inc. and Universal Engraving, Inc.

“The intricate part is that each page had variable foil and polymer, some 65,000 variable pages – along with 800,000 RFID (radio-frequency identification) inlays applied and encoded uniquely,” said Curtis Howells, vice president – general manager of Consolidated Printing.

The RFID allowed for expedited stadium entrance, along with the ability for greater customer engagement. RFID tags were applied and encoded on a customized press made specifically for CPI.

One of the challenges of the project was simply the nature of the product. Howells said each individual ticket had to be accounted for. “If one ticket gets destroyed, it has to be remade,” he added. “With all of the steps involved, there are many patches, as we call them.”

Howells said the client loved the final product. “It was a great plan that worked to perfection,” he added.

Digital Embellishments Provide Budget-Friendly Experimenting

By David Drucker, CEO and founder, highresolution

I have been blessed working with a creative community in New York City. In my career, it didn’t take long before I realized my clients were not just sending me their commodity printing but also including me in their creative conversations. I developed my trade and began to view my work as a form of art. And it was then that the caliper of work changed, and I had to up my game and teach myself the art of graphics.

Since my first production in 1983, I have been using embellishments as part of my regular printed productions when appropriate. The first was a black A6 envelope that needed my client’s branding and return address. I was introduced to hot stamping, and I opted for a beautiful black-on-black foil stamping. The black foil ironed out the texture on the paper and appeared clean, smooth and added a wonderful contrast. I then began to invest and put my money where my mouth was, trying so many papers and techniques.

Forty years later, technologies have changed but the desire to offer embellished techniques has not. And now there are so many alternatives – some the same and some that are helping to change designs. Embellishments should work naturally with design but not appear forced. “We want every bell and whistle on this brochure,” says the client. That might sound like a great opportunity to spend the client’s money but, in my opinion, there is nothing artful about that type of production. Artful is what I go for. Quality over quantity.

Choosing the right time to add embellishments

I define an embellishment as a foil stamp (hot), cold foil, emboss, deboss, letterpress impression, engraving, clear screened UV, sleeking or the metallics and clear UVs from machines such as a JETvarnish or Scodix.

When a client asks me to quote a production, the first thing I ask for is an idea of the design. That tells me the story of who will be receiving the piece – whether for a luxury event, direct mail campaign or influencer packaging. The design already might be slotted for an embellishment. I will visit my client or send similar pieces I’ve produced, maybe using different foils or sculptured embossing as a way to start our conversation. By introducing my past experiences in print, it gives the client alternatives that could enhance the end-production. If my client knows exactly what is wanted this time, my samples can help influence future productions.

What we do not want is to just grab the files and go right into production. I have found that sometimes an interpretation actually has several meanings. So, we want to produce what best works for that particular production. That comes as a result of our conversations and recommendations.

Digital embellishments

The digital world has changed the game for short-run productions. Digital embellishments are like jewelry to me. I find that only some of my clients really know about these enhancements. So, again, samples are important and can change the design in a whole new direction. I find that 80% of all my short-run work now is designed for press. Variable printing can be produced in gold foils and looks great. The price also is very competitive for short-runs with no dies or long makereadies – even when producing a one-off.

What digital embellishments also provide is a low-cost means of experimenting. Since there is no tooling, designs can be changed on the fly. So much knowledge can be gained through these types of experiments.

The art of embellishments

Important to me is working with a press person who sees the artistry in the profession. It is amazing the ideas that come with this type of relationship. Knowing the press person and press tolerances means there is less of a guessing game. And the more opportunities one has to have these discussions and experiment on press, the more perfection will be required.

I had been bouncing around and working with quite a few finishing companies in the early ‘80s. I was introduced to a company in my building called Gailer Stamping and Die Cutting in 1985. Specifically, I worked with a man named Michael Pinciotto. The difference when working with Michael? He took an interest in every production I worked on with him. We had discussions of techniques. His enthusiasm carried right to his press operators, who would push the boundaries. It was so great to learn and experiment with such a great production partner. Designers should ask themselves, “Who’s my Michael?”

It also is important to get educated on all the wonderful papers available. A slight change in texture, color and weight can influence embellishments into a new direction. Don’t be afraid to experiment by throwing a few extra sheets into the mix when in production. It is “school” for thought and leads to new ideas.

I like the refraction of light from the different angles of all embellishments. When a finished, well-produced production is handed to a client, watch the client’s face light up. Embellishments are the jewelry and candy of our industry. A great emboss or deboss works with light and reveals shadows, and foils reveal reflection. Find the height or depth of an embellishment and push it just before the point of the paper cracking. Play with clear UVs and see what can be done to make them better. The more designers experiment, the more ideas they’ll have and that makes an easy sale!

Conclusion

The bottom line is that I am a consultant who makes recommendations for every production. There is not any phase of the job that I am not fully involved with. That is my advantage, but it also takes up a great deal of time. When recommending embellishments, I can see the end result in my head. It is at this point that I begin to pull on my experiences and offer a direction I would like to see. There’s no reason why I can’t try to reach a higher level of artistry. My clients love this, and it has made my sales process easier and so much more exciting – especially with embellishments! I recommend designers pull on their experiences and state a redirection they would like to go.

David Drucker is the founder of highresolution, a print consultancy and production management firm. Serving bi-coastal clients, he partners with solopreneurs, design firms, creative agencies and C-suite creative directors at the strategic level to enhance printing, packaging and environmental graphics. Learn more at www.high-res.com.

Hot-Stamping, Embossing Produces Eye-Catching Holiday Card

When awarded this holiday card from Lafayette 148, a global lifestyle brand based in the SoHo district in New York City, David Drucker, CEO and founder of highresolution, faced a few challenges in keeping all of the elements pronounced. There were several versions of the inside copy so, he said, it did not make sense to print conventionally. Drucker opted for the HP Indigo.

The pattern is taken from a sweater that Lafayette 148 had in its winter catalog. “When I saw the actual garment, there were copper highlights and thicker white highlights. Digital embellishments would not work because of their relief bump, so I took my digitally printed sheets and moved them to conventional hot stamping and embossing,” Drucker said.

The copper is hot stamped with light pressure. Drucker said he usually would like to push the paper a bit, but the foil needed to be subtle. On the other hand, the blind emboss was created with a sculptured die to help enhance the feel of the white from the sweater.

“The sculpture pushed the paper just enough so your eye will capture the shadows and refraction of light without having to run your hand over it,” Drucker said.

Overall, he said, all of the printing, stamping and embossing work well together and do not compete with each other.

“I am looking forward to next year’s Holiday Card challenges,” he added.

Working with Paper Stocks and Laminations for Digital Inkjet Embellishments

Edited by Erin La Row, editor, PostPress

Digital embellishments can take a project to a new level – enhancing the look and feel of a product and propelling its brand recognition. But even the best-laid plans can experience hiccups along the way. Selecting the correct paper stock and lamination (if applicable) are keys to a successful job when working with digital inkjet spot coatings and/or digital foiling.

Kevin Abergel, president of Taktiful, sat down with two experts on selecting paper stocks and working through lamination challenges with digital embellishment: Ken Huizenga and Matt Redbear.

When it comes to digital embellishment specifically, what kind of limitations are you seeing when it comes to the type of paper stocks you can and can’t use? And which ones do you recommend for the best possible results?

Redbear: I divide it up into three different categories. There are paper stocks that absolutely work, there are stocks that absolutely do not work, and then there are the ones that can be made to work – they have special situations, special production requirements. Obviously, what’s going to work best is a smooth, coated stock. It’s going to give even results if you want a mirror finish. And I want to clarify, too, that what we’re mostly talking about here is polymer varnish overlays. We can move on to talk about other digital development embellishment methods, but when it comes to laying down inkjet varnish, the smoother the stock, the smoother your results.

There are certain types of offset stocks that I have had good success with, including Royal Sundance Felt – which you would think would never work with the polymer overlay. Cougar® Digital will work as well if the operator is applying the varnish in small areas. If the spot varnish image is large, you’re going to run into problems.

I have used an offset parchment and offset laid paper, which aren’t supposed to work and have had success. There are others that simply cannot work – anything that has a heavily embossed or hatched surface will be difficult. They do make a digital linen, but it will pick up the texture if you’re laying foil on top of that. Any super-porous felt-types of paper or a cork surface simply won’t work with digital embellishments.

When working with uncoated stocks, you must create a barrier somehow, whether it’s through laying down a toner first or a lamination on the sheet. You have an advantage when you’re using a Xerox® iGen® because you have the fuser oil, which creates an additional barrier on top of the toner. You can use a clear or white toner as an underlay as well. Any color of toner can be used as a barrier – the darker the toner, the better coverage you will have. You must have some type of barrier with uncoated stocks – a pre-varnish or lamination works as well.

Huizenga: Much like what Matt said, the smoother the surface, the better. If you’re going to have a stock that isn’t the smoothest sheet, then you may not want to have fine details in the design. However, larger areas or more of a full flood coat can be accomplished with your embellishment press. I tend to prefer, and so do many customers, a dull coated sheet to create the contrast from with spot digital inkjet varnish.

The new FSEA Sourcebook cover includes a soft-touch lamination over the print and then a raised digital inkjet varnish with a textured red metallic foil (produced by FSEA member Post Press Specialties, Independence, Missouri).

A critical point when working with paper stocks and digital embellishments is to make sure you keep your substrate as flat as possible. I always found when ordering parent-size sheets and cutting them down, it reintroduced a moisture change. It often can curl a stock, which can create challenges with the sheets going under inkjet heads that clear by half a mil. You want to be sure to keep it as flat as possible. Ordering precut stock that’s already been conditioned and has been sitting on your shelf a while will lend itself to a much better embellished product. A lot of the pearl ices and metallic-look papers do work. You just have to take into account both design elements and what the end use is for the product because there’s a lot of concerns: whether or not it’ll crack, whether or not it can stand up to the bindery concerns; as well as just making sure that it’ll stand up to its environment, depending on where it’s going or where the customer is going to send it.

Your dyne level is very important. You’re putting down a liquid that has to distribute itself just right. There are dyne pens to test substrates so you don’t get yourself into a bind before you start. If a customer were to ask you to use a certain type of stock that you’ve never used before, I strongly recommend having dyne pens available because you want to make sure that it is in the perfect printing range to apply the digital spot coating. The range is between 34 dynes (minimum) to 45 or more dynes.

Testing the dyne level of the sheet is going to help with bite (how much adhesion you’re going to get into the paper), but also wettability (how well does the varnish smooth out to get a nice, glossy look). Those are the two things you really want – you want it to adhere and you want it to flow on that sheet as nicely as possible. I remember running into issues for clients from time to time on certain C2S sheets. So basically, the coatings are on both sides of the sheet and, if you built up a big enough stack, some of that issue is the coating would stick to the varnish if it was too hot in the production environment.

Redbear: If you’re printing on both sides, it’s all stock dependent, but the smoother and glossier your stock, the more of a problem you’re going to have. We have built a rack where we can literally stand the sheets up apart from each other when it comes off the stacker. We stand them up rather than lay them down to get the pressure off them. Then they cure for another 24 to 48 hours and that usually overcomes the problem.

Including a soft-touch or matte lamination before a digital inkjet spot varnish or foil is used creates a nice barrier but also great contrast for the finished piece. What suggestions do you have when it comes to using lamination, and what kind of limitations have you experienced?

Huizenga: Laminating the paper stock is a great addition – soft-touch laminates can look fantastic. That contrast I talked about earlier becomes tremendous with a soft-touch laminate. I think for me, the biggest concern is what kind of laminator is being used. You obviously need to consider heat and curl, because as discussed earlier, you can’t get a curly sheet under inkjet heads. Making sure that you get the temperature just right, that your finished product lays flat and that it can go into the machine comfortably are very big concerns.

Redbear: Lamination issues are widespread and either it’s just not a full lamination or you get the ragged edges because the blade didn’t cut it clean – either can create issues with sheets being sensed as a double-fed. As far as appeal and use, people seem to gravitate toward the soft-touch laminates more. You’re adding the reverse tactile effects to the other tactile effect. You’ve got the complete 180 degrees going on. This can create really sexy pieces, particularly with a lot of contrast or very dark colors or just black.

Another concern is it can be too thick for some digital embellishment machines. If laminating an already thick stock, you accidentally may find yourself beyond the machine specs. Another thing is to be mindful of your registration marks. Make sure the glossiness of the laminate doesn’t throw off any registration system you may have on your press, and make sure that if you do laminate, the entire width of the sheet gets laminated. If not, those registration marks can remelt in the laminator, and then ghost across the sheet via the hot laminator rollers, and subsequently throw off your registration system when it comes time to embellish.

The dyne level also is important when it comes to laminate rolls and unfortunately, laminates have a shelf life just like foil has a shelf life. The dyne levels will start dipping after the laminate roll has gone past its prime. Also, when you’re buying your laminate, number one, make sure that you’re getting that sell-by date. And number two, if you’re using something you have in stock, track how long it’s been on the shelf. If it’s been on the shelf for two to three years, you might have flow issues and adhesion issues that are linked to the dyne levels. And, of course, as you mentioned, getting the right laminate to stick to the right ink – some laminates stick better with specific inkjet inks or toners.

Huizenga: I also would like to add one quick thing to consider when you’re using laminate – a lot of people are using single-sheet cutters

for their cutting of the dimensional products. Laminate is pretty much a no-go on most of those machines, so you need to be thinking about diecutting or very carefully guillotine cutting these sheets. It’s an important thing to keep in mind when you’re designing.

This article was derived from a recent video interview with Ken Huizenga and Matt Redbear in a four-part series. Members of the Foil & Specialty Effects Association and the Digital Embellishment Alliance have access to this video series and others. To learn more, visit www.embellishdigital.com.

Digital Embellishments Open Doors to New Business

By Hallie Forcinio, contributing writer, PostPress

Digital inkjet embellishment reproduces effects that are either not possible or prohibitively expensive on traditional analog equipment. Capable of creating physical, visual and tactile effects in one pass and economically handling short runs, digital enhancement capabilities open doors to new business. Options include tactile, foil, metallic, glitter, spot and holographic effects, as well as diecutting and embossing. These additional capabilities can be an excellent complement for trade print finishers and other Print Service Providers (PSP’s) and open up opportunities for short-run digital print work for embellishment applications.

Textured finishes, created with 3D varnish, capitalize on the sense of touch to provide a memorable impression for the consumer. Depictions of cobblestones evoke the texture of cobblestones, strings on a guitar feel real, tires feel like rubber and sand feels gritty. For example, a furniture catalog cover produced by Elite Print Finishing (EPF), Burlington, North Carolina, added texture to the pillows, a 3D effect to the windowpane and a metallic effect to the hardware. “Most folks pick up the printed piece and start petting it,” said Steven Roberts, president at EPF. “You achieve interaction with the consumer before one word is read.”

Digital enhancement technology allows printers and trade finishers to serve a fast-growing market, short runs, and also enables jobs that were digitally printed to be digitally enhanced, boosting efficiency and enabling greater personalization of the printed piece and quick production of prototypes. “A lot of times, we sample three or four options,” Roberts said. “So many projects could be so much better with digital enhancement,” he added.

Invitations, real estate brochures, book covers, packaging for cannabis products and trading cards are growing applications. A brochure for a luxury house being sold for $10 million provides an example. Digital enhancement can show what the tile floor feels like and economically accommodate the short run of 50-100 pieces.

Going digital

EPF, which handles both commercial print and packaging jobs, particularly for the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries, looked at the technology for three or four years before deciding to buy a digital embellishment system. Before making the purchase, the company considered return on investment, whether it would be a good fit for its customer base and how much business would be needed each month to make it profitable. It also looked at equipment from various suppliers.

Roberts recalled, “The printed sheets were beautiful, but I couldn’t see customers paying for it. Several existing jobs we showed to an equipment provider were deemed ‘not a good fit’ for the system. But we realized there was new business out there, and we could create a market for it. It changed the way we do business.”

For the annual Las Vegas Raiders Christmas card, Carlson Print Group combined cold foil done on its UV offset press with raised silver foil done on its Sense-ational system to provide contrast. The back of the card has digital raised embellishments as does the sleeve that holds the card. The design was well-received by both the Raiders organization and recipients.

The company chose equipment from MGI Digital Technology and installed it in February 2020 just before the pandemic started. With no personal visits possible to show off the operation and output of the new system, the company shifted to online meetings to spread the word about its new capabilities and sent out samples showing the effects the equipment could produce. “We had prospective customers calling us,” Roberts said. This was new business rather than existing business wanting to convert jobs to digital enhancement. He added, “All of a sudden, we could produce effects we couldn’t do before. That was the market we wanted to be in.”

Carlson Print Group, Eden Prairie, Minnesota, a division of American Spirit Corp., also wanted to be able to offer embellishments beyond its existing capabilities and installed a digital embellishment system from Scodix in 2021 so it could add embellishments more cost-effectively to the 28 x 40″ sheets printed on its ultraviolet (UV) offset printing presses. “It gives the sales staff another tool in their toolbox,” explained Earl Guinter, sales manager, at the specialty printer, which offers full finishing capabilities.

The Anstadt Company, print and marketing execution specialists in York, Pennsylvania, also chose a unit from Scodix. The fourth installation of its kind in late 2016, their Scodix Ultra2 Pro digital enhancement press with foil station has been fully operational since January 2017. The company’s goal was to expand options for creativity and “add value to print and make it … an exciting, viable means for our customers to communicate that could not be easily substituted by digital marketing channels,” recalled Matthew R. Doran, president and CEO at Anstadt. He adds, “We … have years of experience with creating and producing complex print materials that involve areas such as foil stamping, embossing, diecutting, etc., so this was a great next step in our evolution.”

While the ability to add effects such as embossing, spot ultraviolet varnish, 3D foil and specialty diecuts is impressive, implementation of digital enhancement presses is not without challenges. There’s a learning curve for the print sales team, operators and designers. “Artists don’t understand digital embellishments,” said Kevin Abergel, president at Taktiful, Melbourne, Florida, a consultancy of digital embellishment sales and marketing specialists with teams in the United States, Japan, Mexico and Canada. One of its services is teaching designers how to design for digital embellishments. This includes how to set up files correctly as well as tips for incorporating digital embellishments. “Creating a great file is 99% of the battle,” he noted.

Since virtually no designers were familiar with the capabilities of the equipment, EPF hired a design firm and trained the designers. Roberts explained, “We outsource the design to them. They understand the capabilities of the machine and design
specifically for it.”

Guinter agrees education about digital embellishments is essential. “Customers and consumers might see the end result, touch it and feel it, but they are not sure how it was accomplished and don’t understand what it entails,” he said. The terminology is unfamiliar, and it can be difficult to discern differences among effects like clear polymer versus foil or cast and cure. To solve this problem, Carlson Print Group is developing a marketing kit and adopted its own brand name – Sense-ational – to showcase the different polymer effects it can achieve on its Scodix Ultra 6000 unit. “We also are taking some previous artwork from clients that have used specialty print in the past, adding embellishments and sending it to them to show what the equipment can do,” Guinter said. “We’ve had some success with that.”

EPF has taken a similar approach. “We’ve developed a brochure that provides a tutorial about [our Elite3D] technology and what we need from customers to ensure a successful run,” Roberts said.

Another challenge to implementing digital enhancement technology is a lack of standards. “Everyone interprets workflows differently,” noted Abergel.

Another issue is the temptation to price according to the usual cost-plus model. “Don’t commoditize the technology,” warned Abergel. “Pricing should be in accordance with the value it delivers.”

Finally, care must be taken to select the right papers, films, foils and coatings and understand what the machines can and cannot do. Typically, coated or laminated sheets are required. Uncoated sheets tend to be too absorbent and must be primed or otherwise treated.

Implementing digital enhancement has increased EPF’s customer base. It’s bringing in 20 or 30 more jobs per week and the equipment sometimes runs 24/7. Some of the jobs must be cut on the guillotine cutter, stitched or diecut and glued. So, it’s increased workflow across the shop. It’s also created a challenge because a job with 10,000 sheets may be followed by one with 250 sheets. “One of our objectives this year is to find some equipment better suited for short runs,” reported Roberts.

Digital or analog?

Digital embellishment complements rather than competes with analog technology. “It’s not one or the other,” Abergel said. Sometimes, the two are complementary. Digital enhancement technology can provide a rapid prototype and help sell jobs that will run on analog equipment. Jobs may start on a digital embellishment machine but as quantities grow it may be more feasible to move to more conventional foil stamping or possibly cold foil. “Being able to see what the final piece will look like helps make the sale,” he added.

When deciding whether a job should be finished digitally or traditionally, several factors must be considered including substrate, format and quantity as well as the level of embellishment. “Generally, the sweet spot [for digital] is under 10,000 sheets,” Guinter said. However, the breakeven points can vary from 5,000 to 20,000 depending on the level of embellishment involved.

Conclusion

Despite the capabilities of digital embellishments, conventional foil and spot coating have not declined. Roberts explained, “There aren’t that many jobs where it’s practical to switch from analog to digital [embellishment]. Digital opens new doors. You have to quit concentrating on the business you have, to concentrate on the business you don’t have. Adding digital embellishment technologies has actually increased the work moving through our shop.”

Digital print embellishment capabilities have generated new business for Anstadt too. All of their core product categories from packaging, direct mail and signage to marketing and promotional collateral have benefited. Doran reported, “We have been able to create new, exciting areas of opportunity involving print … that may otherwise have never come about. Ultimately, print embellishment has opened doors to new customers looking to extend their brand appeal … in market-differentiating ways.”

Reactions to digital enhancement capabilities have been extremely favorable. Guinter said, “We need to keep pushing it and creating a buzz around it. When people see digital embellishment, they gravitate to ideas of what it can do.” What that does is generate sales.

365 Days of Incredible – The Fedrigoni Annual Calendar Amazes All Year Long

By Brittany Willes, writer, PostPress

Every year, the release of the Fedrigoni 365 Calendar is eagerly awaited by designers and creatives. When it came time to create the 2021 edition, Fedrigoni UK – in collaboration with design agency TM, data management company Ricoh and Meccanotecnica Book Finishing Solutions – assembled to create a piece that would “explore digital printing capabilities, variable data technology and state-of-the-art finishing at their limits,” said Stefano Formentini, marketing manager for Meccanotecnica. The result was something truly special.

To start, designers were asked to contribute a design for a randomly assigned date of the year. Using Ricoh’s data management solution, “Each book then was composed algorithmically, with designs pulled at random and assigned to a date,” Formentini explained. Every book comprises its own combination and sequence of designs, with a unique cover produced from a random placement of two-color gradients and wrapped in a translucent paper with the names of the designers featured in that version in white toner and the remaining set in a light tint. The result was 4,000 entirely unique calendars.

“Digital printing has enabled print-on-demand and variable-data-printing to generate a new range of books, as well as allowed opportunities unthinkable only a few years ago,” said Formentini. The Fedrigoni 2021 calendar made full use of these new opportunities.

“This project shows the tremendous potential of digital print finishing,” affirmed Manrico Caglioni, president of Book Automation – the US branch of the Meccanotecnica Group. “If you can think it, you can do it, and it can be a testament to your creativity far into the future.”

To create the calendar, a combination of three diverse paper stocks was selected from the Fedrigoni digital range of papers. The cover was done with Fedrigoni Splendorlux Premium White stock, the jacket with Fedrigoni Golden Star K Extra White and the inner pages with Fedrigoni Freelife Vellum Premium White stock.

The calendar was digitally printed on a five-color Ricoh Pro™ C7200x digital color sheetfed system, chosen for its ability to print with neon, white, clear and invisible red toners. “For Fedrigoni 365, its ability to dramatize print with neon pink and yellow, as well as white, was exploited to full effect,” Formentini said.

When it came to the binding, Fedrigoni UK called on Meccanotecnica to produce cost-effective, high-quality books. The calendars were bound using Meccanotecnica’s UNIVERSE^TM automatic book folding and sewing machine.

Meccanotecnica’s INLINE back gluer was used for the book block – both gauze and cover – to make the spine less rigid, thereby improving the lay-flat property of the paperback book. The binding for the calendar was accomplished by nipping the spine of the sewn book blocks, then gluing the back and sides before applying the gauze and cover.

To complete the finishing process, the 2021 calendar was trimmed using Meccanotecnica’s automatic three-knife trimmer.

Given the final product consisted of 4,000 unique calendars, it comes as little surprise the production process experienced some challenges along the way. According to Formentini, “The main challenge of this project was the management of the extreme level of personalization of the books. Each calendar was bespoke and unique, dynamically created by a Ricoh end-to-end workflow.”

Meccanotecnica had to consider this dynamic when it came to the binding process. As a result, it had to monitor every single production step. “A reliable control system was essential to produce the Fedrigoni 365 Calendars,” Formentini said.

To that end, during the book sewing process, a GigaLynx™ camera system was used to verify sequence integrity by reading barcodes or images, avoiding errors well before any given section was sewn – allowing the saving of the books.

Furthermore, “In the back gluer,” Formentini continued, “every book block had to be matched with its unique cover. During this, the GigaLynx^TM control cameras – positioned at the in-feed of the machine and at the cover feeder – played an essential role.”

When the 4,000 calendars were complete, each participating creative received a copy, which included their design and their name personalized on the back cover – an impressive level of personalization. As Formentini noted, a number of the calendars can be purchased online via Counter-Print, with profits donated to charity. “The 2021 edition supports Teenage Cancer Trust,” he said. To date, more than 750 copies have been sold.

In the end, pushing the limits of digital printing certainly paid off for all involved in the project. “Due to the pandemic, the usual launch event was unable to take place,” Formentini stated. “However, the online reception was absolutely fantastic. Designers’ social media were flooded with neon gradients, and we received many heartfelt words of appreciation from contributors.”

Utilizing Digital Printing for Greater Brand Awareness

By Hadar Peled Vaissman, independent creative consultant

The development of digital print is reminiscent of the advent of the modern airbrush: Suddenly there was a new technology for releasing ink onto paper. It was easy to learn and use, and it quickly became popular. With this new tool, a whole new art form started, taking photorealism and photo retouching to a completely new level. Digital printing can do that as well and be the new airbrush for the graphic design community; an exciting new chapter that easily expands design capabilities.

As designers, customers also have changed, and so have their marketing and branding requirements. This affects what is required from designers – basically, it changes the designer’s own product. In the past, branding was based on consistency with the psychological rational that familiarity will lead to brand recognition, brand preference, buying and loyalty. When so-called Generation X walked into a supermarket and saw the myriad brand options on the shelf, their hands would somehow instinctively reach for the one that was familiar, that looked the same as it always had, reminding them of home, of safety and of predictability.

Then the millennials came along, who were brought up to expect personal service. Safety or predictability was less of an issue, familiarity was nothing to them. On the contrary, it was boring. Millennials do not see themselves as part of a crowd; they prefer to be seen as one of a kind. They expect brand owners to treat them as individuals and target products specifically to them. Sustainability also became an issue and, altogether, mass production and traditional advertising were not cutting it. As a response, marketing departments and advertising agencies started developing more targeted campaigns with activation tactics to reach and appeal to these new consumers, but still, overall, the personal touch was mostly missing. Millennials, who grew up with the internet, certainly are more used to sharing their personal data in exchange for content. They are happy to participate and click if this means the brand will acknowledge them personally. They expect brands to use this data and get the product right.

Now comes Generation Z, which is even more internet savvy in every possible way. To them, the technology comes as naturally as the air they breathe; it is taken for granted. According to a recent report on customer trust trends from Salesforce, “Although a slim majority of consumers still are wary of companies’ intentions when it comes to handing over personal data, Gen Z and millennials are more game to take that risk — as long as they are getting something in return.”

So, how do companies offer customers the right product in today’s consumer market? The ultimate answer to this question is: with digital print. Digital print allows companies to control and change the data on a print product, using information the consumer has given to make it the most relevant product possible for them.

Mind the gap

At the moment, there is a gap between the possibility or idea and what the design world actually is doing. In most cases, designers – being unaware of the potential of digital – still design for any print technology, being wary of color-limitations and definitely not using the digital tools potentially available to them for an improved brand experience. The ability to close this gap lies in the hands of the print vendor (or print service provider). Proactive and agile printing firms can help their customers achieve huge marketing success by offering them such design tools.

Some big, international brands have begun to use these tools to deliver astonishing, impactful campaigns where digital print enabled the product itself to become the media. One such campaign was done by Coca Cola in Israel.

Two million different Diet Coke bottles

Coca Cola in Israel was looking to increase its Diet Coke sales, and the brand manager – an innovative young millennial – was seeking something new, something different. Having experienced the power of digital print with the ‘Share a Coke’ campaign in summer 2014, a campaign that broke the boundaries of personalized mass production, she realized the staggering results of the campaign pointed to an obvious customer need or desire. She then reached out to the marketing team stating, “We need two million bottles, every single one different from the other – doesn’t matter how. Just keep the logo and ingredients as they are. Everything must be on-shelf in two months.”

A combined effort between R&D and design teams came up with ‘HP Smartstream Mosaic,’ an algorithm that manipulates the design result. It is a plug-in for Adobe CC and very easy to use. The result is one that manual labor could never achieve. How does the algorithm work? In short, the designer supplies the ‘seed pattern’ and the algorithm manipulates it into different results each time a page is printed. Never repeating, always changing. The design work took two weeks, with 23 seed patterns created to achieve two million individual designs. Digital print allowed a fast turnaround, and the product was on the shelf on time.

Save the elephants

A second campaign example used the same algorithm and digital print technology to support an even bigger goal, namely, cause-driven marketing.

Many marketing researchers have concluded that millennials and Generation Z continuously are changing the way consumer experiences are being created. Cause-driven marketing plays a large role in this change, and brands and marketers should find a cause to stand for to impact these generations. Amarula, a liquor brand from South Africa, embodies this by supporting the ‘Save the Elephants’ campaign. Elephants are being relentlessly poached for their ivory, and the Amarula brand has been supporting the cause to save them from the start – symbolized by the elephant on its label.

Using HP Smartstream mosaic, Amarula put 400,000 different bottles on-shelf, each with a differently designed elephant that represents a living one. Two seed patterns were designed, and the rest was handled by the digital press and software. For every bottle purchased, Amarula donated money to a foundation it partnered with. Digital print enabled this emotional, big-issue message to get across on-shelf as every bottle could be as unique as every real elephant. Just as with Diet Coke, the message from the brand to today’s younger generation was carried on the product and was supported by a 360˚ campaign, which drove consumer engagement and brand equity through the roof.

Conclusion

Today’s consumer market thrives more and more on personalization and brand communications; however, many brands still are confused by this fundamental consumer change and by how it affects their supply chain. Printers themselves hold the key to new digital print capabilities but don’t actually participate in marketing strategy talks with brands or their designers. And so the gap remains. The design community has a real opportunity to unleash digital as its new airbrush to create beautiful, personalized, multi-channel campaigns and to enable a new kind of marketing.

This article originally appeared as part of the drupa 2021 article series: Essentials of Print. For more information, visit www.drupa.com.

Hadar Peled Vaissman is an independent international art director who helps brands improve their communication, mainly through customization, personalization and individualization. She believes that these will elevate a company’s relevance in a digital world.

Digital Decorating – Where Does It Fit and Where is It Going

By Liz Stevens, writer, PostPress

As print embellishment technology continues to evolve, it is important to understand the advantages and limitations of certain processes. FSEA Executive Director Jeff Peterson sat down with a trio of executives to get the latest insights on digital technologies for coating, foiling and decoration.

Applications for digital decorating

When it comes to digital decorating, some applications are a better fit for using digital spot and digital raised coatings and digital foil. Christine Yardley, president of Print Panther, voiced her view that while these digital embellishment technologies can be adapted to just about anything, she finds that small-run packaging, a somewhat niche market, is an ideal application. “I think the best fit is small-run packaging, cards or brochures and, really, any marketing material or direct mail,” she said. According to Yardley, embellishment and protective coatings currently are very popular. “Nowadays, I don’t see too much small-run packaging that doesn’t have some kind of raised coating or foil,” she said.

Rick Salinas, vice president of marketing, Duplo USA, pointed to great interest for digital embellishment in the book industry and among consumer products producers as they target first-time customers. “When you go into a bookstore,” he said, “if you notice, they use embossing, debossing, soft-touch and foils now. Some of the book covers are like works of art. It addresses the challenge of getting somebody to pick up your book – trying to get that little edge when you don’t have brand recognition.”

The same goes for branding of other consumer products. “It has become hugely popular for first-time customer engagements,” he explained. “What I mean is, when producers don’t have brand recognition and they are trying to engage people.” Salinas raised the example of the marijuana industry, where there is no main brand; there is no Marlboro in the marijuana industry. “When people walk into dispensaries,” he said, “they just see a wall full of items. Sellers have to have something that engages people; that is why they use foil and soft-touch and raised coatings.”

From his vantage point, Myron Werner, director of sales, packaging and printing, KURZ USA, has seen eager adoption of digital decorating by online print providers of photo cards, invitations and small business marketing collateral. “These are areas where a lot of people have excelled with these technologies,” Werner said. “The benefits of digital foiling and spot coatings – quick speed to market, no changeover time, variable data – are perfect for continuously changing jobs or for a brand that requires small-run packaging.”

Digital vs. traditional

DigitalFoil_PrintPanther_Gold — Christine Yardley, Print Panther, utilizes her digital embellishment technology for clients that range from real estate to pharmaceutical.

At Print Panther, Yardley has a short list of criteria for choosing digital or traditional embellishment. “Right off the bat, it is the length of the run. If it is a super long run, I don’t think digital is the right choice. And, also, size restrictions.”

She noted that the intricacy of the image to be printed is another decision factor. “If it is super intricate, I can sometimes get a better result with traditional foil.” Also on her checklist are substrate and stock thickness. “If I am using a really laid or textured stock, it could be better suited for a traditional embellishment. And thickness of the stock matters because sometimes there is a limitation on my equipment as to the acceptable thickness.”

Salinas did not offer a hard and fast checklist but stated that he has seen a real experimental push in the industry, with elaborate, multi-step digital techniques producing some spectacular results. He did point out three criteria for making the digital vs. traditional decision for a job: quantity, whether there is variable data to be printed and whether there is a tight job budget. Peterson concurred, stating that while commodity items like toothpaste demand a low price point for packaging, when a product’s selling price is high enough, elaborate packaging may not only be a reasonable expense but also may be a must for creating a stand-out product.

For Werner, the substrate and the print process are critical components to review when deciding whether to go the digital embellishment route. “There are a lot of different digital technologies and equipment out there,” he said. “Knowing what the substrate is going to be and what the process is going to be – the print process – makes a big difference in whether digital is right or not for a job. At KURZ, for example, we have a toner-based system that would work on dry stocks very effectively, but you would have difficulties with our inkjet systems when working on some of those dry stocks. How the equipment and the substrate work together is critical to selecting digital or more traditional processing methods.”

Advantages of digital coatings and foils

When it comes to the big advantages of digital coatings and foils as embellishment techniques, Salinas pointed to fast turnaround and limited operator intervention. “In being able to create an embellishment through a digital file,” he said, “many times you can be producing the piece within minutes of it arriving at the shop, especially if you have an automated workflow.”

He described, for example, how his company’s spot UV coater works with EFI’s job flow. “We can take the fifth color file – for the polymer – right out of the job file when they send it to the press; that color file goes straight to our machine. So, as soon as the material comes off the digital press, it goes into our machine which reads the bar code with the instructions for the digital spot layer. No user intervention at all. That is what the digital advantage gives you.”

Werner agreed with Salinas that digital files offer an advantage, and he pointed out that the ability to make changes to a digital file provides flexibility not offered with traditional techniques. “With those digital files, you don’t have the tooling,” he said, “so you don’t have to order the tooling, you don’t have to produce the tooling and you don’t have to pay for it. This also increases speed-to-market and allows you to do very high-end work and very small volumes.”

Salinas noted that it is feasible to produce just one piece and that a lot of innovation can be accomplished with a digital format that cannot be done with traditional methods. In addition, in some instances, it is possible to apply foil as a first step and then begin the 4-color digital process on top of the foil, opening up new creative design avenues.

Limitation with digital

As with any technology, there are limitations of the digital process that potential buyers should be aware of before wading in. Werner said that it is important to be clear on what new techniques are desired and then to fully understand the range of equipment, including the capabilities and limitations of each set-up.

“In our portfolio,” he explained, “we have digital foil technologies that can be incorporated not only as a finishing technique but also as a pre-print process where customers can then create their own metallic colors and unique designs by overprinting.” Also in the marketplace are digital decorating technologies that use a polymer-based adhesive with hot foil release technology, and some that transfer using more of a cold foil methodology. Understanding the various techniques and the substrates to which they are best suited, finishers either can choose a prepress, pre-print type decoration or a postpress, post-print decoration.

Werner stressed that all processes and equipment have some limitations but that the limitations vary from equipment to equipment and from technique to technique. “It is important to understand what you can do with what type of decoration,” he said, “and then understand what type of consumables will be needed for that process and equipment.”

Yardley reiterated her thoughts on the limitations of digital processes. “The length of the run is not as much of an issue anymore because they are making up for speed on these new machines,” she explained. Yardley pointed out that if it is a very intricate foil design, a more traditional foil stamping method usually works best. She also stated that the final cutting and finishing step is a very important aspect to consider because, as she said, “You can’t just cut your business cards on a guillotine. Finishing is a huge part of it, and with digital you can’t do your finishing in a traditional way anymore.”

Digital-Ink-jet-Coating — Texas Bindery used Duplo’s Raised UV Coater and Laminator/Foiler to create this short-run Kratom label.

Salinas also emphasized this aspect of going digital. “You have just created this stack of beautiful, raised UV covers or maybe embossed,” he said. “What now? You just can’t pick up that stack with raised spot UV on the right side of the sheet but not on the left and walk over to a guillotine cutter, because now you’ve got a waterfall of paper with polymer that is going to get crushed when you put it into your guillotine cutter.” Salinas has seen an increase in the popularity of his company’s slitter cutter creasers, which can finish that type of work without damage.

What to keep in mind

Yardley noted that potential buyers should know that digital equipment requires operators with a certain level of skill, especially prepress and file prep skills. She also said that digital machinery has environmental requirements. “I think it is very difficult for a large shop to put a smaller digital profile within their shop,” she explained, “because the environment has to be so clean and so perfectly controlled for digital foil and varnish to really work well. You can’t stick a digital inkjet decorating machine in the middle of a litho shop; it has to be a very clean and orderly environment for this to work.”

Salinas advised potential investors to consider the entire workflow of a digital choice, as opposed to focusing only on the embellishment process. “Getting an understanding of workflow is first,” he said. “Then the question is: What are you trying to achieve by adding this embellishment? Is spot UV where you should start? Is foil where you should start? Is it hot foil; is it cold foil? Do you want to do it inline with raised spot UV?” And, echoing Yardley, Salinas stressed operator skills. “It all looks easy at the show, but there is a big learning curve on that type of equipment.”

Werner’s advice mirrored that of Yardley and Salinas: Understand the entire process; learn about equipment capabilities and which equipment marries well with which embellishment techniques; and know that operator skills and good workflows will be very important with new machinery. “It is critical to understand what you can accomplish in one pass or how many passes your processes are going to require,” he said. “If you think you are just going to get these units and do some of these really exotic, beautiful pieces all in one pass, and it is all going to be automatic, you really need to understand what the capabilities are and what the consumables are so you can make sure that the whole process works effectively.”

Market for digital decorating

DM-Kalender — KURZ DIGITAL METAL® technologies are easily
overprinted and can be applied to any digital printing
process or operation, inline and offline.

Yardley felt that the market was ripe for digital decorating. “Today, very few people want print without some kind of added value, without some kind of embellishment,” she said. “Most of my clients, which range from real estate to pharmaceutical, want that extra punch to their marketing materials, especially coming out of this COVID-19 situation.”

Yardley sees her expertise as a real value-added element. “I don’t have to sell the embellishment, but I have to sell the limitations,” she said. “It really is educating your client with good advice. They might think they want their logo in foil, but they haven’t thought it through completely.” Yardley sees giving good advice as another way to lock in a client. “Once you get their marketing material the way they want it – you’ve got their color perfected, you’ve got the foil they want, you’ve got the look they want – then they come back to you because you have locked them in. They can’t just go down the street or order from an online printer to get what they want. They have to come to you because you give them that extra value.”

Salinas offered two recommendations: Encouraging effective design and showing clients their options. “Sometimes it takes people a little bit of time to understand that less is more,” he said. “People get carried away with embellishment, and you almost lose the effect because they have gone so overboard with it. Learning that balance is important.”

On the flip side, showing clients their options, even after they have passed on embellishment, can be very useful and Salinas has seen this in practice. “When some of our clients talk to customers about embellishment and the customers decide, no, that wasn’t really what they wanted to do, digital embellishment can really show itself off. Because the stuff is done digitally and is so easy, when they deliver the job, they will send along samples with embellishments just to show how it could look. Fifty to 60% of the time, the next time that job comes in, the customer goes with the embellishment because it just wowed them so much,” he said.

Werner agreed wholeheartedly. “It is difficult to put a piece of print advertising out there and convey to your target audience what you are really doing,” he said. “They need to see the piece in their hands, to touch and feel it.” Werner recognizes the challenge of operating in a virtual environment, as social distancing keeps people apart. “People are going to have to look into how we can show off these pieces electronically more effectively in the future. But the simplest answer to this question is to show the samples and have people touch and feel them. They sell themselves.”

PostPress would like to thank Christine Yardley of Print Panther (www.printpanther.ca), Myron Werner of Kurz Transfer Products (www.kurzusa.com) and Rick Salinas of Duplo USA (www.duplousa.com) for their assistance with this article which was summarized from their participation in the FSEA Online Learning Experience virtual workshop “Digital Decorating – Where Does it Fit and Where is It Going.” For more information on this topic – as well as other video presentations – visit the FSEA Online Learning Experience’s YouTube playlist by visiting www.FSEAConference.com.