Package Design - May 2012 - 20

CONVERTER’S CORNER

BY NICK CARAFA

Making Every Package Inch Count
Use these pointers to increase the value of package designs and minimize manufacturing costs.

S

ummer is on its way. Baseball season is in full swing, the beaches are opening and package designers and brand managers are gearing up for this year’s holiday season. Soon, we’ll begin receiving work and getting down to business at Packaging Graphics, managing the printing and finishing process and shipping it out the door. The next time any of us will see it will be on a store’s shelf or display area. As a carded-packaging manufacturer, we’ve found that large-scale package production is more than just printing, finishing and shipping. It involves a workflow that must be managed consistently in order to deliver high-quality results that stand out on a store’s shelf or display area. The following tips describe what designers can do on the front end of the consumer-packaged-goods workflow to save some sleepless hours and reduce manufacturing costs.

The same rules apply for coatings if you’re working with a printer that can apply multiple coatings with a one-pass operation. For example, if you choose to use a matte coating next to a highgloss coating, you can create memorable, high-end contrast effects with minimal effort for a slight additional cost.

SIZE MATTERS—AND SO DOES THE SUBSTRATE
Whether the design is a premium folding carton, printed blister card, stretch-pack card or clamshell pack, a willingness to be a little different—without changing package size all of the time—can save 15% to 20% in printing costs for the customer. A common box size delivers savings as long as you remain consistent. Using a common package size can also save on tooling costs. Additional savings are available in the use of lightweight materials. Thicker substrates can enhance the brand experience, but trimming thickness from 20 pt. to 18 pt., in most cases, gets you the same functionality at a lesser cost. In the end, when the product is shipped to the customer, they’ll save even more on freight and other associated costs due to the reduction in space and weight. Some companies convert their work from folding cartons to blister packs. These companies can move their products from a retail shelf, where their products have to share shelf space, to rack displays, which makes a bigger impact in most retail environments. Others choose to use recycled substrates for sustainability purposes.

The use of a common package size and slightly thinner substrates can lower the cost to mass produce all sorts of packaging for consumer goods.

SPECIAL EFFECTS AND COATINGS MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Foil is becoming a staple for holiday items and launching new products. One-pass inline foiling and embossing adds sparkle for any promotional launch and makes maximum impact on consumers at little extra cost. Choosing to overprint a silver foil with green, gold or any other ink gives the illusion of multiple foils being applied to the same package. This effort increases the shelf appeal with only an incremental cost—an increase that’ll be well worth it to the client when those sales numbers accumulate.
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MAY 2012

Photo: Clint Clemens

FINDING VALUE
Expand your thinking process and consider the benefits of scaling back on size, shape and weight. Try something different. Put your design on a diet, so to speak, and focus on helping your next project shed a few pounds. PD

Nick Carafa is executive vice president of sales for printingand-thermoforming company Packaging Graphics (Pawtucket, RI). A former GM with Quebecor who has worked at Packaging Graphics for 10 years, he can be reached at ncarafa@packgraph.com.
Package Design - May 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Package Design - May 2012
