PFFC - October 2008 - (Page 43)

FLEXOGRAPHIC PRINTING Adding Capacity Global Packaging enjoys double-digit growth by earning an increasing share of its customers’ business. High quality printing from W&H does the rest. By Edward Boyle, Contributing Editor M ike Frost, president of Global Packaging, readily admits much of his company’s 16% annual growth since a buyout in 1996 has come by growing with his existing customers. He wouldn’t have it any other way. “We value every customer’s business,” Frost explained during a visit by PFFC to the flexible packaging company’s 75,000-sq-ft headquarters. “Our individual customers are growing, and we’ve grown by serving those customers very well.” That success has been spurred, in part, through ongoing investments in technology that position both the company and its customers for growth. In fact, with the installation of an eight-color Windmoeller & Hoelscher Primaflex CM flexographic sleeve press—the company’s second new W&H in just four years—Frost says Global’s quality, technologies, and plant size are competitive with any single plant of the nation’s largest flexible packaging converters. Global Packaging grows business in an unconventional way, Frost explains. “We establish a relationship with a customer, and then turn it into more and more business. We are not the sole source supplier for any of our customers, so there’s always room to grow.” And that’s just fine with Global and its customer base, primarily on the East Coast, in the personal hygiene, diaper, frozen foods, bakery, birdseed, candy, and snack food markets. “Most of our customers are bigger than we are, and they’re sourcing their packaging through multiple suppliers,” says Frost, an accountant by trade who was tapped to head the company in 2000. “In most every case, we are the majority supplier, but we Investing for Long Runs Shortly after acquiring the company, Global’s then-new owners traded two older flexo presses and purchased a 37in., eight-color PCMC Vision II press, followed two years later with the installation of a 59-in., eight-color Pro Vision press with quick changeover robotics that better met the then-growing demand for short-run flexible packaging. We’ll never abandon our roots, but our has grown over the years. The new presses those help us demands as well.—Mike Frost, Global Packaging run size average meet didn’t start out that way. We just earned more and more of their business.” The company did so with superior customer service, says Frost, and targeted investment in equipment to meet both the short- and long-run segments of the flexible packaging market. In 2004 Global added a 52in., ten-color W&H Novoflex CM press, with the eightcolor Primaflex installed in June 2007, to deliver longer runs more efficiently. “The Vision II and the Pro Vision are still great presses; they were revolutionary at the time,” explains Frost. “But uConverter infot uGlobal Packaging Inc. | 209 Brower Ave., Oaks, PA 19456 | 610-666-1608 | www.glopkg.com our business was changing. We were doing a lot of short runs of 5,000 to 15,000 feet, which nobody else was doing, so that was our niche. We still love that business. We’ve got the equipment, and we’ve had good success doing it that way. We’ll never abandon our roots, but our average run size has grown over the years. The new presses help us meet those demands as well.” Frost says Global’s investment in the eight-color Primaflex will add significantly more printing capacity to its current manufacturing operations. It is capable of speeds to 1,300 fpm, and print repeats range from 14.5–31.5 in. The press features W&H’s Turboclean 600A inking and wash-up system, which automatically cleans the print decks, anilox roll, and doctor blade chamber using a variety of selectable wash-up programs. “We have always purchased the best printing equipment available in the marketplace, and the Primaflex is a continuation of this approach,” explains Frost. “The press is a natural addition to our lineup of high quality printing equipment. It is designed to print top quality product at high line speeds, while also allowing for fast job changeovers. This will help Global Packaging fulfill our commitment to our customers to consistently deliver high quality printed packaging with excellent lead times.” OCTOBER 2008 | 43 WWW.PFFC-ONLINE.COM http://www.glopkg.com http://www.pffc-online.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of PFFC - October 2008

PFFC - October 2008 Contents First Glance Calendar of Events From the Editor Web Lines Process Management News Clips Narrow Web & Label Reporter Narrow Web & Label What's New Products Shrink Sleeves Carton & Box Reporter Carton & Box What's New Products Cover Story - Custom Coating Core Shafts Show Preview Flexo Printing Film Converting Static Control UV/EB Inks What's New Products Trade Show in Print Services Directory Classified Marketplace Equipment Buyers & Sellers Advertisers Index Experience Speaks

PFFC - October 2008

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