When consumers walk into a supermarket, they know right away what they can expect. Aisles and shelves are packed with a massive variety of food, drinks and household items, all packaged up and ready to purchase. But what these consumers may not realize is that one printing technology is responsible for 65 to 80% of the packaging they see on these shelves — flexography.

While digital printing is creating quite a buzz throughout the packaging industry with its customizability, short run prowess and lack of plates, it is only responsible for a small fraction of printed packaging, whereas flexo remains the dominant technology and is poised to remain that way for the foreseeable future.

In a webinar hosted by packagePRINTING titled “21st Century Flexo: Conventional Printing’s Place in Packaging’s Future,” Colleen Twomey, an associate professor in the graphic communication department at California Polytechnic State University detailed some of the latest innovations in flexography and why this printing process is poised to continue to reign supreme. The webinar also included a converter’s first hand experience with the latest in flexographic technology. Bas Opdenkelder, a graphic consultant for Stanpac, shared insight into his company’s recent installation of a Fusion CI Press from Paper Converting Machine Co. (PCMC).