PALO ALTO, Calif., January 28, 2008 - HP today announced that label and packaging converter Vibrant Graphics, a division of On-Course Information Services, has reengineered its business and extended the digital printing platform into in-mold label production by recently installing a new HP Indigo press ws4500. With industry-leading quality, the new press brings an increased level of functionality and flexibility to run-length quantity and personalization in the in-mold label market.

Following the new press installation, the Milwaukee, Wis.-based company changed its name from Express Labels to Vibrant Graphics to better communicate its broader service offering to customers. While Vibrant Graphics previously focused on thermal inkjet label production, the addition of the HP Indigo liquid electrophotographic process allows Vibrant Graphics to provide high-quality color and pursue a wider range of profit opportunities. The company now produces in-mold labels for use on a variety of products, including cups and medical containers. The company is successfully marketing itself to businesses that have used in-mold labels in the past, but were prohibited from pursuing personalization and short-run options because of the limitations of analog production processes.

"Converters can create a strong competitive advantage by using HP Indigo equipment," said Rich Raimondi, vice president and general manager, U.S. Graphic Arts Organization, HP. "Vibrant Graphics is evolving its business to achieve higher growth and financial success by combining its skills and experience with HP's industry-leading graphic arts solutions."

Leveraging the industry's widest range of certified media

HP Indigo presses provide outstanding print quality and color consistency on the industry's widest range of certified media. The HP Indigo press ws4500 prints on the same media used in many traditional in-mold packaging operations, ensuring that Vibrant Graphics can truly provide a product that has the look and feel of a traditionally printed in-mold label while also offering the unique advantages of digital printing.

"With our HP Indigo press, we can create in-mold labels for new, unique applications, such as variable-data work that can personalize labels to individual customers," said Bob Travis, general manager, Vibrant Graphics. "HP has enabled our customers to go to markets they thought they could never reach."

Designed for continuous operation, the HP Indigo press ws4500 is a robust, reliable production device that offers a fully automated workflow as well as enhanced color capabilities. The press is part of a complete HP Graphic Arts portfolio that delivers digital printing platforms designed to increase print speeds and lower the cost of printing for high-volume commercial markets. The press' unprecedented capability to switch spot colors between jobs with near-zero downtime gives converters a distinct competitive advantage.