Commentary & Analysis
We've all seen them: Bibles, directories, prospectus documents and other publications printed on paper so thin you can almost see through it. And those pharmaceutical inserts that seem to be folded a gazillion times before they are inserted into tiny boxes. These printed products have typically been produced in long runs using conventional offset printing, bucking the trend of shorter runs with more customized content. Why? Because paper that thin simply can't be run through a digital press, especially a sheetfed digital press...until now. This white paper discusses how revolutionary technology in both web --- and sheetfed digital presses has brought lightweight papers and the applications that require them into the realm of digital printing, while at the same time opening the door to new applications and cost savings on existing applications.
Monday, October 01, 2012
WhatTheyThink is the global printing industry's go-to information source with both print and digital offerings, including WhatTheyThink.com, WhatTheyThink Email Newsletters, and the WhatTheyThink magazine. Our mission is to inform, educate, and inspire the industry. We provide cogent news and analysis about trends, technologies, operations, and events in all the markets that comprise today's printing and sign industries including commercial, in-plant, mailing, finishing, sign, display, textile, industrial, finishing, labels, packaging, marketing technology, software and workflow.
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This issue of the WhatTheyThink Quarterly is all about labels, which are seen as a high-growth part of commercial printing, driven by e-commerce, food/beverage demand, and regulations. The market has surpassed 1.2 trillion square meters of label production volume per year, and is moving toward high-mix, low-waste production rather than only high-volume throughput. While flexo is still used for high-volume label production, digital label printing often complements it—or in some cases replaces it. But labels are about more than printing technology. Read More
Leverage 30+ years of plant-floor expertise. Trusted by 700+ packaging manufacturers globally to reduce waste, optimize scheduling, and drive digital transformation. One unified foundation. Eight packaging-native pillars. Zero fragmentation. Read More
Commercial, direct mail, and publishing printers accustomed to producing jobs over several weeks can now print them in days with the SCREEN Truepress JET 560HDX. The press can accommodate 120 lb. coated or uncoated paper up to 560 mm wide. Read More
A sign-writer created the visual style of music festivals. The “2026 Milky Way Photographer of the Year” winners. AI appears to be catching on among the Amish. Sony has upgraded its wearable air conditioner. How to easily reuse produce bags. A complex digital water clock. A Nobel Prize–winning technology is able to extract water from dry air. Yes, it is possible to be allergic to water. Laser-induced graphene on Kevlar enables multifunctional structural composites. The “most desired” place in each of the 50 states. “The rise in plastic surgeons asked to create ‘AI face.’” K-pop band BTS has teamed with Oreo to release limited edition OREO x BTS Cookies. Welcome to WhatTheyThink’s weekly miscellany. Read More
April 2026 saw printing industry employment overall generally flat, down 0.4% from March. And while production employment was up 0.6%, non-production employment was down by 2.5%—basically the reverse of what we saw in March. Read More
