Cary Sherburne: Hi, I’m Cary Sherburne, Senior Editor at WhatTheyThink and I’m here with Dr. Vlad Sljapic who is the Sales Director for Domino Digital Printing Solutions. Welcome.

Vlad Sljapic: Thank you.

Cary Sherburne: So Domino’s had a lot of experience, many years in the label printing environment. And, you know, labels is obviously one of the areas of packaging that began to go digital first but what are the trends that you’re really seeing in terms of the analog to digital transition for labels?

Vlad Sljapic: The analog to digital transition is a process that had actually started many years ago. For the last 15 to 20 years Domino has been seeing the trend of combining the best of both worlds. So we’re talking about the imprinting onto the flexo or offset, the process that allows you to benefit from the low cost production.

Cary Sherburne: Absolutely.

Vlad Sljapic: Then putting the variable information at the very last date. Now, the pull for that particular type application is based on primarily the pull from the market, that is, people that want to have a personal information on their packaging or their labeling. Effectively they want to do that on demand and at the last stage of the process but also because of the convenience due to the fact that you can combine the processes together you can end up with a much more cost effective solution.

Cary Sherburne: And so, for example, I mean part of it is personalization so the name or some image that’s personal to that person but then the other part of it is just – is more like versioning, right? So you can do all those labels that are – you can consider them, you know, blanks or shells or whatever and then you can go back and print the lot number or whatever else it is.

Vlad Sljapic: Correct.

Cary Sherburne: And then beyond that?

Vlad Sljapic: Well I think the progression of that is something that is now taking the step forward with the available technology that is now out. So, for example, from doing it only with a single color, we can now do that with the full color images.

Cary Sherburne: Okay.

Vlad Sljapic: Which then allows particular types of market segments like, for example, pharmaceutical that has a large variety of different variations of languages.

Cary Sherburne: Oh, yes.

Vlad Sljapic: Or the content of the packaging to effectively then utilize that to the full potential.

Cary Sherburne: And what about, you know, what about widths? Widths keep getting wider in a lot of segments in the market. What about labels? Do you see that getting wider?

Vlad Sljapic: That is a much more complex question. In essence, if you look at the trend, converting of the label is probably as important as it would be for – as the printing is. And it would take a lot for the labeling to come out from the use of 13-inch standard width. So, therefore, I think that if the productivity is in question and that’s the primary reason why you would go any wider or bigger. It’s about the speed and the delivery of the quality at speed where the focus needs to be.

Cary Sherburne: Okay, and in terms of that 13-inch marketplace what’s the latest from Domino?

Vlad Sljapic: Domino has introduced an N600 which is a full digital label press which effectively as a strop line uses the approach that says the productivity of flexo with the flexibility of digital.

Cary Sherburne: Oh, that’s very good. Productivity of Flexo with the flexibility of digital. That’s good.

Vlad Sljapic: Thank you.

Cary Sherburne: Thanks for sharing.

Vlad Sljapic: Not a problem.