Using the well-known arsenal of fine finishing touches would not do when Dion Label sought to print an award-worthy digital label; the company had to invent its own on-press watermarking process. Taking a cue from analog printing’s “bump plate” method, the Westfield, MA, USA, label converter made a black label stand out by adding black-ink-on-white watermark circles – and was rewarded last week as one of 11 top prize winners in the Fourth Annual HP Indigo Digital Labels and Packaging Awards Contest.

The label, for Bullwater Health & Fitness’s Pomology Anti-Aging neutraceutical supplement, was one of two Dion Label best-of-category wins in a competition honoring everything from an energy drink label with a macabre, intricately diecut skull-and-sword design, to a security seal featuring variable text, bar codes and invisible ink.

HP announced the winners at a Sept. 15 gala held during Labelexpo Americas. This year’s contest attracted 312 entries, 36 percent more than last year, from HP Indigo customers in 26 countries.

Categories for the contest included label printing for wine, alcoholic beverages, non-alcoholic beverages, food, nutraceutical, and health and beauty products. The contest honored the best shrink sleeve and flexible packaging entries as well as the best entry produced as a self-promotion of a converter’s own capabilities. HP also named four “judges’ recognition” winners for design, shelf appeal, security features and two-sided, clear film “sandwich” printing.

Along with Dion Label, Australian converter Supa Stik Labels and US converter Innovative Labeling Solutions were top achievers in the contest. Supa Stik earned one best-of-category and one judges’ recognition award, and ILS took home two judges’ recognition awards. The complete list of top winners is below, with the winning category or categories for each firm shown in parentheses.

B.H. Barcode, Israel: health and beauty

Digital Label Solutions, USA: non-alcoholic beverages

Dion Label Printing, USA: neutraceutical labels, food labels

Dow Industries, USA: specialty product labels

Foster Packaging, Ireland: flexible packaging

Innovative Labeling Solutions, USA: judges’ recognition for shelf appeal, judges’ recognition for sandwich printing

Label World, USA: wine labels

Obchodni Tiskarny, Czech Republic: shrink sleeve packaging

Servibarras, Colombia: judges’ recognition for security features

Supa Stik Labels & Labeling Systems, Australia: alcoholic beverage labels, judges’ recognition for design

Vibrant Graphics, USA: self-promotional printing