So the new normal in the narrow web label converting industry is discussing flexo and digital in the same breath.

Take the recent FTA Forum & INFO*FLEX. Catering to the tag and label market, there were a total of 15 digital solutions exhibitors. And this is at the premier event for the advancement of the flexographic process. I dug up the exhibitor list to the 2012 edition of INFO*FLEX, and I could be wrong, but I counted just three digital press companies targeting the label market. What a difference just a few years make.

This issue, in “Flexo vs. Digital,” I asked what I knew to be a rhetorical question, just for argument’s sake. Regarding which is the preferred process for label printing, the answer of course depends on numerous factors, but it is interesting to hear some of the experts’ takes. What jumped out to me is the notion of flexo press operators as skilled craftsmen, and the learning curve that goes along with running a flexo press. Digital machinery, as some of the article’s contributors point out, is much more strongly in line with the skills and experiences of the up-and-coming workforce – the millennial.

These are indeed interesting times. And it’s not all good. Stepping away from the industry for a moment, there is another new normal. Last month Europe was rocked by yet another terrorist attack, this time in Brussels, a city well known to many in the label business.

Two explosions took place at Brussels Airport on the morning of March 22, killing 32 victims along with the perpetrators – three suicide bombers. I pass through that airport at least once a year. Whether it’s for Labelexpo Europe, or a visit to a converter or supplier facility, Brussels Airport is very familiar to the L&NW staff and many of our readers. In fact, Greg Hrinya, our associate editor, departed Brussels from that very airport only three days prior to the tragic event. He had been there for a pre-drupa media event covering Belgium-based Xeikon and Esko, among others.

Change isn’t always good. In light of the current climate, several people I have spoken with are balking at the prospect of traveling through Europe on business. Those that will be traveling, suffice to say they will be ever-more vigilant and aware of their surroundings, whether it’s walking through an airport, a city plaza or a crowded exhibition hall. 

As of now, I have no plans to travel to Brussels, as this year’s Labelexpo returns to Chicago. But that doesn’t make me feel any safer. 




Steve Katz, Editor
[email protected]
Twitter: @LabelSteve