Many departments in the printing industry may be worried about the future, but packaging and label printing are certainly not included. There are two reasons for this. On the one hand, technological development continues to promote the development of packaging quality. Through the production of the post-printing production process, there have been a number of advantages over the past few years. On the other hand, product manufacturers and retailers are also constantly looking for high-impact packaging that can generate sales.

Mass market, luxury market

According to the 2013-2017 China Packaging Industry Development Potential Study and Investment Value Assessment Report, the market for consumer packaging is divided into two overlapping market segments, luxury packaging and mass packaging, which have an impact on different aspects of packaging. In mass-packaging, the main focus is on the use of product packaging or display packaging, which is differentiated from other similar products in supermarkets or department stores, which can drive users' buying decisions. Regarding the degree of concern of retailers, products do not need to provide major support in the daily business. Unless some kind of joint promotion is required, retailers simply put products on shelves, mark prices, and win customers by packaging.

Luxury packaging also has influence at the point of sale, but the emphasis is on the buying experience. When the purchaser of the Apple iPad entered the store, he had a concept of the product in advance, which was attributed to his lifestyle built on the brand image, which had been carefully cultivated by the manufacturer for decades. Once at the point of sale, the packaging must confirm these expectations and return home to open the product packaging. The user needs to feel that he made the right decision at the time of purchase. Apple perfected this "opening ceremony of packaging," as shown by multiple YouTube clips.

The importance of merchandise packaging has therefore risen steadily in both markets, and this trend may not necessarily be reversed soon. The facts are quite different from this, because eventually there will be no companies targeting the consumer goods market that cannot afford to invest in the packaging of goods.

Technological progress

According to the 2013-2017 China Packaging Industry Development Potential Study and Investment Value Assessment Report, technical terminology shows that almost no branch of the printing industry will produce so many changes like packaging and label printing. Among the new trends, the most important thing is that digital printing is progressing in various forms. During the creative phase, new software solutions using cloud computing help improve collaboration among all involved parties. New visualization tools provide technical support when creative designers and developers create packaging solutions.

The new offset press has been further improved in quality. New digital presses can be printed in short runs. Personalized packaging is possible. Technological developments in finishing and finishing of printed products also make new applications possible. In the field of labels, there has long been a trend toward digital printing and more personalized labels. The processing of RFID tags has become increasingly important, and the printed electronics industry is constantly evolving. The industry has now left the lab and eventually used to make products for the market to make money.

Best design

Creativity is the first step in production. In the past few months, the success of cloud computing - the distribution and collaboration of digital content on the Internet - has also brought innovation to packaging design. For example, Chili Publishing Company displayed the third edition of ChiliPublisher software at the 2012 drupa printing expo. It features a new 3D folding module that allows packaging to be visualized at the design stage. Of course, this could have been done before with a suitable 3D software package, but designers need a very steep learning curve to use these applications, and ChiliPublisher software uses an interface similar to a desktop publishing program.

At the same time, users or collaborators can access the design through cloud computing or using mobile applications. Other companies showed suitable solutions, some uploading files to the server, some designing the files themselves online. These include such heavyweight companies as Adobe. X-Rite Pantone shows PantoneLive on drupa. This is a new cloud computing application that guarantees that the printed color matches the company's logo when printed on any possible printable material, whether it is in fine coated white paper or brown corrugated paper.

For service providers, these new tools offer the opportunity to connect users more closely and provide an opportunity for deeper opinions.