Gravure Packaging Ltd: A Tradition of Innovation

Gravure Packaging Ltd: A Tradition of Innovation

Produced by Rob Benson

Whether you’re producing, marketing, or transporting a product, the strength and design of packaging is critical. Gravure Packaging Ltd. understands this concept well. For the past three decades, the Wellington-based company has been dedicated to the production of high quality packaging and label design.

 

Introducing Innovative Ideas

 

Clients come to GPL with a variety of complex problems. One area where GPL excels is in using its experience and creativity to find innovative solutions, whether it’s creating a label that changes colours as the product’s temperature drops or a package that will protect its delicate contents from outside concerns like UV damage. Frucor came to GPL with the latter issue, and the company met this challenge head on.

 

“When Frucor came to us for a packaging solution for their V Iced Coffee we were excited and enthusiastic about coming up with a functional solution to protecting the sensitive nature of milk based ingredients,” says the company. “To achieve a well preserved and high quality product Frucor required a shrink sleeve that would completely block out UV light and prevent oxidation of unprotected milk ingredients.”

 

To solve this issue GPL looked to its library of high opacity inks, which are dense enough to block light from passing through. By pairing its high opacity inks with metallic ink for branding, GPL was able to create packaging that is as vibrant and impactful as it is functional. “The end product consisted of 100 per cent light and UV barriers, leak detection holes, tamper evidence and high recyclability.”

 

Another process that GPL prides itself on is its flexible shrink sleeve packaging. Made of PVC or PET materials, this thin tamper-resistant packaging design wraps tightly and smoothly around containers of all shapes and sizes. “Regardless of the container, our sleeves fit tightly with its contours giving products a distinctive identity,” says GPL. “The Shrink Sleeve format combined with our gravure processes allows for a vibrant metallic colouring that has revolutionised flexible packaging.” To date, GPL is New Zealand’s largest manufacturer of this highly customizable and durable form of product packaging.

 

Commercial Recognition for Innovative Work

 

The work done at GPL has not gone unnoticed within the industry. The company has received numerous Pride in Print awards for its creativity and technical expertise within the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) packaging sphere. Most recently, GPL was named the 2014 Gold Award Winner at the Pride in Print awards for its innovative work on Horleys HAVOC, a pre-workout drink from New Zealand-based sports nutrition and dietary supplement company Horleys.

 

“Every year our innovativeness and expertise is highlighted amongst the printing community and is a chance for ourselves to be proud of the world class work we produce,” says GPL. “Our Pride in Print awards is a good representation of our customer and supplier relationships that allow us to bring these award winning products to market.”

 

The year before, GPL took home two gold awards—a Gold Award for packagign in addition to a Category Winner: Process award—for its work on the flexible wrapper design for the Whittakers Fruit and Nut 200g bar.

 

The Gravure Difference

 

GPL attributes much of its quality to its gravure printing process, which engraves a design onto a copper cylinder which is then rolled through ink which it transfers onto a paper or plastic substrate which passes between the engraved cylinder and a complementary impression cylinder.

 

“The advantage of gravure printing is that it lays down a high quantity of ink; which ultimately results in a high quality, sharp, fine image,” states GPL. “Gravure printing’s high image qualities are due to the excellent density, gradation control and metallic ink appearance that gravure printing allows.”

 

Beyond that, there are several points within GPL’s philosophy which set the printing company apart from its competition:

 

  • We take pride in colour density and gradation control in order to produce market leading colour resolution in our flexible packaging products.

 

  • We are constantly forward thinking with a practicality approach that consistently sees our products innovating the flexible packaging market.

 

  • We adopt the literal meaning of adaptability, and delegate our resources and capabilities towards a direction that is in align with our client’s needs.

 

  • We are confident that our repertoire has the ability to generate customised high quality packaging for a wide variety of FMCG products and objectives.

 

These points underscore GPL’s dedication to premium innovative work that is ultimately beautiful and a perfect fit for each individual brand partner.

Share
Share
Author