FMN | January 18th, 2021

Vol. 23 No. 2 An N.V. Publication Market News FLEX Serving The Flexographic Printing Industry For More Than Two Decades ®

January 18, 2021

Product Identification Adds Flexo

2020: The Year In Review (Part II) by Greg Kishbaugh Flexo Market News continues its exclusive review of the news that made headlines in 2020: Green Bay Packaging Inc. , Coat- ed Products Operations received The Association of Plastic Recyclers’ (APR) Critical Guidance Recognition for two new pressure-sensitive label stocks.These label materials are part of Green Bay Packaging’s GreenCycle product line. The FlexoPrint Group , a produc- er of self-adhesive labels has become part of the Optimum Group . The FlexoPrint Group consists of Flexo- Print in Randers, Denmark, and H&T Labelprint, a merger of H&P Etiketten andTOM Etiketten, in Salzbergen and Greven, Germany. Mondi , a global packaging and paper supplier, invested in its flexi- ble packaging plants, in Aramil and Pereslavl in Russia, to provide cus- tomers with improved flexibility and a broader portfolio, including sustain- able packaging solutions.

by Greg Kishbaugh

P roduct Identification Co., Inc. (PIC), Garfield, New Jersey, has made a name for itself since the early 1960s as a commercial printer. The company is now expanding its market reach by ex- panding into flexographic printing, adding it to its in-house man-

ufacturing capabilities. The company has added two high- speed flexo machines, each with the capability of printing in seven colors. The company was originally established as K & N Name- plate, Inc. in 1964, with a fo- cus primarily on producing etched aluminum nameplates for OEMs and military sub- contractors. PIC added silk screening, hot stamping and finishing operations such as die-cutting and laminating over the years,which allowed the company to produce products such as graphic overlays, decals and roll labels. The company, now operat- ing under its current name, was acquired in 2001. PIC

Jeff Weinstock, Product Identifi- cation Group Vice President and General Manager, is proud to add flexo capabilities to the company’s offerings.

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invested heavily in technology including wide-format digital printing, as it also pursued additional acquisitions, including Koehler Industries in 2005; Micro Steel Rule Die in 2006; and Alumigraphics in 2007.

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PIC Adds Flexo (Cont’d from Page 1)

fairgrounds in Düsseldorf, Germany, the trade fair for printing technologies had to be changed into a virtual format due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The basic package includes a presence in the Exhi- bition Space, with the company profile, service and product offerings displayed in the online showroom. Keywords,product categories and video presentations guide visitors to the various company profiles, which remain accessible for information and interaction after virtual.drupa.With the help of the matchmaking tool, exhibitors can also interact personally with existing and new customers in the Networking Plaza and ar- range meetings (after registration). This allows target- ed networking before the start of the virtual event. The basic package can be expanded with addition- al individualized marketing tools such as company logos, additional product categories or prominent placements of advertising banners which lead visitors to the online showroom. Live web sessions for direct interaction and exchange with relevant target groups are also offered.These services will be available at the end of January. In addition to the Exhibition Space and the Network- ing Plaza, virtual.drupa will feature the Conference Area with topics from the drupa hot spots. Speakers will address global trends such as the circular econo- my, sustainability and connected consumers.

The companies were consolidated and PIC moved into its current 25,000-square-foot Garfield plant in 2010. PIC is a recognized supplier to the Department of Defense and enjoys Blanket Purchase Agreements with multiple military institutions. “We are thrilled to be able to announce the addition of Flexographic Roll Label Printing to our breadth of services,” said Jeff Weinstock, Vice President and Gen- eral Manager of Product Identification Company.“This will allow us to provide our customers with competi- tive pricing on their high volume requirements.” In addition to the new flexo presses, PIC has also added two slitter/rewinders,which provide the ability to wind and spool the labels to any size configuration needed by customers. In addition, the company has acquired approximately 1,500 cutting dies.

Exhibitor Registration Opens For virtual.drupa

Exhibitors can now register for virtual.drupa 2021 at https://virtual.drupa.com/en/Become_exhibi- tor/Online_application . virtual.drupa will take place fromApril 20–23 at https://virtual.drupa.com . Orig- inally planned as a live event from April 20-28 at the

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FPA Releases Circular Economy Report

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The Flexible Packaging Association (FPA) has re- leased its newest sustainability report, a Flexible Pack- aging Path to a Circular Economy . FPA partnered with PTIS, LLC and Priority Metrics Group (PMG) on this research report that explores the future of sustainability and flexible packaging through 2030. It provides information, knowledge, and insights related to flexible packaging and sustainability, circu- lar economy, legislative trends, impacts to the indus- try along with key outcomes, and actions to enable the industry to align with circular economy principles where materials are collected, sorted, processed, and turned back into new products or packaging. The report also provides a holistic system view of flexible packaging and sustainability while utilizing the latest insights and foresight to develop roadmaps designed for FPA members, policymakers, NGOs, con- sumer product companies,consumers,local municipal- ities, and other associations to advance sustainability and circular economy packaging efforts.The roadmaps can help guide individual members and other interest- ed parties on approaches into the future for flexibles. This report has a NorthAmerican focus, but addition- al efforts underway around the globe to address con- cerns, particularly in Europe through organizations such as Circular Economy for Flexible Packaging (CE- FLEX) and the U.K. Plastics Pact. AWA Launches Virtual Event Platform AWAAlexanderWatsonAssociates has launchedAWA- Virtual – a platform of online virtual industry events, complementing the company’s long-established physi- cal conferences and seminars. The first AWAVirtual event took place inAugust 2020, followed by a number of conferences and seminars that pivoted from traditional physical events due to the impact of COVID-19. AWAVirtual has been established to create a new and sustainable virtual conference and seminar model in partnership with AWA’s traditional physical events. AWA Conferences & Events is planning to expand its AWAVirtual activities in the future, alongside its core in- dustry conferences and events, which provide import- ant information sharing and critical networking forums. Reardon adds,“We look forward to welcoming sponsors, speakers, and delegates back to an AWA conference or seminar when it is safe and practical to physically meet. Until then, we will continue to deliver content and in- formation sharing throughAWAVirtual events.”

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2020 In Review (Cont’d from Page 1)

materials in the first half of 2020, according to the 13th edition of FINAT ’s six-monthly Radar. Consumption of labelstock materials in the wider European economic area was more than 8 percent above the level record- ed in the same period in 2019. In the second quarter alone, demand for filmic roll label materials exceeded the second quarter of 2019 by almost 25 percent. Aztec Label, the Kidderminster, UK-based manufac- turer of self-adhesive label and tag products, acquired a further 4,000 square feet of operational space as part of its plans for growth. The overall U.S. corrugated and folding boxboard market was estimated at $74.5 billion in 2019 and is expected to hit $93.8 billion by 2026, registering a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 3.5 percent from 2020 to 2026, according to a report from Global Mar- ket Insights Inc . Central National Gottesman Inc. ,which owns sales and distribution businesses in the global pulp,paper, tis- sue, packaging, and wood products industries, acquired Northern California-basedAmerican Packaging. Packaging producer TricorBraun entered into an agreement to acquire Price Container and Packag- ing , a rigid packaging distributor serving primarily the industrial and food markets.

Research from AMC Global concerning the impact of COVID-19 on long-lasting consumer behavior sug- gests that new purchasing trends and behavior shifts will continue after the pandemic. Long-time Nilpeter customer, Green-Label of Aar- hus, Denmark, acquired a second Nilpeter FA-17. Green-Label’s new 8-color FA-17 features the added registration and film application packages, a rail sys- tem for value-adding options, soft-tension unwind and UV-lamination. Taking advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic, coun- terfeiters expanded their operations and pose an even greater threat to the health and safety of consumers than ever before. Having decided to focus on its core business of sheetfed printing, Heidelberg sold the Gallus Group to the Swiss packaging business benpac holding , six years after purchasing the company. The third Uteco Sapphire Evo M press was shipped to a North American flexible packaging converter, to be used for large quantities of short run jobs. After two years of modest, 1.5 percent annual de- mand growth in 2018 and 2019, the Covid-19 pandem- ic boosted European demand for self-adhesive label BestBrightHalfHOUSE.qxp_Layout 1 9/12/18 4:26 PM Page 1

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The Best And The Brightest Are Waiting To Hear From YOU

An ad in Flexo Market News is a direct sales meeting with thousands of Presidents, Owners, VPs and General Managers of flexo operations — the key people who make decisions on equipment purchases.

Greg Kishbaugh 317-306-1060 [email protected] Robyn Smith 910-553-4055 [email protected]

Flexo Market News January 18, 2021 5

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Bellissima DMS Available In India

Prepress company Hamillroad Software has appoint- ed Digiflex, a flexographic plate-making company ba- saed in Hyderabad, India, to take its Bellissima DMS screening to market. Global Graphics Completes HYBRID Acquisition Global Graphics PLC has successfully completed its acquisition of the HYBRID Software Group S.à r.l. from Congra Software S.à r.l, following the passing of a shareholder resolution at a General Meeting held on January 8. HYBRID Software is a group of software develop- ment and marketing companies focused on enterprise software for the graphic arts industry, with a strong focus on labels and packaging. It becomes the fourth subsidiary company in the Global Graphics group and sits alongside Global Graphics Software, Meteor Inkjet and Xitron. The acquisition roughly doubles the size of the Glob- al Graphics group of companies in terms of headcount, expanding the global workforce to around 250 people. It adds several more operating locations to the group through HYBRID Software’s offices in Luxembourg, Belgium, Germany, Italy, France and the United States. Flint Establishes Xsys Prepress Flint Group has taken over Xeikon’s prepress divi- sion and used it as the basis for a new prepress divi- sion, Xsys, which will also include Flint’s own plates, images and sleeves and be aimed at the flexo and let- terpress markets. Xsys will be made up of three subdivisions — Pre- press, Plates and Sleeves — each with its own P&L and revenue targets. Dagmar Schmidt, who was promoted to President of Flint’s Flexographic Group last year, will continue as President of Xsys. The new company will keep all of Flint’s established brands, including Nyloflex and Nyloprint plates, pro- cessors and Xpress imagers, as well as the ThermoF- lexX and Catena imagers and Nylosolv washout solvent plus the Rotec sleeves and adaptors.The company will continue with its efforts in thermal processing as an alternative to using solvent but will not develop wa- ter-washable plate solutions. Xsys will operate as a wholly owned subsidiairy of Flint Group.

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Loparex completed the integration of specialty film producer Infiana Group into its organization. Lopar- ex produces liner materials through global segments served by a global production network with manufac- turing sites in the United States,Germany,Holland,Chi- na, and India. The U.S. Plastics Pact , a collaborative led by The Recycling Partnership and World Wildlife Fund , launched as part of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s global Plastics Pact network.The U.S. Plastics Pact is an initiative to unify diverse public-private stakeholders across the plastics value chain to rethink the way plas- tics are designed, used, and reused, to create a path to- ward a circular economy for plastic in the United States. German label converter SC Etiketten was acquired by the Optimum Group , which consists of 13 mem- ber companies based in the Netherlands,Belgium,Ger- many and Denmark. Esko made a multi-million dollar donation to sup- port college and university students in their packaging engineering and technology studies. The global value of flexographic printing will rise from $167.7 billion in 2020 to $181.1 billion in 2025, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.6 percent at constant prices, according to a report from Smithers .

2020 In Review (Cont’d from Page 5)

BestBrightHalfHOUSEfour.qxp_Layout 1 9/13/18 3:04 PM Page 1 Central National Gottesman Inc. , which owns sales and distribution businesses in the global pulp, paper, tissue, packaging, wood products and metals industries, acquired Northern California-based Ameri- can Packaging .American Packaging, founded in 1976 has a broad portfolio focused on high-growth markets such as medical devices, food processing, pharmaceu- tical and technology products. I.D. Images LLC , a pressure sensitive label convert- er with headquarters in Brunswick,Ohio, acquired Ki- eran Label Corporation in San Diego, California. Domino acquired Lake Image Systems , a produc- er of automated, vision-based inspection systems for quality control and >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16

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