Zumbiel Packaging and Milk-Bone together to personalize dog treat boxes

dati variabili per combinare e mappare la grafica prima della stampa digitale. Il processo di conversione di migliaia di immagini variabili in file stampabili è altamente automatizzato e richiede meno di venti minuti per trasferire, assemblare ed eseguire il RIP dei file. Una volta che i file sono pronti, l’esclusiva configurazione digitale Prosper di Zumbiel che prevede applicazione del primer sul supporto in linea, stampa digitale e fustellatura ad alta velocità (oltre 15.000 astucci Milk-Bone all’ora) riduce il lavoro per la stampa. Per comprimere ulteriormente i tempi del ciclo di produzione e ridurre i costi di configurazione della macchina, Zumbiel ha dedicato una piega-incolla alla produzione Milk-Bone. Gli astucci arrivano dalla macchina da stampa digitale e vanno direttamente nella piega-incolla. Il risultato è notevole: passano circa due ore dalla ricezione dei file alla spedizione degli imballaggi Milk-Bone finiti.

L’ULTERIORE VANTAGGIO DEL BUZZ MARKETING

Dal punto di vista del marketing, il programma indirizzerà il traffico verso il sito Web Milk-Bone e creerà un “ronzio” istantaneo sui social media, dove i consumatori amano condividere le immagini dei loro adorabili cani stampate sulla parte anteriore delle scatole Milk-Bone. La creazione di astucci pieghevoli personalizzati per alimenti per cani pone Milk-Bone e Zumbiel in un territorio inesplorato: nessuno dei due può prevedere quanto grande diventerà il progetto. “Una cosa è certa”, ha detto Zumbiel, “la nostra soluzione basata sulla tecnologia Kodak ha dimostrato che la stampa digitale è un’ottima opzione per i marchi che desiderano sfruttare il potere della personalizzazione”. 

ENGLISH Version

Zumbiel Packaging and Milk-Bone together to personalize dog treats boxes

IF YOU DREAMT TO HAVE THE PICTURE OF YOUR PET ON A BOX, PRINTED ONLY FOR YOU, NOW YOU CAN THANKS TO CREATIVITY AND DIGITAL PRINTING BY KODAK

In addition to producing preserves, peanut butters and coffees, The J.M. Smucker Co. is also active in the pet care market in the USA. One of its most iconic pet brands, Milk-Bone, has been a trusted treat for dogs for well over a century. The Milk-Bone marketing team recognized that the consumer trend toward personalization presented an opportunity for the bran, that is offering customizable Milk-Bone boxes that allow consumers to personalize the label with a picture of their own furry family member. Smucker was quick to recognize digital packaging’s potential to engage consumers and bolster brands. They formed a technical task force comprised of marketing and R&D personnel to evaluate digital print technologies and determine their suitability for the various campaigns.

BIG VOLUMES WITH DIGITAL PRINTING: POSSIBLE WITH KODAK PROSPER 6000S INKJET PRESS Naturally, the team was concerned with print quality and cost, but they had an additional concern regarding throughput. Smucker operates on a national scale and requires large volumes even for promotional activities. “We helped the Smucker team run trials on every known digital technology from toner to inkjet,” said Ed Zumbiel, president of Zumbiel Packaging. “All the digital devices provided great print quality but most came up short in terms of cost effectiveness and productivity. When the Smucker team visited our company to run trials on the Kodak Prosper 6000S inkjet press, they were immediately convinced that Kodak’s unique continuous inkjet technology was the process that best fit their needs”. The Smucker team saw not only graphic quality that was indistinguishable from their current lithographic cartons, they also saw remarkable productivity: their cartons run digitally at 600 feet per minute. Smucker also appreciated the fact that the Prosper’s water-based inks are food safe and far superior to lithographic inks in terms of sustainability and color reproduction.

A STREAMLINED PROCESS The J.M. Smucker Co.’s technical and marketing teams worked closely with Zumbiel and Kodak over a period of months as they developed their web-to-print e-commerce portal, variable graphics workflows and internal logistics. In the end, each carton contains four variable elements: background (standard and holiday copies), pet photograph, pet name, and variable barcode (for order tracking and downstream shipping label generation). Smucker batches images and text collected from its website and transmits them electronically to Zumbiel, who in turn utilizes variable data software to combine and map the graphics prior to digital printing. The process of converting thousands of variable images into printable files is highly automated and takes less than twenty minutes to transfer, assemble and RIP the files. Once files are ready, Zumbiel’s unique digital Prosper configuration featuring inline substrate priming, digital printing and high-speed die-cutting (over 15,000 Milk-Bone cartons per hour) makes short work of print production. To further compress production cycle times and reduce machine set-up costs, Zumbiel dedicated a folder-gluer to Milk-Bone production. Cartons come straight off the digital press and directly into the gluer. The result is a total cycle time from receipt of files to shipment of finished Milk-Bone cartons in about two hours.

THE ADDITIONAL BENEFIT OF MARKETING BUZZ From a marketer’s perspective, the program will drive traffic to the Milk-Bone website and create instant buzz on social media as consumers post images of their lovable dogs on the front of Milk-Bone boxes. Creating custom folding cartons for dog treats places Milk-Bone and Zumbiel in uncharted territory - neither can predict just how large the program will become. “One thing is certain,” said Zumbiel, “our solution based on Kodak technology has proven that digital print is a great option for brands that want to harness the power of personalization”.