Converting Magazine’s exclusive survey reveals convergence on energy efficiency, job change automation and the push for flexible packaging.
This year’s latest research on rotogravure systems gathered a significant amount of feedback across the entire supply chain, with a prevalence of contributions from the supply side (technologies, materials and substrates) and a qualified share from printing and converting companies. This approach gives different weights to the two groups: the perspective of printers is more ‘in-depth’ than statistical, while that of suppliers is more extensive and representative. It follows that the results should be read as a reliable indicator of trends, but with the necessary caution when projecting absolute percentages on the printing side.
Printers: job change management and colour stability
When asked about their main production challenge, printers are equally divided between job change management and improving quality and colour stability. No one in this round mentions simply increasing speed or reducing costs as an isolated priority. This is an interesting sign: productivity is more about orderly continuity than peak speed, and quality is the key to maintaining margins in increasingly demanding markets. Average setup times range from 30 to 60 minutes, with some cases reaching up to two hours: this variability explains the central importance attributed to changeovers and colour adjustment.
Energy: real cost or ‘hidden cost’?
While some printers quantify the energy impact at less than 20%, half of the sample say they do not monitor the weight of energy in total costs. This is a snapshot of a “double track”: those who measure have levers to optimise, while those who do not measure face a potentially significant cost without the tools to reduce it systematically. Despite this, the majority have already adopted forms of heat recovery and a significant proportion have invested in photovoltaics, while real-time consumption monitoring is less widespread: an indication that the energy transition has started with ‘hardware’ but is not always accompanied by operational analytics.
In-machine automation: digital registers yes, logistics no
Among the automation systems most used by printers, automatic colour and register adjustments stand out, followed by automatic cylinder change; less widespread are in-line quality control and automated internal logistics. Against the backdrop, a step-by-step process can be glimpsed: first, the weak links in the printing process are automated, then – more slowly – automation is extended to handling and systematic verification of results. In terms of investment, printers mainly indicate production management software (MES) and energy efficiency, while new equipment, retrofits and training do not emerge as immediate priorities: a choice that favours the digital “brain” and kWh reduction over heavy capex or structured training programmes.
Digitisation: essential for some, marginal for others
The digitisation of rotogravure processes divides printers: half consider it essential, the other half consider it of little use. This divide suggests uneven digital maturity and, probably, very different user experiences between plants. The impression is that, without a clear map of use cases and measurable returns, adoption remains sporadic. Obstacles such as initial costs, the risk of interruptions, training and the perception of technical support emerge as critical levers for moving from “pilot” to “pervasive”. As for the assessment of suppliers, none of the printers surveyed describe them as true strategic partners: the prevailing assessments highlight a lack of proactivity, a focus on the product rather than the service, and limited attention to specific needs.
Markets: packaging leads the way, with an emphasis on ‘premium’
On the market front, the demand driving rotogravure orders from printers is mostly in food packaging, with specific mentions of the perfumery and luxury segments as growth areas: contexts where colour stability, brilliance and background homogeneity justify the choice of process.
Suppliers: productivity as a combination of changeover, inking and cylinders
Moving on to the suppliers’ perspective, rotogravure productivity is seen as the combined effect of job change automation and inking system efficiency, with the quality of the cylinders/engraving providing the mechanical basis for the result. Management and control software are considered enablers, but less ‘incisive’ if not accompanied by process and component interventions (Table 12). From the market, they explain, the first demand is to reduce production costs; then come productivity/OEE, energy and automation: an order of priority that reflects competitive pressure on margins.
