When Acorn Labels started out more than 20 years ago we supplied outer labels and tray cards to the Fresh Produce sector. Our reputation for a quick reliable service quickly spread and we were soon working with a wide range of industries. Fast forward two decades and we’re now meeting customers packaging requirements nationwide.
Label printing remains at the core of our business, and we’re constantly facing new challenges in meeting tighter delivery deadlines, shorter average run lengths and more personalised details, while retaining a high quality end product.
We needed to find a solution that could cope with our customer’s developing needs while keeping up with the changing dynamics of the industry.
Our Journey to Domino Printing
We’ve always specialised in plain labels for variable information overprint, even though our machine had the capability to do much more complex product labels. This was because the more complex work would clog up our print presses; we had to wait for print proofs to be sent to us, printing plates had to be bought in and then we needed to mix the inks and mount polymer print plates into register.
All this takes time and we pride ourselves on our quick service. With almost immediate lead times for our print work we didn’t want to disappoint our customers.
Digital printing is quicker, you can print labels at the touch of a button and no print plates are needed, but print quality had been an issue. By 2012, we began to see advances in standards of digital printing technology. A year later we were buying in digital labels with impressive print results and our portfolio of multi coloured work grew.
As with all technology, printing is constantly evolving and by 2015 UV inkjet systems were better and faster. It just so happened that at the same time one of our largest customers, Domino Printing, made UV inkjet printers, and they were just down the road too!
While this was a slightly different system it meant no more expensive inks and no click charge. More importantly, for a digital printing press, it offered much higher levels of productivity and improved print quality for ink jet.
We felt the Domino N600i would take Acorn to the next level in digital label production, offering high quality digital printing at considerably increased speeds.
We were up and running with it in October 2015 and have seen some spectacular results.
Benefits of Domino N600i Digital Colour Ink Jet Label Press:
Domino N600i “the only digital colour label press that combines the productivity of flexo with the flexibility of digital printing”
- Direct from artwork to press with no print plates involved.
- The new system breaks every label into its process colour components – so whether it’s a simple price flash or a complicated picture image the 600 dots per square inch print head system (native 600dpi print resolution) will ensure a supreme quality for every label, every time.
- Photographic quality labels – delivers the highest quality output onto a range of coated paper and plastic label stocks
- No expensive plate costs
- Vibrant UV curable inks – reproduces a wide colour gamut including over 80% of the pantone colour range
- Fast turnaround – operates at speeds of 50-75 metres per minute and provides up to 1,500m² of print per hour
- Consistent print results
- 95% reduction in ink solvents
How We Can Help
Print quality and customer service remain of paramount importance at Acorn Labels, and we pride ourselves on our commitment to delivering the very best in label printing. We’re excited for the potential the N600i can offer our existing clients, as well as new business opportunities.
Want to know more? For advice on all your label and packaging requirements, call us on 01480 462727 or send us a message via our contact form. We’d love to help.