Charapak diversifies with N610i

Packaging Solutions

Derbyshire based Charapak has recently diversified into the labelling sector following the investment in Domino’s N610i digital inkjet label press. This investment has opened up new business opportunities for the company, enabling it to supply both existing and new customers with high quality, digitally printed labels with short lead times.

First established as a corrugated packaging company in 1980, Charapak now has 127 employees operating across four business units with an annual turnover of approximately £13 million. The core business utilises flexo post print and litho laminating processes to produce specialist corrugated packaging, promotional displays and retail ready packaging. After expanding into integrated fulfilment and specialist coated packaging, Charapak Labels is the latest business unit to be created within The Charapak Group.

When a long standing customer enquired about the possibility of Charapak supplying digitally printed labels, the company recognised an exciting new business opportunity. ‘This was our chance to broaden our service offering beyond corrugated packaging and capitalise on the vast potential of the digital labels market,’ explained Richard Smith, owner and managing director of Charapak. ‘We set out to find the right digital print supplier that we could partner with.’

He continued, ‘Charapak operates to three core business principles: quality, innovation and flexibility. We look for these attributes in any supply partner we work with. After an intensive review of the different print technologies available during which print quality, productivity, colour vibrancy, durability and cost of ownership were all assessed, followed by a further evaluation of the shortlisted suppliers in terms of their commercial stability, accessibility and the level of service support they could provide, we decided that Domino was the company that could deliver on all fronts.’

For Richard, the ability to visit and conduct a series of trials at Domino’s headquarters in Cambridge was instrumental in ascertaining that the N610i digital inkjet label press was able to address three key requirements. Ease of operation was crucial, as Charapak was venturing into a new market and so required a system that was easy to operate and understand. It needed to be productive and in this respect the N610i exceeded expectations with its high production speeds. In addition, the capability to print long lasting, durable labels was vital for their customer.

Michaela Smith, business manager for Charapak Labels, commented: ‘Our customer was previously having its labels flexo printed and was carrying huge amounts of stock on the shelf and spending a lot of money on inventory, storage and obsolescence. We realised that the way forward was for short run, digitally printed labels that would lift their print from mediocre to outstanding, and that is exactly what we have done!

‘We decided on the six colour N610i because it was extremely important for us and our customer that the colours were vibrant and that they ‘jumped off the print’. We have found that the quality of the labels printed on the Domino is outstanding compared to what we previously had.’

Michaela continued, ‘The key benefits in using the Domino press are its productivity, the quality, and the durability of the labels that are absolutely first class. Our customer now has zero inventory, lack of obsolescence and we print to order – they are very happy!’