135 Print Jobs Medal; 9 Take Best of Show Honors

Sixty-five companies were recognized with 135 prizes at Flexographic Technical Association’s (FTA) Excellence in Flexography Awards competition. Winners were announced on Sunday, May 3 during the Awards Banquet of Foundation of FTA’s 2009 Forum in Lake Buena Vista, FL. From among the batch, nine were selected as definitively No. 1 in their respective categories—the esteemed Best of Shows! Those winners were:

Wide Web - Eukanuba Naturally Wild North Atlantic Salmon And Rice Exopack
Mid Web - Jergens® Naturals™ Tri-Fold Packette Label Technology Inc.
Narrow Web - Francis Ford Coppola Russo Shiraz Label Paragon Label
Folding Carton - Becel® Buttery - Light Carton Cascades Boxboard Inc.
Napkins - White Splendour Paper and Design GmbH
Combined Corrugated - Delta® 53558 Faucet Lewisburg Container Co.
Preprinted Linerboard - Michelob® Sampler 20/12 Temple-Inland Inc.
Envelope - Next Directory - The Beanie Encore Washington Ltd.
Graphic Design - Kaytee® Ultimate Finch Food Premium Coating Excellence International LLC

Steve Smiley, Vertis Inc., a wide web level of execution judge, touted Eukanuba Salmon and Rice’s “beautiful highlight dots.” He noted that it had “nothing out of register,” adding, “It’s got beautiful reversed type that all fits perfect. Its process, printed at 34in. It has a nice pastel screen.”

Jim Koppes of Monarch Engraving spoke for most of the narrow web judges when he said, “The Best of Show, Coppola Shiraz, impressed us because it was made with analog plates.” The reproduction of highlight dots with optimum impression and plate settings was another noteworthy attribute. Further, he stated, “The match to the contract proof was excellent.”

“Registration was very tight with multiple process panels and a coupon to hold,” observed Greg T. Horney, MeadWestvaco, a mid web/folding carton/napkin degree of difficulty judge regarding Jergens' mid web Best of Show. “What added to the challenge is the fact that the process work terminated within the package. That would show mis-register quickly around the edges or top and bottom of the process work which it did not. The substrate is not very forgiving for this. The tonal range was excellent, too, and dots were held well. High line screen added even more difficulty.”

“Line and process work both had good color saturation,” said Dan Reilly, Flint Group, a mid web/folding carton/napkin level of execution judge about Becel Buttery. “Smooth vignettes and excellent flesh tones made this piece stand out. The judging was very difficult because so many excellent examples were submitted. Most pieces scored out very high creating a close competition.”

James Tenorio, University of Wisconsin - Stout, a mid web/folding carton/napkin level of execution judge, insisted, “The subtle shades of [White Splendour’s] highlights were reproduced well. Excellent registration helped to make the images appear to jump off the substrate.”

Combined Corrugated/Preprinted Linerboard Degree of Difficulty Judge George Salloum, Interstate Container, remarked about the challenges deliberately undertaken to reproduce the image of a sheen, metallic faucet, as well as a large, solid black, on the Delta Faucet Best of Show. “The fact that they used three colors to maintain the gray is difficult. But they did it and maintained color without shifting. Building the black with a screen job and solid job gave an intense color.”

Judges of all categories frequently note how easy it is to hide certain kinds of print defects in detailed process imagery. However, Michelob® Sampler 20/12 linerboard job showed none of these. Carl Cecil, Color Resolutions Inc., a combined corrugated/preprinted linerboard level of execution judge, commented, “The printer did an excellent job. There were a lot of things that could have gone wrong that didn’t. It definitely had a large degree of difficulty.”

Graphic design judges were drawn in by the original illustrations of colorful birds surrounding a clear area where the product shows through on the  Kaytee Finch Food Best of Show. “If the product was yellow or green it might bring that whole thing to life,” commented John McDonald, one of the design judges. Greg LaFond, another, added, “I like that border treatment. It’s a little fugitive but it brings everything else to the front.”

Next Directory - The Beanie envelope was highly praised for its reproduction of realistic flesh tones on the image of an infant on a soft white background. “The amount of ink coverage and the complexity of the designs being done today points to the skill this industry has mastered over the years,” commented Pat Kent, Pamarco Global Graphics, an envelope level of execution judge. “The one item that really stood out for me was the advantage of using digital plates in process printing on coated stock. This seemed to provide an advantage in the clarity and sharpness of the print.”

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Submissions are now being collected for FTA’s 2010 Excellence in Flexography Awards. Tentative deadline is mid January. For more information, or to enter your name into consideration as a potential judge, contact Shelley Rubin, FTA education coordinator at 631-737-6020.