The current situation and development trend of cigarette package printing

The current situation and development trend of cigarette package printing

Source: 2004 International Summit Forum gravure exchange of technology: Wang Weixin

First, the country's cigarette printing business production equipment and capacity analysis
Due to the cigarette package printing product features: large output, more than the spot color, background color, printing equipment and more use of gravure printing machine. Rotogravure printing presses with high efficiency, thick ink features in the easily printed up to 10 million packets of cigarettes has a significant advantage. Therefore, the early cigarette printing with gravure printing machine to print. Most imported gravure printing machine, the brand is also a few: BOBST, KOMORI CHAMBON, CERUTTl, Jin Yin (COMPRINT), France ATN, LUBU FUJI, Italy POLYTECH And ROTOMEC, Komori Shangbang domestic installed capacity of about 240 color group, Bobst, Sailuodi and gold and India domestic installed capacity close to or over 200 color group, the other several brands are about 20 ~ 40 color group . According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 200 printing enterprises in the country with cigarette packets as the mainstay. Most printing companies have gravure printing production lines. Only in Yunnan there are 6 to 8 gravure production lines more than 50. Due to the relatively large profits of cigarette pack printing in earlier years, a large number of printing enterprises have been involved in the printing and packaging industries, especially in Guangdong and Shenzhen. As a result, the competition for cigarette pack printing has become increasingly fierce. As a result, cigarette packaging design and printing Technology is more and more complex, the materials used are more and more attention, so: gravure, offset printing, flexo, silk screen, UV printing, UV coating, holographic hot stamping, laser foil technology have one after another battle, Printing technology portfolio printed cigarette cases everywhere, a variety of printing technology portfolio is not a cigarette case, and even used to print the engraving engraving RMB also used in cigarette printing. For a time, exquisite cigarette package products such as the Yangtze River water, waves after the waves continue to emerge, its technology is complex, advanced technology, 堪稱(chēng) world leader. Under such circumstances, the original high-speed rotary gravure printing machine no longer meets the requirements of a variety of combinations of printed cigarette packages, and its flexibility has been greatly restricted. At this point, affordable domestic monochrome gravure printing machine momentum from the situation, in a variety of technical combinations printing cigarette package under the general situation, make every possible contribution. Its main manufacturer Beijing Zhen Henry Printing Machinery Co., Ltd., Shanghai Purple Ming Machinery Co., Ltd., Shanghai Hairun Printing Machinery Co., Ltd. in the past two years, single concave sales booming. The powerful cigarette printing companies, spared no expense to buy a combination of printing lines, such as the combination of GALAXY (GALLUS) printing line has appeared in China's major north-south. According to statistics, Czechoslovakian production line has sold 42 in the country. Although in recent years, based on the guiding principle that foreign people and wealthy people earn their own money, most cigarette factories formed a compact printing enterprise through investments, joint ventures, joint ventures and employees' shares, etc., printing their own cigarette packets Within the walls of these printing companies. However, such a cigarette package printing business is by no means safe. Outside the wall of the tobacco companies greedily peeked at the wall of the move
Static, constantly looking for opportunities to encroach on the territory of printing companies within the wall by adopting technological innovation and various public relations measures. Under such circumstances of crisis, enterprises in the wall are constantly trying to purchase new equipment and new technologies to prevent the attacks of other enterprises. In the face of such brutal reality, disorderly competition has intensified. As a result, the scale of investment has been getting bigger and bigger. What is more frightening is that the over-investment that has become a cause of concern has emerged as the tip of an iceberg. As mentioned above, there are 50 gravure printing production lines in Yunnan Province, while in Yunnan Province, only 18 billion cigarette packages are printed each year. According to the current gravure printing machine production capacity, about 30 production lines are enough. Even so, the trend of buying new production lines in Yunnan has not stopped. See Yunnan and know the whole country, as the development continues, the price of cigarettes printing and profit Avalanche that day how far it?
Second, the current technical characteristics of cigarette printing
1. Single gravure to offset and combined printing development
Offset printing has been in the publishing and commercial printing occupies the absolute dominance. In particular, high-end albums can only be printed with offset printing to complete. This is because the development of offset press to today, the technology has been very mature, in the details of the image reproduction with other printing methods can not match the advantages. Compared with gravure, offset plate has a short cycle, the low cost of the salient features in the current cigarette factory frequent replacement of cigarette package design, the introduction of new products, and the new product sales are not large cases, the offset press to show Higher flexibility, which is the offset printing in recent years, an increasing proportion of cigarette printing the main reason. Especially in the printing field of our country, offset printing has been very popular, accounting for the largest proportion of various printing methods. It is the most important printing method in the field of publishing and packaging printing in our country. Therefore, in China, the largest installed capacity of offset printing presses has the best Hardware environment and software conditions. Offset printing six major international suppliers Heidelberg, Man Roland, KBA, Komori, Mitsubishi, Akiyama, in recent years sales in China are rising sales, the introduction of most of the sheetfed offset printing press for packaging and printing. Although many large and mid-size cigarette pack printers have purchased web gravure presses or flexo presses, offset printing has always been one of its main businesses, either for printing medium and small batches of cigarette packs or Used to print other industries in the packaging (such as packets of cigarettes, cosmetic boxes, kits, etc.). However, in recent years, with intensified competition in the tobacco industry and ever-increasing cigarette package design, a single offset printing system can no longer meet the requirements of fine cigarette packages. Thus, a combination of offset printing, gravure printing, screen printing, flexographic printing, etc., The quiet rise of technology overnight popular north and south. The result of the combination of printing will be the level of cigarette packets pushed to an unprecedented level, but also will be the characteristics of several printing methods to play most incite, complement each other, each leading position. The use of offset printing to screen images and gradient patterns, the use of intaglio thick ink, ink color stability advantage, printing a large area of the spot and spot color, gold and silver, pearl color and various imitation metal etched inks. If you need special finishing effects, you can also screen printing technology, such as matte, ice, crystal, wrinkles
Grain and so on. Therefore, the combination of offset printing, gravure printing and screen printing has brought unprecedented artistic visual effects to cigarette packages. Coupled with the post-processing technology: sweeping gold, UV local polishing, bronzing, since the convex, but also make icing on the cake icing on the cake, beautiful, breathtaking.
2. Materials used more and more high-grade
As four or five types of cigarette factory unprofitable, how to market one or two types of cigarettes, break the brand, open sales, the tobacco factory in recent years the dream thing. As the soft package "China" is the number one representative of high-end domestic smoke, the typical Chinese cigarette elegant package design become the object of each cigarette factory actually imitation, resulting in each cigarette factory in the launch of their own most high-end cigarettes, most of the use of flexible packaging design , Almost all of the materials used are laser holographic aluminum foil, the price of this paper is undoubtedly the highest in all paper. Like: blue soft bag Hibiscus Wang, treasures Nanjing, treasures Baisha, treasures Jiaozi, sunshine Jiaozi, blue soft bag Baxi, century boutique Furong Wang, hard box packaging Furong Wang, Honghe V 8, Guiyan, special alcohol Gold clouds and so on are all plain laser aluminum foil. Packing so exquisite, the internal nor backward, the tipping paper used in these cigarettes, many of them have used the bronzing process. All of these make packaging and printing costs an unprecedented increase. Of course, the price of these cigarettes is also expensive, both in 20 to 80 yuan / box, or even higher.
3. Tobacco packaging process more and more patterns, the operation more and more complex
In addition to the printing process has become more and more complex, more and more attention to the material, the post-processing technology is also unwilling, more and more patterns, the operation is more and more complex.
①. Sweep the gold
Between the bronzing and stamping gold is a process characterized by high speed, low cost, regardless of the size of the graphic, the size of the area can get the desired effect. Gold is also a variety of colors, such as gold, silver, red gold, red copper, green, brown, lemon, peacock blue, but also different particle size, showing different visual effects. Abroad, is also a popular imitation diamond effect of gold powder, this powder has four particle sizes, 10 colors, make the overall graphic in the light of the show a diamond pattern, reflecting the unique multicolored light effect. On behalf of packets: red 'Huangshan'.
②. Holographic stamping
Laser hologram is based on the principle of laser interference, the use of spatial frequency coding method made. As the laser hologram color air, obvious levels, vivid images, changing optical effects, information and high technology content, therefore, began to be used in the field of anti-counterfeiting in the 1980s. The latest OVD technology has been clearly different
In the widely used HOLOGRAM hologram, part of the hologram already has a machine recognition function. The mechanism of holographic bronzing is that the hot stamping layer and the separating layer on the holographic stamping material are heated and melted by the heated stamping die on the stamping equipment. Under the action of the pressure, the information layer of the stamping material is hologram Grating stripe and PET substrate separation, so that the information layer of aluminum foil and hot surface adhesive, integrated, to achieve the perfect combination.
Holographic stamping types are the following three: A. Ordinary version of hologram chaos hot; B. Special version of the hologram chaos hot; Special Edition Hologram positioning hot. The third special version of the holographic positioning hot nearly two years in high-grade cigarette packets frequently appear. It refers to the hot stamping equipment through the photoelectric identification of holographic security hot stamping on a specific part of the hologram accurate hot stamping to a specific location on the cigarette package. Holography positioning hot technology is very difficult, not only requires the printing plant with high-performance, high-precision positioning hot equipment, also requires high-quality hot stamping special positioning aluminum, the production process must be strictly controlled to produce qualified Tobacco products. As positioning hot stamping logo has a high security performance, so in notes and other important documents are used. On behalf of packets: Need for "cloud", "Furong Wang."
③. Soft paper embossed, hot positioning
Due to the popularity of high-grade soft-packing forms of cigarettes, making the original in the white cardboard mature gorgeous post-processing technology, have also transferred to the soft paper. Yunnan Qiaotong Packaging and Printing Co., Ltd. made its first attempt in this respect and achieved great success. This process will bronzing, embossing done in one process, the product has a bronzing full, graphic fine, beautiful, non-embossed features. However, this process is technically difficult. The requirements on the accuracy of the hot stamping plate, holographic film, and hot stamping machine are particularly high, and the operation indexes must be very strict. Because of this, it is difficult to imitate, a high degree of security, on behalf of packets: "blessing", Huize "red panda."
④. First hot after printing process
In order to highlight the specific pattern and logo on the cigarette packs, in recent years some printers have introduced a new technique of hot stamping on the aluminum foil and then printing the pattern on the aluminum foil. The resulting effect makes the theme of the cigarette packet more vivid and lively. The key to this process is that the hot stamping of the aluminum foil must be firm. During the printing, the aluminum foil must not be pulled down by the printing ink. This will not only affect the quality of cigarette packets, and anti-pull down the aluminum will soon accumulate in the blanket, ranging from the loss of image outlets, while causing the local image is not printed, with the operation of the machine, the aluminum powder will Passed to the ink roller system, to accelerate the roller wear. Therefore, this process should be based on the characteristics of printing paper, choose the appropriate aluminum, to ensure that the aluminum can be firmly attached to the paper surface. On behalf of packets of cigarettes: soft package "Ambassador", soft package blue "Baxi", blue "Stone Forest."
⑤. Micro embossing process
The process of aluminum foil in the graphic part of the micro-pressure version of the need to squeeze the fine lines, the products obtained with hot stamping, embossed effect, the metal texture is very strong. On behalf of the packets of cigarettes: soft and hard package "Ambassador", soft package "country package", soft package blue "Baxi", soft package "Furong Wang"
Third, the status of the tobacco industry and the impact of cigarette printing
1. National tobacco industry business separation, joint reorganization momentum
Since the beginning of last year, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration has been making greater efforts to shut down the small cigarette factories below 100,000 boxes and the separation of industries and commerce from the beginning of last year. The original 185 cigarette industrial enterprises have so far consolidated into 64 Family. Famous tobacco provinces like Yunnan Province, on September 10 from the original nine cigarette factory merged into four:
A, Kunming cigarette factory annex Spring City cigarette factory, the total annual production and marketing reached 1.3 million boxes;
B, Honghe Cigarette Factory merger Zhaotong cigarette factory, changed its name to the Honghe Cigarette Factory, the total annual production reached 1.26 million boxes;
C, Qujing cigarette factory annex will Ze cigarette factory, the total annual production and marketing reached 10.3 million boxes;
D, Chuxiong Cigarette Factory and Dali Cigarette Factory belong to Hongta Group (original Yuxi Cigarette Factory affiliation remains unchanged); the legal status of the above five reorganized Cigarette Factory has been canceled; and the above integration of the "nine changes and four" One step, Yunnan Tobacco Industry Company said that in the future in accordance with the principles of market and efficiency, but also in accordance with the requirements of major brands, Yunnan Province, will continue to reorganization and integration of the four companies.
Shanghai Tobacco Industry Co., Ltd. will be Beijing Cigarette Factory, Tianjin Cigarette Factory under its banner, the three major municipalities tobacco industry enterprises integrated into a group.
The newly established Guangdong Tobacco Industrial Company, which was established less than a year ago, reorganized its Guangzhou No. 2 Cigarette Factory, Shaoguan Cigarette Factory, Meizhou Cigarette Factory and Zhanjiang Cigarette Factory into a corporate enterprise and set up Guangdong Cigarette Factory. Guangdong Tobacco Industrial Company and Guangdong Cigarette Factory implemented a "one set of institutions, two brands" management mechanism. Plant implementation of a corporate governance structure of multi-point production mode of operation and four unification, that is, a unified management of corporate assets, unified brand production, unified procurement of raw and auxiliary materials, unified sales of cigarettes.
The above three moves can represent the overall trend of China's tobacco industry. In other words, the current tobacco market in China is undergoing major changes, the original pattern of cigarette companies will surely be broken. Since the new pattern of planning has not yet been finalized, this implies unlimited opportunities and space for development. These opportunities and spaces not only For the first integration of tobacco industry enterprises is precious, to print these cigarette packets; 2. In order to further promote the joint reorganization of tobacco industry enterprises, the final increase; tobacco companies to become bigger and stronger, to compete with the world tobacco giants; weak, small, scattered, chaos, such as over the river Of the crucian carp, countless; the implementation of "hundred brands" strategy, the purpose of the State Bureau is to focus on solving high school; the above-mentioned brand was identified as the State Administration for Industry and Commerce "well-known trademarks in China".

It is a precious commodity for tobacco industry enterprises. It is a new challenge for printing enterprises who print these tobacco products, and it is also an opportunity to expand the business volume.

2. "List of cigarettes hundred grades directory" promulgated
In order to further promote the joint restructuring of tobacco industry enterprises and eventually improve the overall competitiveness of China's tobacco industry, the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration promulgated the "Catalog of Cigarette Products" on August 23 this year. "Catalog" clearly stipulates that the next 2 to 3 years time, the industry's cigarette product manufacturing and marketing grades compressed to about 100 (see Table 1).
Tobacco companies to become bigger and stronger, to compete with the world's tobacco giant. State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau saw several major multinational tobacco groups to implement the main brand, high brand awareness, high market share, high market concentration and high single brand sales strategy. Major multinational tobacco group a total of no more than 200 major brands.