"I don't think you can find a more ideal situation than ending up buying the company you've been in charge of on a day-to-day basis," says Jerry M. Kwok, the new president and CEO of Spectrum Label Corp.

The Hayward, CA-based narrow-web converter has been under new management since February 2002 when Kwok purchased the company. Hired as the controller 10 years ago, Kwok has since learned the myriad facets of package-converting technology. He's also taken to heart the business philosophy behind Spectrum Label's history of winning more than 150 printing awards as well as its success in the marketplace.

Founded by Alan Leeson as a minority partner in 1968, Spectrum Label grew initially as a pressure-sensitive label converter located in San Carlos, CA. By the early 1970s, Leeson bought out his two majority partners and pointed the company in the direction of more technically-challenging, graphically-appealing labels. A series of facilities expansions followed until the converter relocated to its current 65,000-sq-ft plant in Hayward in early 1999.

Along with larger facilities has come a broader product base. Three-quarters of its business is labels, including p-s, convolute-can, spiral-can and sheeted. The remainder, and a rapidly growing field for Spectrum, is flexible packaging—mainly narrow webs for form/fill/seal pouches.

All end-markets are served, especially food, pharmaceutical and wine—owing to the company's location near Bay Area vintners. But while 75 percent of its shipments go to California customers, the converter also reaches across the country to Illinois, the Mid-Atlantic and "wherever the business brings us," Kwok says.

Flexographic printing is both Spectrum's mainstay and its forte. An all-Mark Andy house, the plant keeps seven presses under roof—a 7-in., two 10-in., and four 16-in. systems. The six widest units have nine print stations each. Hot-stamping, embossing and screen printing are additional capabilities.

From Spectrum's inception, Leeson strongly cultivated a philosophy of respect and building good relationships with customers, vendors—and especially employees. That's a culture Kwok has no plans to change.

"One of the biggest reasons Alan offered to sell the company to me was I had been with him for 10 years, and we each have an understanding of the other's business philosophy," Kwok says. "There are a lot of points we have in common.

"As a result, he felt very comfortable that if I become the owner, the employees would be taken care of; that the management practices would remain the same. My goal is to improve on that."

Spectrum's respect for employees is reciprocal, as evidenced by the amazing longevity of some of its workers. Of the converter's staff of 60, half have been with the business more than 10 years. About a dozen have worked there for more than 20 years, and a few for nearly the life of the company.

Even the touchy topic of relocating 15 miles to Hayward from San Carlos brought no defections. "The longevity of their employment speaks to the environment that we try to provide our employees," Kwok says. "It's definitely a two-way street."

Spectrum's employees collectively boast several hundred years of label and package-printing experience. To say that this experience pays off is certainly an understatement. Kwok and other company managers would immediately point to this experience as a primary factor in Spectrum's impressive record of printing awards from FTA, TLMI, the World Label Assn., and others.

A recent accolade: the 2000 World Label Assn. award for line and screen/tone flexo printing for Vermeer Chocolate Cream Liqueur back labels. The print used a benday screen and tight register on extensible p-s film.

"It's the stability of our employees," Kwok says, proudly. "They are the ones who understand the high standards we set for ourselves and our customers. They bring a very high expectation to what they produce day-in and day-out."

Mark E. Massey, VP of Manufacturing, agrees. "I wouldn't trade our pressroom staff with anyone," he says.

During Converting's recent visit, all presses were operating, turning out all four types of labels as well as flex packs. In one example, a 16-in. Mark Andy 4200 printed a 3-color, p-s clear back label on clear PET liner for a nutritional-beverage customer. The two-year-old press, Spectrum's most recent installation, is equipped with a Corotec corona treater, North American Mfg. Simplex web guides, Stork rotary silkscreen station, Praxair Surface Technologies anilox rolls, Honle UV America UV systems, Rotometrics print cylinders and magnetic dies, and a BST Pro Mark Handy Scan 2000 video web-inspection unit.

Post-print QC is handled by three Rotoflex and four PIC Industries inspection rewinders. Pharmaceutical labels receive 200-percent inspection—an added benefit Spectrum has offered customers almost from the company's start.

Printing expertise at Spectrum is one thing, but the graphics department is where everything starts. Again, it's the "humanware." Three of six full-time graphic designers have more than 20 years' experience at the company.

"We don't have any proprietary equipment that other converters can't buy on the open market," says Kwok. "The most important thing is a very high standard from our graphics department. And we don't outsource any platemaking."

The newest addition to Spectrum's prepress lineup is a DuPont Cromalin® digital WaterProofer. A Barco (now Esko-Graphics) Spark CDI narrow-web CTP-flexo imager was added in summer 2001, joining an existing Kelleigh 30x40 traditional platemaker.

"The goal in prepress is to make it right in the pressroom," adds Yates Downes, Director of Graphics, "and we take the extra effort to make it right."

With growing flex-pack sales, room to add new presses, and plans to investigate digital printing, Spectrum's future looks bright. Still, the converter isn't completely ignoring its past. Alan Leeson continues to provide Kwok with informal consultation from his retirement, and "he is still the owner of our building; he's our landlord," Kwok says.

"I always remember what he taught me. It's all about the details. If you keep your eyes on the details, everything else falls into place."