Standouts in a crowded market

Tag and Label Manufacturers Institute, Inc., members had plenty to contemplate at this year's TLMI/FINAT joint meeting, held Oct. 8-11 at the JW Marriott Grand Lakes in Orlando, FL. With the theme, “Global…The Good and The Bad,” the conclave's speakers addressed globalization and its impact on labelmakers, upstream suppliers and downstream customers.

Duane Knapp, an expert in brand marketing who's advised companies such as AT&T, Federated Department Stores and AAA, and president of Brandstrategy, offered the attendees insight into standing out in a crowded marketplace. “With some 3,000 label converters in the North American market, it doesn't get more crowded than that,” say the 2006 Annual Meeting co-chairs Ferd Rüesch Jr. and Calvin Frost.

Along with presentations on the merits of globalization and building an infrastructure for consistent customer care, attendees also reviewed the standout labels entered in the 2006 TLMI Awards Competition. More than 40 converters from across North America submitted entries along with seven international labelmakers—nearly 280 entries in all.

The 2006 Best of Show winner is a wine label for Bridlewood—Blue Roan Syrah (A), converted by G-3 Enterprises (Modesto, CA). Using a Gallus EM 280 press (www.gallus.org) running at 150 fpm, G-3 rotary screen-printed the uncoated stock, which proved to be quite a challenge. “We had to keep a fairly heavy laydown of black without closing in the fine type,” the company says. Along with the Best of Show award, the Bridlewood label won first place in the Wine and Spirits-Flexography/Letterpress category. G-3 also won two other first-places, and a second-place award.

Smyth Cos., Inc., (Minneapolis) won the 2006 Innovator Award, as well as a second-place award, for its Coors Beer cold-wrap label (B) for bar and restaurant beer bottles. With an unusual outlast material coating on both sides of the label to create a tactile feel and frosty look, the label was printed in both UV-flexo and a proprietary flexo process for the patented outlast material.

A total of 48 first-place honors were bestowed, along with 28 second-place awards and 12 honorable mentions in this year's competition.