 Diamond Packaging earned four awards in the 66th Annual National Paperboard Packaging Competition, the industry’s premier showcase for all that is new and outstanding in paperboard packaging design and technology. Awards were announced at the 2009 Outlook & Strategies Conference in Atlanta, GA.
The competition, which is sponsored by the Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC), is a celebration of the industry and its potential. It is also an affirmation of paperboard as the clear and intelligent choice for packaging in today’s eco-conscious world.
Entries in the overall competition were evaluated on three criteria. First was an examination of the package itself, specifically an explanation of the package’s development objectives, materials selection, and design, printing, and converting processes. Second was a measure of the package’s impact on production, manufacturing, and distribution, including logistics and supply chain (storage, distribution, warehousing), system economics (material substitutions, line efficiency, cost reduction), and brand enhancement and marketing. Finally, the package’s impact on retail and consumers was evaluated, including merchandising and retail strategy effectiveness, performance and functionality, product protection, sustainability, and shelf differentiation.
Competing against entries from around the country, Diamond received recognition by winning two Gold Awards and two Excellence Awards.
Diamond won a Gold Award for packaging created for Coty's McGraw by Tim McGraw, a new fragrance that captures the essence of the renowned actor and country music star.
The French reverse tuck carton features a combination of foil stamping and embossing that augments the graphic design and creates a unique visual and tactile presentation.
The entire carton was offset printed with UV matte black and UV metallic silver ink in-line with a UV dull, stampable varnish, prior to being embossed with a pebble grain leather pattern.
Subtle accents, including a custom-designed silver embossed guitar pick on the top panel and an embossed, braided rope pattern around the perimeter of the carton, tie the brand to the iconic star.
Diamond also won a Gold Award for Redken’s Shades EQ carton.
Redken, a leader in the professional hair care products industry, sought to create an exciting and unique trial kit for their Shades EQ program. Redken turned to Diamond to create a carton that delivered impact in the retail environment.
The attractive graphics were achieved by offset printing two colors with UV gloss spot coating and a special, reticulated coating. The reticulated coating process, also known as “chemical embossing”, imparts a raised, thermographic-like textured finish without utilizing specialized board or requiring a separate embossing pass.
Diamond won Excellence Awards for its 2009 corporate calendar, a popular promotional item given to customers and prospects, and a nutraceutical carton featuring six-color printing with UV gloss and matte coatings, foil stamping, and an intricately embossed ridge pattern.
Since 1911, Diamond Packaging has dedicated itself to providing the highest standard of quality, innovation and cost effective packaging solutions for companies including Avon, Bausch & Lomb, Beiersdorf, Coty, Godiva Chocolatier, L’Oreal, and Procter & Gamble. As part of the Global Packaging Alliance® (GPA), Diamond and its alliance members offer packaging solutions to companies operating on an international scale. Customers receive responsive, localized service, award-winning creative designs, identical product specifications and consistent brand recognition, resulting in unparalleled worldwide packaging support.
For more information about Diamond Packaging, contact Dennis Bacchetta at (585) 334-8030 x229 or visit the website at www.diamondpackaging.com. For more information about the Paperboard Packaging Council, contact Ben Markens at (413) 686-9191 or visit the website at www.ppcnet.org.
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 Vera Wang Look fragrance is described as bold, seductive and captivating. Coty Inc., a leader in global beauty and the world’s largest fragrance company, sought to capture the essence of their prestige brand in the packaging for their new product launch. They turned to Diamond to create a carton as beautiful as the product itself.
Coty’s expertise in developing products that resonate with consumers is enhanced by aligning themselves with celebrities who are involved with the entire creative process. Diamond worked closely with the Coty design team from the beginning, ensuring that the packaging faithfully reflected the iconic fashion designer’s personality and style.
Diamond delivered by creating a package inspired by Vera Wang herself.
The unique carton sports a matte grey background, offset by the vivid orange of the Vera Wang Look logo.
The attractive graphics were achieved by offset printing multiple colors followed by dull stampable varnish and a UV gloss spot coating pattern that represents the brush stroke of the hand-drawn bottle.
An overall embossed pattern and an embossed logo on the front panel add dimension and complex textures to the presentation, reminiscent of the fragrance itself.
The result is a packaging design that delivers impact at the retail environment and captures the essence of the fashion legend.
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 In a previous article we explored how printed sheets can be enhanced and protected through specialty decorating processes, including cold foil technology and foil fusing technology. In this article we'll review coating and laminating effects and laser cutting.
Coating and Laminating Effects
UV coatings, both spot and flood, have been a popular choice for adding a protective shine to all types of printed materials. Recently, extensions to standard UV have surfaced, providing even more choices to enhance the printed sheet. One of these newer technologies is a patent-pending process called Cast and Cure. This technology creates diffractive surfaces to produce high-gloss, matte, and holographic finishes through the use of UV coatings and a specialty film, and can be utilized on both sheet-fed and web-fed applications.
The Cast and Cure process utilizes a specialty film that has a micro-embossed holographic pattern. Once the UV coating is applied, the film lays over the top of the sheet before the coating is cured. With the film still applied, the sheet runs through the UV dryer and is cured. The film is stripped away, leaving the holographic effect on the sheet. Because there is no actual transfer of a foil or material onto the substrate, the film can be reused several times before new film is needed. Given the fact that no actual film or laminate is left on the sheet and the UV coating process does not omit any VOCs, Cast and Cure is marketed as an environmentally-friendly decorating process.
Another growing trend with the UV coating process is the addition of glitter into the UV as it is applied. Glitter is not a new process and has been used for many years on greeting cards and invitations, but had always been limited because the conventional process of applying glitter leaves a residue not suitable for many applications. When combining the glitter within the UV coating, the glitter is cured with the coating, sealing it in and eliminating any residue. Because the glitter is secured within the coating, it opens up additional opportunities to apply glitter on applications such as folding cartons and book covers.
Laminating films have seen many changes over the past few years as well. Films are no longer relegated solely to clear films used for protecting printed materials. Laminating films are now available in many metallic and holographic patterns that can be overprinted or foil stamped. Clear iridescent films also are available, providing a unique appearance when tilted from side to side. They are completely translucent, allowing graphics and text to show through and still provide a unique pattern with the film. Laminating films are an excellent choice when wanting to combine protection with a colorful enhancement. Depending on the application, the ability to provide rigidity to a printed piece in different thicknesses is one of the big advantages that laminating films offer over other decorating processes.
Laser Cutting
Although laser cutting is not a new technology, it has continued to be a growing decorating process that can provide extremely intricate cutout shapes and graphics. The technology has grown and costs have decreased, making laser cutting a more feasible option for greeting cards, stationery, packaging applications, and promotional mailings. Laser cutting is not a preferred process or competing process to standard diecutting, however. If a shape or printed sheet can be diecut conventionally, that is still the best option from a cost standpoint. Laser cutting is an excellent choice to provide extremely detailed cuts for decorative purposes only. It is most cost effective for small- to medium-sized runs. The running speed for a laser cutting job can run from 200 to 2,000 sheets per hour, depending on the job requirements.
Currently, most laser cutting is done by specific companies specializing in the process that work closely with print finishers or packaging houses. However, as the cost of the machinery and technology decreases, adding laser cutting services through print finishers will begin to become a more viable option in the future.
Today, a multitude of effects and processes are available as enhancements to printing or as stand-alone decorative processes. Foil stamping and embossing continue to be wonderful additions to all types of printed products, as well as striking decorative methods on their own. Foil stamping and embossing will continue to be the focal point of the Foil & Specialty Effects Association (FSEA) and its members. However, there are now other alternatives for print finishiners to explore and offer to customers – whether providing it themselves or working together with partners to provide the finished product. The key in today’s market and particularly in the current economic times is to offer a variety of services, including new innovative solutions for the customer.
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