X-Rite Color Blog

Brands may not have a line item in their budget for color, but it can impact the bottom line in different ways. Understanding the true cost of color can help accelerate go-to-market, reduce waste, and save thousands. Color plays a big role in purchase decisions when you consider it only takes shoppers 2 to 7 seconds to select an item from the shelf. To stand out, brands must introduce interesting designs to launch new varieties and seasonal specials, while considering the impact new packaging wi...

Originally published May 3, 2024 from https://canmaker.com/light-touch/ Industry stakeholders came together to explore ink and proofing standards for two-piece beverage cans. Nisa Ali reports from Manchester Leading companies across canmaking industry supply chains are considering general guidance for PantoneLIVE colours in the production of two-piece beverage cans. Following a series of seminars discussing the role of PantoneLIVE colour libraries in the design, proofing and printing process ...

Brands invest a great deal of time and resources when selecting a new color to represent their products. If the color doesn't match expectations after printing, runs are wasted, and everyone is left wondering where the color went wrong. Here's a typical scenario. A brand selects a season color for product packaging and communicates that color to the designer. The designer integrates the color into the design and hands it off to the premedia team to convert it into print-ready files. The files a...

Originally published May 3, 2024 from https://canmaker.com/light-touch/ Industry stakeholders came together to explore ink and proofing standards for two-piece beverage cans. Nisa Ali reports from Manchester Leading companies across canmaking industry supply chains are considering general guidance for PantoneLIVE colours in the production of two-piece beverage cans. Following a series of seminars discussing the role of PantoneLIVE colour libraries in the design, proofing and printing process ...

If ensuring color consistency is part of your job description, you’ll want to learn more about PantoneLIVE. Our customers report that it helps them get products to market an average of four times faster! PantoneLIVE is an end-to-end, digital color communication ecosystem that helps everyone involved in a packaging workflow visualize and communicate color. It shows which colors are achievable, and which are not, across everything from flexible packaging to corrugated board. And, since the digital...

When all of final production packaging comes together on the store shelf, it’s a brand’s moment of truth. Do the stand-up pouches, overwraps, and corrugated POP displays match? How close is the color to its standard? We know you spend so much time and money designing, proofing, sampling, printing, and shipping… so where does the color go wrong? Is it an issue with accuracy, consistency, or both? Package designs come together on the shelf. Here you see pouches, labels, cartons, and corrugated wit...

What happens when you have more than 2,000 brand colors to manage across a complex global packaging supply chain? Things get complicated! Although it may seem easier to create a new color than to dig through databases or binders of color drawdowns to find the closest match, the problem comes later when you’re faced with a huge, unmanageable library. One of our clients, a well-known fast-moving consumer packaged goods (FMCG) company, understands how easily things can get out of control. They wer...

L&E International, Ltd is a global provider of sustainable, innovative packaging solutions. As a certified packaging supplier for adidas, Verizon, Amazon (APASS vendor in Asia), Target, and many other brands and retailers, L&E maintains and upholds strict brand color standards across multiple countries and locations of manufacture.  Last year, L&E selected X-Rite digital color workflow solutions to maintain their high color matching expectations. We are excited to be working wit...

As the range of substrates, inks, and printing technologies has expanded, so has the challenge of maintaining color quality for brands and printers. A workflow based on digital standards is the easiest way to achieve accuracy and consistency across shifts and sites, regardless of production requirements. Adding a quality control solution like ColorCert® to your workflow can boost your bottom line even more. What is ColorCert? ColorCert is a modular, job-based solution that streamlines color ...

  Extended Gamut Printing Increased product variation and lean manufacturing demands are forcing converters to work quicker and more cost-efficiently. Implementing extended gamut printing, also called fixed color palette printing, is a great way for brand owners and designers to specify achievable color, and for converters to reduce press setup time, produce smaller lot sizes, and increase press efficiency. In this video, X-Rite Pantone Color Expert Mark Gundlach explains extended color g...

The Pantone Color of the Year announcement is always exciting. Not only does it set the stage for upcoming trends, it also provides brand owners and designers critical guidance for marketing and product development. However, those who are charged with manufacturing products and packaging with trending colors (like 2021's Ultimate Gray and Illuminating) know it doesn’t “just happen.” It takes time and effort to incorporate new colors. Whether you work in paints, plasti...

The Pantone Color Institute just announced PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating as the Pantone Color of the Year 2021. According to the Pantone Color Institute, PANTONE 17-5104 Ultimate Gray + PANTONE 13-0647 Illuminating, a marriage of color conveying a message of strength and hopefulness that is both enduring and uplifting. Illuminating is a bright and cheerful yellow sparkling with vivacity, a warming yellow shade imbued with solar power. Ultimate Gray is emblematic of...

As the industrial plastics market grows increasingly competitive and demands more sustainable practices, manufacturers need new ways to formulate and produce accurate color faster, with less waste. Digital color standards are one of the most effective tools to bridge this gap. They also enable color work and communication from remote locations.   With digital color standards, brands and designers can set clear expectations with supply chains. In turn, suppliers can achieve color goals wit...

In a highly competitive marketplace, brands and packaging designers are looking for ways to differentiate their products on the shelf. This increasingly goes beyond color to include embellishment options such as foils, special varnishes, soft touch finishes, and more. Designers are also using more intense solid colors, fluorescents and iridescents, and not just with conventional print. Digital solutions allow more variation in packaging and the ability to address shorter runs and faster cycle ti...

No matter the industry, our customers are all working toward the same goal: Achieve accurate color and keep production moving. Even in the best conditions, color data can be a challenge to capture and share. COVID-19-related travel bans and social distancing guidelines are making it harder than ever.    Today we’ll share three easy ways to remotely share color data so you can achieve your color goals without shipping physical samples or making onsite visits. The Benefits of Digit...

Over the last few years, we have heard a lot about the circular economy and omnichannel marketing. While each is a trend in their own right, they are quickly converging on the print industry. To be successful in 2020, commercial printers will need to offer a wide range of print capabilities while demonstrating a commitment to sustainability and reducing waste.   The Importance of Circular Economy and Omnichannel In a circular economy, the goal is to eliminate waste and maximize the con...

The Pantone Color Institute just announced PANTONE® 18-3838 Ultra Violet as the Pantone Color of the Year 2018! This news is always exciting because it sets the stage for upcoming trends for everything from housewares to fashion to packaging design. In fact, we have already seen shades of Color of the Year used in packaging and graphic design by forward-looking brands in the CPG, luxury, and beauty worlds as well as by personalities and artists seeking to stand out. Part of butt...

You think you’re doing everything right, but your color isn’t consistent. Why? Through the years, designers have used many tools to help them specify color. Color swatches, style guides and product prototypes have been effective, but with the advent of the digital world, these physical tools are no longer enough. To be efficient, designers need to be SPECIFIC. X-Rite Pantone President Ron Voigt recently published an article in MediaPost that explains why. To be effective, designers n...

I spent a few years working in Paris, where the Seine River has played a pivotal role in the shaping of the city’s personality. As I stayed longer and got to know the city and its people better, one of the things that became clear to me was that the Seine River physically separated two distinct cultures of the city. Image courtesy of www.aparisguide.com The left bank, including the Latin Quarter, Montparnasse, and Sorbonne, is all about creativity, design and ideation. The right bank is more sop...

If you’re a commercial printer who wants to improve color quality and consistency and stay current on industry trends, you need to be aware of Industry 4.0. Industry 4.0 can mean different things to different people, but it generally refers to the fourth industrial revolution, which incorporates trends in automation, data exchange, smart systems, and the Internet of Things. Image courtesy of Christoph Roser at AllAboutLean.com. Today I’ll explain what Industry 4.0 means for co...