Steve Katz01.26.22
For Cristian Reyes, general director of Toluca, Mexico-based converter Mayapack, there have been two revolutions in the company since its founding in 2006.
First, in 2016, there was the installation of an HP Indigo 6800 digital label press, as well as an HP Indigo Latex press for wide-format work. After 10 years of printing self-adhesive labels and shrink sleeves on flexo machines from Mark Andy and Edale, Mayapack’s shift to digital was spurred by its high levels of short-run work and a desire to diversify its product portfolio.
Equipped with the new technology, the company began in-mold label production and set up a creative department to offer design services for not only labels but also wide format products such as marketing materials and office decoration.
Today, Mayapack runs two plants: one for flexo – which represents 60% of the business – and one for digital, which covers the remainder. On the conventional side, alongside the Mark Andy and Edale flexo presses, the company runs shrink sleeve equipment from Karlville and finishing machinery from Prati. Around 80% of flexo work is in producing PS labels, with some in-mold labels and shrink sleeves taking up the rest of production.
The digital plant houses the original HP Indigo 6800, as well as an HP Indigo 20000 installed in 2019. Here, in-mold labels make up 80% of what Mayapack produces, with shrink sleeves accounting for the next largest sector.
Converting equipment from Brotech complements the digital presses. “Digital wasn’t just the addition of a complementary process for Mayapack but the creation of whole new areas of business,” emphasizes Reyes. “Since the installation of the first HP Indigo press in 2016, Mayapack has quadrupled in size. It has been an exponential change for our company.”
Mayapack’s extraordinary growth could not have been achieved, admits Reyes, without the installation of a Label Traxx MIS. He says, “If the first revolution within our company was the addition of digital, the second was our installation of the Label Traxx MIS in 2019.”
Improved efficiency
Mayapack had been using a locally-developed workflow system but wanted something that was specifically tailored to its needs as a label converter. “Our growth had been so fast that it was difficult to stay on top of all the information surrounding each job,” recalls Reyes.
“The Label Traxx software allows us to see all the information from every facet of our production in real time and to know the exact cost of producing each job. It gives us control over all the data from every area of the business and helps us to make informed decisions.
“The great advantage of Label Traxx is that it is designed with label converters in mind. It feels like it has been developed specifically for our company,” Reyes says.
When Mayapack began using the Label Traxx MIS, the scope for improvement was quickly apparent. “The way we were costing our work made it difficult to know exactly how profitable each job was,” recalls Reyes. “Immediately upon installing the system, we could see that some of our jobs were less profitable than others, and that some were quite inefficient in terms of not using our production equipment to its full capacity.”
The Job Costing and Business Metrixx modules were particularly useful in this area, according to Reyes, emphasizing overall improved production efficiency.
He explains, “The Job Costing module allows you to analyze the costs of a job through every stage of its production, so you can see how the quote measures up to what you are producing. It means we can speak to a client and say: ‘We can give you a discount on this order’ or ‘For this one, we have to raise the price.’ It brings transparency: the client can understand exactly how we are pricing the work.
“You can quote a price for a job, but how profitable it will turn out will depend on how you execute the work. What it should cost you to produce – and what it ends up costing you – are not always the same thing. With Label Traxx, you can monitor these parameters in real time.”
The impact on Mayapack’s business has been profound. Since installing the Label Traxx MIS, the converter enters 70% more orders into its presses. The speed of generating orders for its digital presses has risen by 90%.
“With digital printing, you can group different jobs together quite effectively and print them at the same time. So, we are much more efficient,” says Reyes. “We can also calculate with much more precision the downtime involved with every production order. We’ve reduced that downtime to just 3% of what it was prior to installing the system. And we have reduced our delivery times by 50%, thanks to improved administration. Job estimating is immediate, with real and updated data.”
Increasing integration
Despite this already impressive impact, Reyes believes that further improvement is possible. “We are not yet at 100% capacity in terms of using our existing Label Traxx modules,” he points out. “There are still benefits to be had which we have not yet developed, such as inventory management. Once we get to that point, we will take the next steps. The system will be increasingly integrated into every facet of our business and our strategy in the coming years.”
Reyes points to Siteline, a Label Traxx subscription module that allows brand owners to track their jobs online in real time, view their order history and confirm new orders at the click of a button, as chiming with his view of the future of label production.
“I believe the future is on-demand printing based on digital platforms. We want to make our clients’ lives as easy as possible – so they don’t have to wait for us to return their phone call, for example. They can simply enter the platform, see their previous orders and check their status. Label Traxx is also thinking about this, and already their system allows your clients to interact directly with your MIS. You can also see this with their partnership with HP Indigo, and this was another reason we opted for Label Traxx. The system is integrated within the digital press workflow, with an app inside the HP Indigo system that allows you to cost jobs and organize the workflow specifically with an HP Indigo press.”
This digital, data-driven future that Reyes envisions is reflected in Mayapack’s company culture. He has built a young, tech-savvy workforce, often promoted from within. “It can be difficult to attract young people into the label industry,” he says. “There is sometimes a certain stigma attached to manufacturing, and there is a perception that our industry is all about tools and machines. But the reality is our business is very digitized, very automated; so yes, we do cultivate an atmosphere of a digital start-up and that culture is present in our staff and also in the way our offices are decorated.”
For Reyes, part of the appeal of the Label Traxx system is that it is specifically designed with flexo converters in mind but also for digital label production. “The system’s evolution from flexo towards digital matches our own. Label Traxx adapts itself very well to both technologies.
“Mayapack would not be doing what we are doing at the moment without the combination of these technologies: HP Indigo digital presses and Label Traxx MIS,” concludes Reyes.
Steve Katz is the former editor of Label & Narrow Web and is now a regular contributor. He is focused on helping companies in the label industry share their news and tell their stories. Follow him on twitter @LabelSteve.
First, in 2016, there was the installation of an HP Indigo 6800 digital label press, as well as an HP Indigo Latex press for wide-format work. After 10 years of printing self-adhesive labels and shrink sleeves on flexo machines from Mark Andy and Edale, Mayapack’s shift to digital was spurred by its high levels of short-run work and a desire to diversify its product portfolio.
Equipped with the new technology, the company began in-mold label production and set up a creative department to offer design services for not only labels but also wide format products such as marketing materials and office decoration.
Today, Mayapack runs two plants: one for flexo – which represents 60% of the business – and one for digital, which covers the remainder. On the conventional side, alongside the Mark Andy and Edale flexo presses, the company runs shrink sleeve equipment from Karlville and finishing machinery from Prati. Around 80% of flexo work is in producing PS labels, with some in-mold labels and shrink sleeves taking up the rest of production.
The digital plant houses the original HP Indigo 6800, as well as an HP Indigo 20000 installed in 2019. Here, in-mold labels make up 80% of what Mayapack produces, with shrink sleeves accounting for the next largest sector.
Converting equipment from Brotech complements the digital presses. “Digital wasn’t just the addition of a complementary process for Mayapack but the creation of whole new areas of business,” emphasizes Reyes. “Since the installation of the first HP Indigo press in 2016, Mayapack has quadrupled in size. It has been an exponential change for our company.”
Mayapack’s extraordinary growth could not have been achieved, admits Reyes, without the installation of a Label Traxx MIS. He says, “If the first revolution within our company was the addition of digital, the second was our installation of the Label Traxx MIS in 2019.”
Improved efficiency
Mayapack had been using a locally-developed workflow system but wanted something that was specifically tailored to its needs as a label converter. “Our growth had been so fast that it was difficult to stay on top of all the information surrounding each job,” recalls Reyes.
“The Label Traxx software allows us to see all the information from every facet of our production in real time and to know the exact cost of producing each job. It gives us control over all the data from every area of the business and helps us to make informed decisions.
“The great advantage of Label Traxx is that it is designed with label converters in mind. It feels like it has been developed specifically for our company,” Reyes says.
When Mayapack began using the Label Traxx MIS, the scope for improvement was quickly apparent. “The way we were costing our work made it difficult to know exactly how profitable each job was,” recalls Reyes. “Immediately upon installing the system, we could see that some of our jobs were less profitable than others, and that some were quite inefficient in terms of not using our production equipment to its full capacity.”
The Job Costing and Business Metrixx modules were particularly useful in this area, according to Reyes, emphasizing overall improved production efficiency.
He explains, “The Job Costing module allows you to analyze the costs of a job through every stage of its production, so you can see how the quote measures up to what you are producing. It means we can speak to a client and say: ‘We can give you a discount on this order’ or ‘For this one, we have to raise the price.’ It brings transparency: the client can understand exactly how we are pricing the work.
“You can quote a price for a job, but how profitable it will turn out will depend on how you execute the work. What it should cost you to produce – and what it ends up costing you – are not always the same thing. With Label Traxx, you can monitor these parameters in real time.”
The impact on Mayapack’s business has been profound. Since installing the Label Traxx MIS, the converter enters 70% more orders into its presses. The speed of generating orders for its digital presses has risen by 90%.
“With digital printing, you can group different jobs together quite effectively and print them at the same time. So, we are much more efficient,” says Reyes. “We can also calculate with much more precision the downtime involved with every production order. We’ve reduced that downtime to just 3% of what it was prior to installing the system. And we have reduced our delivery times by 50%, thanks to improved administration. Job estimating is immediate, with real and updated data.”
Increasing integration
Despite this already impressive impact, Reyes believes that further improvement is possible. “We are not yet at 100% capacity in terms of using our existing Label Traxx modules,” he points out. “There are still benefits to be had which we have not yet developed, such as inventory management. Once we get to that point, we will take the next steps. The system will be increasingly integrated into every facet of our business and our strategy in the coming years.”
Reyes points to Siteline, a Label Traxx subscription module that allows brand owners to track their jobs online in real time, view their order history and confirm new orders at the click of a button, as chiming with his view of the future of label production.
“I believe the future is on-demand printing based on digital platforms. We want to make our clients’ lives as easy as possible – so they don’t have to wait for us to return their phone call, for example. They can simply enter the platform, see their previous orders and check their status. Label Traxx is also thinking about this, and already their system allows your clients to interact directly with your MIS. You can also see this with their partnership with HP Indigo, and this was another reason we opted for Label Traxx. The system is integrated within the digital press workflow, with an app inside the HP Indigo system that allows you to cost jobs and organize the workflow specifically with an HP Indigo press.”
This digital, data-driven future that Reyes envisions is reflected in Mayapack’s company culture. He has built a young, tech-savvy workforce, often promoted from within. “It can be difficult to attract young people into the label industry,” he says. “There is sometimes a certain stigma attached to manufacturing, and there is a perception that our industry is all about tools and machines. But the reality is our business is very digitized, very automated; so yes, we do cultivate an atmosphere of a digital start-up and that culture is present in our staff and also in the way our offices are decorated.”
For Reyes, part of the appeal of the Label Traxx system is that it is specifically designed with flexo converters in mind but also for digital label production. “The system’s evolution from flexo towards digital matches our own. Label Traxx adapts itself very well to both technologies.
“Mayapack would not be doing what we are doing at the moment without the combination of these technologies: HP Indigo digital presses and Label Traxx MIS,” concludes Reyes.
Steve Katz is the former editor of Label & Narrow Web and is now a regular contributor. He is focused on helping companies in the label industry share their news and tell their stories. Follow him on twitter @LabelSteve.