From front to back, Ward McLaughlin, President; Bill Hodges VP of Sales & Marketing;Brian Jansson, CFO and BillLorenz, VP of Operations, infront of the new HP 30000.

Boutwell Owens is the fourth companyin North America to purchase an HPIndigo 30000 press. The machinewas installed last July. The U.S.

based folding carton converter has beenevaluating digital presses for paperboardsubstrates for about seven years. “We’ve beenwaiting for one to become available that wethought was the right machine to go with us intothe future,” says Bill Lorenz, VP of Operations.

The decision to pursue digital printing was theresult of significant market shifts. “It was reallydriven by our customers,” Lorenz says. “Runninglarge quantities and warehousing are a thing ofthe past. Our customers want smaller ordersmore often. While we may supply them with

millions of cartons, they also do introductionswhere they want smaller quantities of the sameproduct. It needs to look like the same productthat is coming off of our offset presses, but run alot more efficiently when we’re dealing withquantities of 100, 500 or 1,000 pieces.”

President Ward McLaughlin says theapplications for digital technology are unlimited.Applications include product launches, tradeshows, product research, test marketing andpersonalization. “It really comes down to theimagination and how we can help our customersgrow their businesses,” he says.

The HP 30000 can accommodate a 29- x 21-inch (735 x 535mm) sheet and substratesranging from 8 to 24 pt. Boutwell Owens ispushing the envelope in terms of the jobs it isrunning on the press. “We may be HP’s biggestheadache because we’re running the gamut of

BOUTWELL OWENS PUSHES ENVELOPE WITH

NEW HP INDIGO 30000

This U.S. based folding carton converter sees unlimitedapplications for digital printing. By Jackie Schultz

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what they told us it would,” Lorenz says.“We’re using SBS, white clay coated newsand we’re printing on both sides of thesheet. We also have the capability to run foillaminated stock so we can print whites ontop of foil. We’re trying to utilize exactly whatthey sold us.”

The press is seven-color process. Forbrand colors that cannot be matched onpress, HP will manufacture a specialink. “It’s amazing how many of thecolors we have been able to matchusing the seven colors on themachine,” Lorenz says. “We did haveone customer who was satisfied, butwe were not, so we ordered aspecial match color from the HPfactory because we thought it couldbe a little closer than what we wereable to do in process.”

An in-line priming unit allows thecompany to use any type of paper.The machine also has an iCoat inlinecoating unit from Tresu Group. InMarch, Tresu will replace the singlecoater with a double coater. This will be thefirst double coater in the market. It is beingshipped to Boutwell Owens’ facility inFitchburg, Massachusetts, after its debut atDscoop in March in Washington, D.C.

Breaking The Rules

Boutwell Owens also purchased a HighconEuclid II+ digital creasing and cuttingmachine, which will be installed next to theHP 30000 in the same room. Installationwas in February. Lorenz and McLaughlinfirst saw the machine at Drupa. “We spent alot of time trying to see how it suited ourbusiness. We run a lot of very short run workand with the installation of the HP 30000 weknew we would do a lot of short run, onetime runs,” Lorenz says. “Jobs that reallydidn’t make sense building a die for.”

Building a die for a one-time job is time-consuming and costly. In addition, theHighcon’s capabilities will open up newmarkets for the company, Lorenz says. Hejokes that the designers can now break allthe rules. “We have to un-train our packagedesigners on all the things we told them

they couldn’t do when designing a carton —all the intricacies of knockouts, stars,flowers and engraving — all those things wetold them, ‘Don’t you ever show me adesign like that.’ Now we tell them theycan.”

Prior to the Highcon installation, alldigitally printed jobs were diecut on a Bobst102 diecutter. Boutwell Owens will continueto use that diecutter even after the Highconis commissioned. “There are a couple ofprograms where we receive orders everyTuesday and Friday and we are shippingfinal product the following Tuesday andFriday. We never know exactly what thequantities are going to be, but those arejobs where we already have the dies built soit makes sense to continue to cut those inour conventional workflow,” Lorenz says. “Ifyou’re going to run something more thantwice in the same layout, from a coststandpoint of making the die, if you have the

capacity in the conventionaldiecutting area then it makessense to continue using thatdie. After that second job it’sjustified to have a die ratherthan going the Highcon route.”

100+ Years

Boutwell Owens was founded in1887 and remained in the hands of thefounding family until 1987 when it was soldto McLaughlin’s father, Bill. The companyhas two locations — Massachusetts andTexas — and employs about 200 staff. TheTexas plant has a smaller format HP Indigo5000 that is used for flyers, promotionalliterature and business cards.

McLaughlin is the sixth CEO since thecompany’s founding. He views digitaltechnology as the next phase in thecompany’s continued growth. “I believe inwhere we’re going,” he says. “It wasn’t arace to be the first. It was a race to do whatis right for our customers and our future.”

“It’s the right application for ourindustry,” Lorenz says. “It has proven itself inlabels. There’s no question about it. It’staken a chunk of that market.

“We’re not a $500 million company thatjust buys a machine and says, ‘Okay, if itworks it works, if it doesn’t it doesn’t.’ Thisis going to work for us,” he adds.

McLaughlin agrees. “We’re not satisfieduntil we get perfection and we pushourselves. We’re the biggest critics ofourselves.” �

PUSHING THE ENVELOPE

BOUTWELL OWENS ALSOPURCHASED A HIGHCON EUCLID

II+ DIGITAL CREASING ANDCUTTING MACHINE.

Reprinted from the March/April 2015 issue of Folding Carton Industry.

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