Canon is to enter the digital corrugated market, as it continues to expand outside its commercial print stronghold and advances its position in the packaging industry.
Having joined the digital label market in 2018 with the introduction of the LabelStream 4000 series, the LabelStream LS2000 was recently added to Canon’s portfolio as a water-based machine.
The company is now actively looking to advance its role in other packaging verticals, notably the folding carton and corrugated industries. Existing systems such as the imagePRESS V1350, varioPRINT iX3200 and Colorado Arizona can be used to manufacture some folding carton and corrugated packaging applications digitally.
This is to be made a more formal offer to the packaging market with specific product developments. A market scoping exercise is underway to assess the potential in folding cartons for Canon, with corrugated in an advanced position. The machine in development is to be a single-pass, water-based, post-print digital corrugated press, running four to seven colours. It will have a print width if 1.7m and a throughout of 8000sqm/h.
The concept will be showcased at drupa 2024 via visualisations and samples. The first installations are targeted for mid-2026.
Read the May/June 2024 issue of Digital Labels & Packaging for a comprehensive overview of digital’s role at the returning print megashow; register here for all of the publication’s output
