HP announces strategic partnerships with EskoArtwork and AB Graphic

At its press conference at Labelexpo Europe 2007, HP announced two new strategic alliances with long-term partners EskoArtwork and AB Graphic International.  ‘EskoArtwork has a long history of developing and integrating prepress and color management solutions into HP Indigo presses,’ said Alon Bar-Shany, vice president and general manager, Indigo Division, HP. ‘The new agreement extends that cooperation to an OEM relationship.’

‘AB Graphic International is now HP’s worldwide sole strategic partner and preferred solution provider in respect of label converting,’ Bar-Shany continued. ‘Its equipment, including the Digicon and Digicoater, are HP’s preferred end-to-end solutions for this market.

‘These strategic partnerships are important to HP and its customers because it establishes strong, worldwide links with two leading suppliers who have helped us build truly end-to-end solutions for our customers.  EskoArtwork and AB Graphic, innovators in their own rights, have excellent understandings of our technology and our markets as well as established relationships with our team and our customers.’

Klockner Pentaplast is a new media partner supplying PET shrink film and other substrates while Innovia Films has expanded its range of products suitable for digital printing; its OPP films are aimed at the flexible packaging market with white and transparent substrates in thicknesses ranging from 25 to 59 microns.

In addition, HP celebrated its new Pantone license for the seven-color Pantone Simulation, utilizing CMYK plus orange, violet and green, known as HP IndiChrome Plus.

Hp was also proud to offer its Pantone and HP Indigo Color Toolbox – a toolkit which contains swatchbooks that compare four and seven color simulations of Pantone Colors on HP Indigo presses, as well as the original Pantone Color bridge swatchbook – and the HP Product Tracking and Authentication (PT&A) Label and Packaging Solution. The PT&A addresses the growing challenges of counterfeiting, product diversion, and regulatory compliance.