The global packaging industry is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by an accelerating shift toward digital manufacturing and intelligent automation. At the forefront of this evolution stands Hanway, a company that has dedicated a decade to pioneering digital inkjet technology for the corrugated market. This article details Hanway’s journey, its proven track record, and the innovative solutions it will showcase at Pack Expo 2025: Glory160X HD and Ultra2500W Pro.
These machines represent a strategic vision to empower businesses to navigate the modern market, from rising costs and environmental pressures to the increasing demand for personalized packaging. Attendees visiting booth SU-28037 will have a firsthand look at how Hanway, a part of the HanGlory Group, is setting a new benchmark for packaging production.
The Corrugated Market at a Crossroads:
Navigating a New Industrial Revolution
The landscape of the global manufacturing sector is being fundamentally reshaped by a wave of digital transformation. This is not an isolated phenomenon but an overarching economic trend. Projections indicate that the global digital transformation market is poised for explosive growth, with a forecast to expand from $594.5 billion in 2022 to an astounding $1.5489 trillion by 2027, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.1%. This data underscores a core reality: digitalization is no longer a competitive advantage but an essential requirement for building a resilient, modern enterprise.
This macro-trend of digital intelligence is directly influencing the packaging industry. According to a research report by Smithers, the global demand for packaging printing is expected to continue its upward trajectory, reaching $551.3 billion by 2027. Within this robust market, the most significant expansion is coming from the digital print packaging segment, which is forecast to grow at a rate of over 10% by 2027. The rapid adoption of digital inkjet technology, particularly for large-format applications like cartons and corrugated boxes, signifies that businesses are recognizing the inherent scalability and versatility of these solutions.
Direct inkjet printing on corrugated cardboard offers key advantages, including high production efficiency, low material consumption, and a process that is favorable to environmental protection. The move toward digital printing is a direct investment in the core principles of intelligent manufacturing, where automation, data-driven insights, and integrated workflows are paramount. Hanway's strategic focus on providing end-to-end solutions—including equipment, software, inks, and service—is perfectly aligned with this industry-wide movement, offering a holistic ecosystem rather than an isolated piece of hardware.
The Pain Points of an Analog Past:
Why Traditional Methods No Longer Suffice
For decades, the traditional corrugated printing industry has operated on a foundation of long runs, high-volume orders, and analog processes. However, this model is now under immense pressure from a trifecta of challenges: market competition, rising costs, and a fundamental shift in customer demand. The homogeneity of traditional printing has led to fierce price wars, eroding profit margins for many businesses. Simultaneously, increasing environmental regulations have made the management of waste, such as spent inks and chemical residues, both costly and complex. While flexo printing often uses water-based inks, the process still generates significant waste during plate creation and setup, and conventional solvent-based inks can interfere with the de-inking process during recycling.
Perhaps the most disruptive force, however, is the growing demand for fragmented, personalized, and multi-version orders. Traditional printing presses, optimized for long, uninterrupted runs, are inherently inefficient at handling a high volume of short-run jobs. Time wasted on labor-intensive tasks like plate-making, washing plates, and ink adjustments represents a significant operational burden, increasing both labor and material costs. A survey of corrugated board processors reveals that the top concerns are "order changeover time" (30%), "order tracking" (20%), and the ability to handle a "high volume of short-run orders" (12%). These concerns highlight a critical shift in market value. The modern customer is not just seeking raw speed but is willing to pay a premium for agility. The data shows that 20% of customers are willing to pay extra for 48-hour delivery, a service that is a natural strength of digital color printing. By addressing these pain points with automated, flexible solutions, digital inkjet technology allows businesses to transform a once-unprofitable segment into a high-margin opportunity. The value proposition of Hanway's solutions extends beyond mere speed; they enable a fundamental re-engineering of the business model, allowing companies to capture new, high-growth revenue streams while simultaneously reducing operational friction.
Another key challenge for flexo printing on corrugated is the nature of the substrate itself. Corrugated cardboard is more porous and has a rougher surface than other materials, which can lead to high ink penetration and dull, washed-out colors. Dirt particles released by the substrate can also clog the ink cells of the aniloxes, disrupting the ink flow and affecting print quality. Achieving the correct color density on a non-absorbent surface is also a challenge. The end result is often a softer image with less definition compared to the crisp, clean lines and defined edges that can be achieved with digital printing. Digital printing with its non-contact, on-demand approach, circumvents these issues and provides a solution for achieving vibrant, high-quality results.
