Competition for shelf space between branded and own-label packaging is a constant battle that puts ever-increasing pressure on today’s packaging designers. The designer must navigate the complexities of printing processes and the limitations of substrates while considering the pack's visual implications at the point of purchase.
Whatever the product, the pack must reflect the price point, but the bulk of the pack must also correspond to the product's value. Further, that pack may have various functions (transport, storage, and point-of-sale) as well as its communication role - a crucial aspect where design plays an influential role in conveying necessary legal or regulatory information, reassurance to a parent, excitement to a child, or a branding message of quality and consistency.
Of course, there is also value worthiness to consider. Product presentation must make the item look and feel worthy of its price, and very often, this has as much to do with the bulk and weight of the pack as it does with other quality aspects of the item inside or the graphics that depict the product. The audience's role in mirroring customer expectations in the pack at the instant of the purchasing decision is significant and should not be underestimated.
Design is at the heart of any pack or display, and now - more than ever - constructional and graphic design are being developed hand in hand rather than one driving the other. Whether handling the volume throughput of regular slotted containers for transit packaging or complex point-of-sale added-value products, orders are rarely forthcoming without design origination.
For packaging, internal and external sizes are critical, and material grades are pared to the bone for cost advantages but must still meet compression requirements. Detailed and accurate production specifications are crucial for machine setting, die ordering, and many other formalities that must be satisfied upon receipt of the order. In added-value products, print proofs and samples compound the complexities. Artwork setting, approval, and product placement evaluation are each part of the sales process. Getting the buyer to agree to a concept or solution is never easy. Still, designers can confidently navigate these challenges with a thorough understanding of design origination and production specifications.
The KASEMAKE packaging CAD system deals with the design process of fibre- and polymer-based substrates from all areas of packaging, printing, and promotional creativity. Combining all elements of constructional design generated within KASEMAKE with graphic elements is at the heart of the program. Using the 3D-folding module built into KASEMAKE, it is possible to display single or multi-part designs realistically. Conceptual design can now occur at the computer rather than at the cutting table, generating a sample that can be proofed before cutting or printing begins, reducing the time to meet the design brief and avoiding costly mistakes.
Using the vast range of included FEFCO, ECMA and Point-of-Sale libraries of standard corrugated and carton designs, packaging enclosures, folders and wallets, printed sheet work, and a broad range of specialist POS/POP and promotional material can be prepared quickly and easily. The scope of application is unlimited: installations vary from integrated corrugated sheet plants to design agencies dealing with a vast range of creative projects encompassing design development with many different substrates.
Fitments, enclosures and multimedia presentations work outside the scope of design standards and are easily prepared using powerful drafting and publishing tools, even in the hands of a novice designer. Using 3D and associated components within the software, conceptual design origination has never been easier.
A fast response to sample requests must be one of the main benefits of employing such a system. The DYSS range of digital cutting tables offers configurations that suit any installation. Offering versatility and durability, DYSS machines have been developed with optional tooling ideally suited to the packaging industry. They are built to exacting standards by engineering professionals who understand the business. They utilise various cutting methods - tangential for smooth lines on film, paper and carton board and oscillating for heavy grades of corrugated substrates in a single pass, using precision ground Tungsten Carbide blades. The ability to exchange tooling heads quickly to cater for a given material is one of many benefits in the DYSS cutting machine range.
All design origination prepared within the KASEMAKE system is acceptable for transfer to die-makers running any computerised process. DYSS sample tables can produce design traces for artwork registering die-cut designs, eliminating the need to wait for a trace from the die-maker before commencing the print run.
KASEMAKE Packaging Design Software is designed and developed by UK-based AG/CAD Limited. Accompanying KASEMAKE products offer specialised sampling and short-run production facilities for a wide range of packaging-related industries. KASEMAKE offers the very latest in packaging design tools, with many functions and features designed exclusively for this fast-paced industry. Professional designers and users new to the design industry can adapt easily to the user-friendly Windows interface and produce great results quickly.
For large and small companies, KASEMAKE CAD software serves the entire design department by providing the base platform for developing construction drawings using the design features available. Robust libraries of 'standard' and many 'non-standard' enclosures and displays are provided with the system. These 'parametric' designs offer instant access to construction components from many packaging-related industries such as corrugated, carton, paper, point of sale, and plastics.
Design development tools offer unparalleled flexibility for creating design solutions. For proofing and presentation, KASEMAKE is supplied with all the tools and functions necessary to produce 3D multimedia files in a wide variety of formats for every customer. KASEMAKE is used as a primary driver for DYSS and other sample tables, routers, lasers, and other sampling and tooling-related machinery.
With a full complement of die-making tools and many functions available as automatic routines (such as stripping board design), KASEMAKE is the obvious choice for the die-maker preparing platen and rotary dies. Versatility and the power to import the most commonly accepted construction and graphic file formats equip the user with cross-platform communication with any design system.
AG/CAD and its global distribution partners are committed to providing second-to-none service and support. The dedicated programming team adopts a process of continual improvement, ensuring that KASEMAKE is up to date with the latest developments in packaging and computer technology. If you are interested in KASEMAKE or our range of DYSS digital cutting tables, why not contact us for a demo?
