Mark Andy Hybrid Press Cuts Label Production Time 83%
A single-operator demonstration of the Digital Series HD HighSpeed 1200 produced 873,000 finished labels across 25 SKUs in one eight-hour shift.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Manufacturing
Mark Andy demonstrated its Digital Series HD HighSpeed 1200 completing 10 jobs in one eight-hour shift, producing 873,000 finished labels across 25 SKUs with one operator. The demonstration cut total production time by 83 percent compared with conventional flexo.
Why it matters
Label markets are seeing more SKUs and shorter runs with frequent artwork changes, and the demonstration reported reductions in makeready time, material waste and production costs against conventional flexo.
The demonstration recorded an 83 percent reduction in total production time, a 91 percent cut in makeready time, an 88 percent drop in material waste and a 28 percent reduction in production costs compared with conventional flexo. The results come from a single vendor-run demonstration, and the source does not indicate whether they would apply across other label jobs or plants.
The players
Mark Andy
Mark Andy is a U.S. manufacturer of flexographic and hybrid label printing presses, and the company that developed the Digital Series HD HighSpeed 1200 featured in the demonstration.
The details
The seven-color hybrid press ran at 480 ft/min and 1,200 DPI, with two flexo units printing white before a digital engine applied CMYKOV process colors. Embellishment and further converting were completed in the same pass.
Timeline
November 3, 2026: Mark Andy results were published on labelsandlabeling.com.
Market Landscape
The demonstration compares the Digital Series HD HighSpeed 1200 directly against conventional flexographic printing, the established method for high-volume label production. The hybrid approach aims to address growing demand for more SKUs and shorter runs that conventional flexo handles less efficiently.
For label buyers, shorter makeready and lower waste could translate into faster turnaround on small orders and lower per-label costs if the reported gains hold in their own operations. The figures come from a single demonstration, so buyers would need to test performance on their own jobs before relying on them.
The takeaway
Vendor demonstrations can show promising efficiency gains, but results depend on job mix and run length. Printers weighing hybrid presses should compare reported figures against their own SKU counts and changeover frequency.
Further reading
Explore more Manufacturing coverage for context on how production technology is changing.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Labelsandlabeling.
