The allure of variable-data printing is irresistible, even to corporate behemoths like Coca-Cola. Unable to contain themselves any longer, HP today announced that its Indigo WS6000 digital presses were responsible for the importation of the soft drink purveyor’s “Share a Coke” campaign to America this summer. Originally launched in Australia in 2011, the gimmick allowed the company to print bottle labels with more than 250 different popular names, as in “Share a Coke with Sarah.”
As WhatTheyThink.com explains it:
“Using targeted consumer demographics data and variable data printing, HP worked with Coca-Cola to segment the production lanes of its HP Indigo WS6000 series Digital Presses to produce varying run lengths of each name based on U.S. regional demand.”
The project required the presses to run 24 hours a day, six days a week for about three months.
“To create a strong, durable label, able to withstand the fast speeds of U.S. bottling lines, a new substrate and a laminate construction replaced the original media and varnish overlay technique used in Europe. Coca-Cola Red Ink was reformulated to accommodate the new substrate, and the updated color was maintained across all U.S. print providers’ HP Indigo digital presses to ensure color consistency worldwide…”
