Dominos Ax-350i CIJ and Express Packaging are Rewriting the Rules of Superior Packaging and Coding!

When it comes to choosing a coding partner, Express Packaging consistently trusts Domino—including the Ax350i—to help them efficiently and accurately deliver results to their Fortune 500 food manufacturer clients. Overview As a contract packager providing many types of packaging solutions to some of the world's largest food manufacturers, Express Packaging must process an extremely high volume at a very high speed. Efficiency is a must and avoiding downtime is critical. Express Packaging has over 30 years of experience providing tailored primary and secondary packaging solutions for a wide array of global brands. For many of these years, they have relied on Domino equipment and now they’re thrilled with the performance of Domino’s latest continuous inkjet (CIJ) printer—the Ax350i. Clearly, there’s little room for error at Express Packaging. "We are SQF Level 3 audited, which is the highest quality standard for handling open food products. But it's just as important that codes are clear on the packages for the clients that we service and for the customers that purchase the products," says Express Packaging President Fred Hartzler. "And we trust only Domino for that!" Background Express Packaging is an award-winning contract packaging service provider for worldwide brands such as Nestlé, Kraft, Hershey and more. Specializing in a variety of techniques that include pouching, cartoning, shrink-wrapping, and label printing, Express Packaging employs approximately 500 people at its locations in Chicago and Ohio. The company may run 10-20 food packaging lines per shift and has more than 50 Domino systems, including case coders and CIJ printers—such as the new Ax350i—in use across four plants. Referencing the Ax350i, Mr. Hartzler said, "Although we were very happy with what we had, we instantly wanted to try the new product. Every time Domino comes out with something new, we find it to be even better than what we're currently using. This new printer that we put in has proven to be that." The Need for New Inks, New Capabilities High volume, high speeds, and high stress! When it comes to keeping up with the requirements of some of the world’s largest packaged goods brands, Express Packaging is under pressure to meet deadlines, maintain quality, and exceed expectations on a daily basis. Additionally, printers in Express Packaging plants must withstand the tough production environment and storage conditions that are typical of the food industry. Clean and Clear Codes High-resolution print messages and multiple line codes are available at the fastest print speeds, allowing large amounts of data for rapid throughput printing. Higher quality codes are optimized for Machine Readable Code (MRC) and Optical Character Recognition (OCR) systems, helping to reduce rejects. Thoughtful, Operator-Friendly Design The Ax350i is designed based on years of experience, with a robust IP66 rating for the electronics, the ability to support inks for all substrates, easy-change consumables, and modular stackability. Dan Crone, Project and Maintenance Manager at Express Packaging is very happy with their new printer, “One of the things I really like about the Ax350i is that our operators are all very familiar with touch screens from our other equipment. So we brought this in and it literally took minutes to train them on how to adjust their code dates.” "In just a couple of minutes, I was up and running with the Domino touchpad. It was very easy," adds Cindy Hickmann, a Technician at Express Packaging. Ease of use and accuracy were also key factors in the design of the electrical and consumables cabinet. “Inside, it’s very clean, and the consumables are RFID coded—it makes it impossible to put the wrong fluid in,” commented Mr. Crone. Rewriting the Relationship Summing up the relationship, Mr. Hartzler commented, "It [the Ax350i] saves us money, it runs faster for us and we have clearer print. We've used other suppliers in the past but no one has equalled the production that a Domino printer puts out and the service that Domino technicians back it up with."