Tired of Brexit? Yes, me too!
But have you checked your supply or spoken with your supplier about possible interruptions? Knowing the potential impact of brexit on your packaging is important!
Here at Short Run Packaging we have been working on continuity of material supply, with Brexit (at the time of writing) still an absolute uncertainty, our research has found there could be shortages of material if shipments to the UK are caught up in a backlog of customs checks.
Much of the UK’s packaging board is sourced from northern Europe, but there are ways to overcome the potential shortage.
So, what have we done to mitigate the risk?
We are in the fortunate position that our MD is Chair of the South West Regional Board of the BPIF (British Print Industry Federation) which has been actively lobbying for the print industry during the Brexit negotiations. The BPIF has also been proactive in terms of researching what paper merchants are doing to combat the expected backlog of lorries coming into the UK.
As a printed packaging producer, we have secured board supplies which are from countries outside of the European Union and come to the UK through ports other than Dover. This ensures the continuity we want to deliver clients. These materials are boards that we have been using for years so, there will be no change in quality from your perspective.
We have also put presses through an ISO standard press calibration to ensure colours are vibrant and to the highest standard available. This process came about via becoming the first printer in the UK to sign a contract for Komori’s calibrated Ink Supply – our inks are delivered from the manufacturer so we have a confirmed supply from either Japan or Europe.
If you don’t currently use us for your packaging…
Then first call should be to request a supply strategy from your incumbent supplier. They will hopefully have worked through their supply options and calibrated their presses to suit the new materials if they don’t use them already.
Questions you could ask would be around the supply of not only substrate, but inks, chemistry, blankets and varnish.
If you are not confident they have this in-hand then please contact us as soon as possible, we can help.