（1） Offset printing continues to progress

The main advantage of offset printing is that the printing technology and equipment have been developed very well. The supporting raw and auxiliary materials have also been fully mature. Good printing quality and low cost. Carton processing factory found that offset printing has been accepted by printing enterprises at home and abroad. At present, offset printing basically accounts for more than half of the total printing abroad; In China, the printing of books, periodicals and newspapers has been almost 100% offset printing. In packaging and printing, more than 800 offset presses have been introduced. Many enterprises have not only added many offset presses, but also introduced multi-color offset presses with world advanced level. Offset printing brush has also accounted for about 60%

Offset printing also plays a leading role in the field of packaging. Whether at home or abroad, the proportion of offset printing brush may decrease for a long time, but its dominant position will not change. Offset printing is mainly used for printing paper-based materials. Printing on plastic film has many limitations. The printing format of sheet fed offset press can be changed and flexible. At present, the printing format of most web offset presses is fixed. Its application is limited. With the development of technology, web offset press is also improving. A web offset press that can change the printing format has been developed. At the same time, a web offset press with seamless drum is successfully developed. The printing cylinder of this web offset press is seamless, which is the same as that of web gravure press

The offset press is also improving its printing function. After improving and adding some parts, corrugated board can be printed. After improvement and installation of drying device, UV printing can be printed. Offset printing water-based ink will soon enter practical application, which will be another progress of offset printing

（2） Gravure printing needs to reduce cost

Gravure printing has full ink color and three-dimensional feeling. Among the various printing methods used in carton processing plants, the printing quality is the best, the printing quality is stable, the printing plate has long service life, and is suitable for mass printing. Gravure printing is a material that can print extremely thin books, such as plastic film. However, gravure plate making is complex and expensive, and its benzene containing ink pollutes the environment. These two problems affect the development of gravure printing. In particular, the reduction of mass printing and the large increase of low-cost printing have continuously lost the market of gravure printing. The proportion of gravure printing in the printing field will decline year by year, even in the field of packaging printing

In the flexible packaging printing market in the United States, gravure printing accounts for only 10% and is declining. Gravure printing plays an important role in China's flexible packaging printing and cigarette box printing. More than 200 sets of gravure printing machines have been introduced, and too many gravure printing machines have been introduced in some areas, resulting in excess production capacity, which is formed under the special circumstances of our country

Due to the progress of technology, gravure printing machine is also constantly improving and developing. The application of gravure computer direct plate making (OTP) and the gradual promotion of gravure water-based ink have gradually solved the two difficult problems of gravure printing process. With the solution of the important problems of gravure printing, whether it will reverse the downward trend of gravure printing process needs to be tested in practice

（3） Carton processing plant expects that flexographic printing will gradually become the mainstream in the future

1. Main advantages of flexo printing

(1) The equipment has simple structure and is easy to form a production line. In offset printing, gravure printing, flexo printing and other printing equipment, flexo printing machine is the simplest structure. Therefore, the price of flexographic press is relatively low and the equipment investment of printing enterprises is less. At present, most flexographic printing machines are connected with processing processes such as bronzing, polishing, cutting, slitting, die cutting, indentation, punching and windowing, which greatly improves labor productivity

(2) Wide range of applications and substrates. Flexographic printing can print almost all printed matter and use all substrates. Corrugated paper printing, especially in packaging printing, is unique

(3) Water based inks are widely used. Among the three printing methods of offset printing, gravure printing and flexo printing, only flexo printing is widely used at present. Non toxic and pollution-free, beneficial to environmental protection, especially suitable for packaging and printing

(4) Low cost. The low cost of flexographic printing has formed a broad consensus abroad, and there is still debate at home. The main reason is that most of the flexographic machines, flexographic plates and flexographic inks used in domestic flexographic printing rely on imports, resulting in high costs. The cost of offset printing and gravure printing is relatively low. With the localized production of flexo printing equipment, plates and raw and auxiliary materials in China, its cost will be gradually reduced

2. The main reasons for the slow development of flexographic printing in China

(1) There are cognitive and specific problems: after the 1970s, flexographic printing technology was mature and developed rapidly in the world. At that time, China was fully advocating the development of offset printing. The development of offset printing is undoubtedly correct, but there is little publicity for flexographic printing, many people in China know little about flexographic printing, and printing workers know little about flexographic printing technology. Therefore, few flexographic machines introduced in the 1980s really give full play to their role. In the middle and late 1990s, China introduced more foreign flexographic machines, and the flexographic machines developed by China gradually matured, but due to the poor mastery of printing technology. The flexographic press selected by some users is not suitable for the prints they are going to print

(2) Domestic localization of flexographic plates and raw and auxiliary materials has a long way to go: at present, most of them still rely on imports. This is an important reason to increase the cost of flexo printing

(3) Unreasonable requirements for flexo printing: at present, domestic flexo printing machines, whether imported or domestic, basically belong to medium and low-grade products. In addition, the domestic flexo printing process is still not completely qualified, and its prints are of course medium and low-grade. It is unreasonable for many people to compare these prints with higher-grade offset and gravure prints. Foreign experience has long proved that flexographic printing can print high-grade prints. However, there must be corresponding equipment, plates, raw and auxiliary materials, mature technology and high-level operators

(4) Select appropriate equipment and prints: flexographic printing can not only play its specialty in the field of packaging printing, but also play a full role in the printing of books, periodicals and newspapers. Flexographic printing has its uniqueness in packaging printing, and a consensus has been formed in the printing industry. In packaging printing, corrugated board printing can give full play to the advantages of flexographic printing. 85-98% of foreign corrugated board is printed on flexographic press. Label printing is also the strength of flexographic printing. The proportion of flexographic printing in developed countries reaches 85-90%. Carton processing plants are also developing rapidly in China. Flexible packaging printing is the main competitive place of flexographic printing and gravure printing, and the development of countries is also different. Carton printing has the competition of offset printing, flexo printing and gravure printing, and the development situation of various countries is different. Flexographic printing should be used first in the most suitable prints. According to the specific requirements of these prints, select the most appropriate flexographic press