Good things come in small packages. That’s the big message that the craft beer industry has been showing the world over the past decade.
While the top of the $114 billion U.S. industry is still dominated by the household names that run Super Bowl ads, the little guys are closing the gap. In terms of production volume, 40 of the top 50 beer sellers in the country (80%) are now craft or independent breweries. And in 2018, these “small companies” combined to generate $27.6 billion in sales on the 25.9 million barrels produced.
Some may only distribute regionally. But they have built up a strong, well-known brand in their communities, and they work tirelessly to maintain a reputation for excellence.
One key ingredient of success is labeling, coding, and marking — which can all be complicated for brewers. Not only are they pumping out a massive volume of bottles and cans, but their products have irregular surfaces that make printing difficult.
It may not sound like putting a man on the moon, but this key part of branding, quality control, and informing consumers can prove tricky. Even mature breweries recognize that this specialty application is not being well served by other products on the market today.
This is where the value of REA JET’s Small Character Inkjet Printer shines through.
And despite its smaller size, it works at high speeds even in difficult factory conditions. The best part is that you get all these benefits without sacrificing performance. SC 2.0 offers contract-free printing of up to 8-lines (12 mm) of text, dates, barcodes, logos, and more in high resolution at high speed with very short drying times.
And make no mistake: Craft beer is just one-use case.
Other common applications include the broader beverage industry, canning, and food packaging. The SC 2.0 Inkjet also produces great results on surfaces such as foils, laminates, plastics or metals.
Many customers love the printer due to its agility. Manufacturing lines can often be cramped with large equipment. This makes it ideal to have a smaller design that can allow for easy integration into almost any type of packaging machinery.
When it all comes down to it, size really isn’t everything.
But as so many craft beer makers — and so many of our satisfied customers have already learned — small character printers can have a big impact.