The Hidden Complexity of Multi-SKU Production

Pet food manufacturers and co-packers rarely operate with a single product configuration.

Different brands, formulations, and packaging types all require adjustments — including changes to coding.

Even when changeovers happen only a few times per week, they introduce:

• Operational delays
• Additional labor
• Increased potential for error

And often, the marking system plays a larger role in that process than expected.

Why Traditional Systems Create Friction

Many marking systems require significant effort to adjust between products.

Changing ink types or colors may involve:

• Flushing the system
• Running purge cycles
• Cleaning components

These steps take time and can disrupt production schedules.

Simplifying Changeovers

Cartridge-based systems eliminate much of that complexity.

Because the cartridge contains the ink, printhead, and electronics:

• Changing ink types becomes a simple swap
• No flushing or purge cycles are required
• Downtime is minimized

This is especially valuable in co-packing environments where multiple brands share the same
equipment.

Rethinking Cost Per Imprint

Cost is often evaluated based on consumables alone. But in production environments, total cost includes more than ink.

It includes:

• Maintenance time
• Spare parts
• Operator involvement
• Downtime

When these factors are considered, systems that reduce maintenance and simplify operation
often deliver lower total cost of ownership — even if the per-unit consumable cost appears
higher.

A More Practical Evaluation

For pet food manufacturers and co-packers, the most effective systems are not always the ones with the lowest upfront or per-unit cost.

They’re the ones that:

• Keep lines running
• Reduce operational complexity
• Deliver consistent results

Because in a high-throughput environment, reliability and simplicity translate directly into efficiency.

Traceability in Pet Food Manufacturing Starts with Print Quality

In pet food manufacturing, traceability is not just a regulatory requirement — it’s a core operational necessity.

Every product leaving a facility must be identifiable through:

• Lot codes
• Production dates
• Barcodes or traceability markings

This information becomes critical in the event of a recall, but it also plays a daily role in retail
compliance and distribution.

The challenge isn’t whether this information is applied — it’s whether it remains consistently
readable.

Smudged, faded, or inconsistent codes can create problems that extend well beyond the
production floor.

Where Traceability Breaks Down

In many facilities, traceability issues stem from the marking and coding process itself.

Traditional systems can struggle to maintain consistent print quality over time, especially in
environments like pet food production where:

• Dust from dry ingredients is present
• Equipment runs continuously for long periods
• Packaging lines generate vibration

Over time, these conditions can affect print clarity and reliability.

The Role of the Production Environment

Pet food environments are particularly demanding.

Dust can interfere with sensitive components.
Vibration can affect print stability. Long runs can expose weaknesses in systems that require frequent maintenance.

When marking systems rely on multiple mechanical components — pumps, filters, recirculating ink — each of those becomes a potential point of failure.

A Simpler Approach to Consistency

Cartridge-based thermal inkjet systems simplify this process.

By integrating the printhead and ink supply into a single disposable cartridge, these systems
reduce the number of components that require maintenance.

Each cartridge replacement effectively resets the system:

• New printhead
• Fresh ink supply
• Consistent print quality

This approach helps maintain reliable, high-resolution codes over time, even in demanding
environments.

Why It Matters

In pet food manufacturing, coding isn’t just a technical function — it’s part of your quality and compliance process.

Reliable, readable codes support:

• Traceability
• Retail readiness
• Brand protection

And ultimately, they reduce risk across the operation.

Every manufacturer enters a new year with goals around efficiency, output, and reliability. Yet many production disruptions don’t come from major equipment failures or supply chain shocks. They come from something far more routine — breakdowns or bottlenecks in things like your marking and coding systems.

These issues are rarely dramatic at first. In many facilities, marking and coding systems continue to operate just well enough to avoid immediate attention, even as they quietly introduce friction into daily production.

Legacy Coding Systems Create Chronic Production Drag

For both manufacturers and co-packers, legacy marking and coding equipment often becomes a source of ongoing inefficiency rather than a single point of failure.

Common challenges include:

• Systems that require frequent operator intervention
• Print quality that varies by shift, operator, or substrate
• Equipment that struggles to keep up with higher line speeds
• Limited flexibility when product formats or customers change
• Increasing maintenance demands as equipment ages

These issues don’t always stop production outright, but they slow it down, increase scrap or rework, and add unnecessary complexity to already busy operations.

For co-packers in particular, where changeovers are frequent and customer requirements vary widely, inflexible or outdated coding systems can become a real competitive disadvantage.

Why Addressing These Issues Early in the Year Matters

The beginning of the year offers a rare opportunity to address chronic system limitations without the pressure of peak production schedules. This makes it the ideal time to evaluate whether your current marking and coding solutions are still aligned with how your operation actually runs today.

Early planning allows teams to:

• Review existing equipment in real production conditions
• Identify where legacy systems are adding unnecessary complexity
• Test alternative technologies without disrupting output
• Plan upgrades or standardization on a predictable timeline

Instead of reacting to a failure later in the year, you can proactively eliminate the issues that make failures more likely in the first place.

Flexibility Is No Longer Optional

Modern manufacturing and co-packing environments demand flexibility. Product variations, customer-specific requirements, shorter runs, and tighter deadlines have become the norm. Older coding systems were often designed for long, consistent runs with minimal variation.

Today, that lack of flexibility shows up as:

• Longer changeover times
• More manual adjustments
• Increased risk of coding errors
• Reduced responsiveness to customer demands

Modern marking and coding solutions are built to adapt quickly, delivering consistent, high-quality codes across a wide range of substrates, formats, and production speeds.

A Better Approach to Marking & Coding in 2026

Avoiding production surprises in 2026 starts with treating marking and coding as an integral part of production performance — not just a necessary add-on at the end of the line.

That means asking:

• Are our systems supporting efficiency, or quietly slowing it down?
• Do we have the flexibility required for our current mix of products or customers?
• Are we maintaining more equipment and consumables than we need to?
• Can our coding systems scale with future growth?

For many manufacturers and co-packers, the biggest gains come from simplifying, standardizing, and modernizing their marking and coding environment.

Expertise That Works for Manufacturers and Co-Packers

At Automated Marking Inc., we work with both manufacturers and co-packers to design marking and coding solutions that fit real-world production demands.

That includes:

• Helping manufacturers improve reliability and reduce long-term maintenance
• Supporting co-packers with flexible systems designed for frequent changeovers
• Matching the right technology to each application and substrate
• Providing ongoing service and support to keep production moving

The goal isn’t simply to replace equipment. It’s to create a marking and coding environment that supports uptime, accuracy, and operational confidence.

Make 2026 a Year of Predictable Production

Production surprises are rarely caused by one catastrophic failure. More often, they’re the result of long-standing system limitations that were never addressed.

By reviewing and modernizing marking and coding systems early in the year, manufacturers and co-packers can eliminate chronic inefficiencies, improve flexibility, and start 2026 with confidence.

If your goal is fewer interruptions and smoother production all year long, this is the right time to take a closer look at marking and coding.

If you need to invest in date-coding equipment for your contract packaging business, you will likely consider continuous inkjet (CIJ) and thermal inkjet (TIJ) options for your packaging line.

CIJ printers have been the best-selling product coding solution for a long time, but thermal inkjet has been making serious inroads into the market, offering several advantages.

Which technology makes the most sense for your contract packaging operation?

One of the first aspects you look at is probably the cost per print on your package – it’s easy to calculate from the volume of ink used per printed message and the number of messages you need to print per year.

When you do this, continuous inkjet will almost certainly be the lower cost, but does this mean your comparison is complete? No, not at all: The cost per print is just one data point to look at when comparing these two technologies.

The Actual Operating Costs of a Coding System

The cost of the ink needed to produce a single print of a given message is obviously an important factor (some printing systems, such as the TIJ printers from Automated Marking, Inc.) can calculate the volume of ink used for a particular message), but let’s look at some of the other factors that need to be considered

Maintenance and Cleaning

This category is an easy win for thermal inkjet. Since replacing the print cartridge effectively replaces the complete printhead, maintenance is virtually eliminated with this technology.

Continuous inkjet, on the other hand, is maintenance-intensive, and all the maintenance activities contribute to expensive downtime.

• Service Plan: Many CIJ users buy a service plan to cover maintenance, such as core and filter replacements, for their printer. These plans are an ongoing annual expense and have a large impact on the overall operating cost.
• Cost of Parts: For CIJ users without a comprehensive service plan, spare parts (such as the expensive core modules) need to be purchased for periodic replacement.
  Also, with no service plan, either in-house technicians or the manufacturer’s service team need to be involved for printer maintenance.
• Time for Startup and Shutdown: While TIJ printheads are instantly available when needed, CIJ printers require a startup routine before they are ready to print.
  In some cases, printhead cleaning may be needed to ensure acceptable print quality before starting production. For contract packaging operations, where printers might not be utilized 100% of the time, the time for starting up and cleaning can be a factor in the overall cost.

Hazardous Materials

Unlike a TIJ printer, CIJ technology relies on hazardous fluids, including MEK-based inks and makeup fluid, as well as solvents for cleaning.

These fluids need to be properly managed, stored and disposed of – all of which has associated costs.

Other Factors

• Changing Ink Formulation or Color: With a TIJ printer, changing the type or color of the ink means simply changing the ink cartridge, which takes a few seconds. Changing the ink in a CIJ printer usually requires thoroughly flushing the system, and it is often better to just purchase another machine.
• Future Proofing: As a contract packager, you never know what requests your existing and new customers might have. The flexibility of thermal inkjet printers can save you the expense of having to purchase new equipment if a CIJ printer isn’t able to handle new applications – GS1 2D barcodes, for example.

Industry Reports Identify Thermal Inkjet Cartridge Technology as the Fastest-Growing Marking and Coding Solution due to:

• Ease of use
• Flexibility
• Lower total cost of ownership
• High uptime

See Verified Market Research

Downtime cost range:

• Research shows for U.S. contract packaging/manufacturing, average downtime costs $4,000–$30,000 per hour

Is Thermal Inkjet Always the Right Choice?

No, of course it isn’t. CIJ inkjet printers, as their name suggests, work best when in regular use and excel under certain production conditions.

Our team at Automated Marking (AMI) can help you evaluate print technologies, considering all variables, to determine the best solution for your unique requirements.

Some factors that make CIJ a strong choice include:

• Need for long throw distance
• Ability to print on surfaces with oils or moisture

• Running speeds above ~1,000 feet per minute

If your production involves frequent short runs, material changes, or varying message formats, thermal inkjet may be a better fit. TIJ can print up to 600 feet per minute (sometimes more) and is a great option for a large portion of printing requirements.

Next Steps

While some businesses involved in contract packaging run only a small number of SKUs, many must handle a wide range of products, often with different materials and marking requirements.

If this is the situation at your company, you’ll be well aware that flexibility is an important consideration when investing in packaging equipment.

The continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers, which have been a staple of product coding for a long time, are not renowned for their flexibility.

Modern, German-engineered thermal inkjet (TIJ) printing systems from Automated Marking, Inc. (AMI) offer contract manufacturers and packagers a cost-effective way to increase the flexibility of product coding on packaging lines.

How AMI Thermal Inkjet Can Help

Thermal inkjet coding systems are engineered to overcome many of the shortcomings of traditional printers. Here are some of the key advantages:

Poor Quality CIJ Print

Flexibility of Messages – While traditional CIJ printers are constrained by their low print resolution (the print swath is limited to around 30 – 35 dots), a TIJ printer can print at resolutions up to 600 dpi (although 300 dpi is most common for packaging applications).

This produces excellent print quality, even with very small fonts, and allows printing high-quality linear and 2D barcodes.

Ink Flexibility – Continuous inkjet printers have a wide range of inks available and can print on just about every type of packaging material.

The problem is that once a printer has been set up for a particular ink, it is difficult or even impossible to change, requiring a complete flush and reconfiguration of the printer – or perhaps a different machine, if there is a need to switch from dye-based to pigment-based ink.

With an AMI thermal inkjet printer, switching to a different color or formulation of ink couldn’t be simpler. You simply remove the current ink cartridge and replace it with the next one containing the ink you need.

The setup procedure? None, really – the smart chip embedded in the cartridge tells the print system which ink is now being used and changes the settings accordingly.

600 DPI Thermal Inkjet Print

Message Format Flexibility – As a contract packager, you never know when your customer is going to change the print format requirement. Maybe they need to add a linear or 2D barcode, or add more text to help with traceability or regulatory compliance.

While the low print resolution of a CIJ printer can be an issue here, the message design software for an AMI thermal inkjet printer allows updates to messages or the design of new ones to be carried out quickly and effectively before they are uploaded to the printer.

Location Flexibility – Should you need to move your AMI printer to a new location, the small printhead footprint and simple mounting hardware allows for this to be done quickly and efficiently.

Startup and shutdown procedures for seasonal or contracted short run work common in contract packaging and manufacturing :

• Contract packagers often shut down lines for weeks or months.
• CIJ startup and shutdown procedures are extensive, time-consuming, and messy; if done improperly, they can be costly and may prevent the printer from starting reliably when you need it again in the future.
• TIJ printers can sit idle for extended periods of time (even years), halting or restarting production is as simple as removing/capping or snapping in a new cartridge. Startup and shutdown take about 30 seconds.

Next Steps

How Thermal Inkjet Printers Can Help

If you have to manage continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers in a contract packaging operation, you’ll be only too aware of areas where there is room for improvement.

One of these, is the print quality. As a contract packer, you need to ship finished packages with the best possible quality for variable print, such as date/lot codes, best-by or expiration dates and, increasingly, barcodes.

As you may know, a CIJ printer can only produce a certain number of drops to create the print image. Depending on the model, this limit is typically between 25 and 35 vertical drops, giving a maximum print resolution of about 60 dpi.

German engineered thermal inkjet (TIJ) printers from Automated Marking, Inc., (AMI) on the other hand, usually print in 300-600 dpi for packaging applications, providing a noticeable increase in the quality of the print.

In addition, the TIJ printheads don’t rely on continuously cycling the ink, avoiding the need to add makeup fluids to keep viscosity in a usable range. Changes in viscosity can have a serious effect on print quality, as does ink buildup on the deflector plates which need to be cleaned from time to time.

With a thermal inkjet system, changing the quick-release ink cartridge provides you with a brand new printhead each time—ensuring that your system is up and running in seconds without the need to spend time dialing it in.

Next Steps

Poor Quality CIJ Printing VS High Quality TIJ Printing for the Contract Packaging Industry

Contract packagers (co-packers) are an important part of many industries, providing packaging services that brands and manufacturers rely on.

While the range of products and package types handled by contract packagers is enormous, one common element is the need to identify every package with production codes such as dates, lot numbers or other information.

Traditionally, this task has been accomplished using continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers, which can add variable print to just about every type of packaging material.

CIJ printers do have drawbacks, however, which are often addressed by the rapidly evolving thermal inkjet (TIJ) technology.

Why Look at an Alternative Technology?

If you use CIJ printers in your contract packaging operation, you’re aware that although they can run for a time and work well in certain applications, they can come with a multitude of headaches.

CIJ printing can leave a mess, creating challenges for both production cleanliness and product presentation.

Print Quality – CIJ printers have limited resolution, meaning it can be challenging to achieve the best quality printing. Variable print that is instantly legible is essential for traceability, providing information to consumers and for meeting the standard your customers require.

Flexibility – For a contract packager, flexibility is an important aspect, since packaging lines can need to run new package types at short notice.

Typically, a CIJ printer runs one ink type for the life of the machine. When different packaging materials require different inks or colors, swapping isn’t easily achieved and often requires a full printer change. Pigmented white and yellow inks add even more complexity— they have difficulty producing legible marks since they tend to clog, which increases the risk of downtime.

Should the customer require linear or 2D barcodes to be added, the low resolution of CIJ printers often makes them unsuitable.

Maintenance/Downtime – a CIJ printer is a complicated piece of equipment, with many systems working together to ensure the printer operates correctly. Any malfunctions often lead to unplanned downtime and attention from in-house technicians or a wait for help from the manufacturer.  Cleaning, filter changes (or machine core changes), and system flushing all need to be done regularly (especially with older machines).

In many cases, owners of CIJ printers purchase service plans from the manufacturer to handle maintenance needs.

Sustainability – Continuous inkjet printers rely on inks that are solvent based and also use solvents for the additive, or makeup fluid, and for cleaning. These chemicals need to be handled, stored and disposed of in accordance with hazardous material regulations.

Operating Costs – while the cost per print for CIJ printers is low, other costs for maintenance, downtime, service plans, hazardous materials handling, etc., can make the total cost of this technology more expensive than others.

Poor and messy results from CIJ printing on real world packaging.

Inconsistent CIJ printing results.

High-quality TIJ printing.

How Does Thermal Inkjet (TIJ) Address These Issues?

Thermal inkjet printers from Automated Marking, Inc., (AMI) are engineered in Germany to bring product coding to a higher level – addressing the shortcomings of earlier technologies and making them ideal for contract packaging applications.

Print Quality – While print quality is a weakness of CIJ printers, for TIJ it is a strength. With 600 dpi resolution available (although 300 dpi is used for most packaging applications), and a wide range of inks to suit various materials, AMI’s TIJ printers provide excellent quality that will please your customers and consumers.

Flexibility – Do you need to use a different ink, or maybe a different color for a particular job? As a contract packager you might need to. Changing the ink in a TIJ printer is as simple as changing to a new cartridge. No additional printers, or system flushing needed – just swap and start printing. Note that white or yellow inks can be run on a TIJ printer more easily than CIJ.

Need to print linear or 2D barcodes? A TIJ printer can produce grade A GS1 barcodes on most types of packaging, providing future-proofing, even if you (or your customers) don’t need barcodes today.

The compact size of a TIJ printhead, also makes it quick and easy to install in a conveyor or just about any type of packaging machine.

Maintenance/Downtime – AMI’s thermal inkjet printers maximize your uptime by minimizing maintenance. Every time you change the ink cartridge, you basically get a new printhead. No flushing, cleaning, dealing with cryptic errors, no filters, no cores, no expensive service plans.

All daily tasks are easily accomplished by your line operators, without the need for specialist technicians.

The AMI thermal inkjet printers, ready to print as soon as you need them, no startup routines to worry about, insert a cartridge and get printing, making them ideal for quick turnaround between production jobs.

Sustainability – Thermal inkjet printers eliminate the need to have to manage and store hazardous materials.

The enclosed cartridges ensure negligible emissions of solvents, with no odors produced. The cartridges do not need to be treated as hazardous materials and don’t require specialized storage and disposal.

Unlike CIJ printers, AMI thermal inkjet systems, don’t have to be cleaned using solvents, making for a safer environment for your employees.

Operating Costs – It’s true that the cost of ink to produce a print costs less with CIJ.

But, there are other factors to consider when comparing with a TIJ solution:

• The cost of downtime associated with maintenance, cleaning and startup/shutdown/changeover routines.
• The cost of ongoing maintenance; service plans, filters, replacement cores, etc.
• The costs involved in handling, storing and disposing hazardous chemicals, such as CIJ inks, makeup and cleaning solvents.
• Spare printers if needing to change ink type or color.

In many cases, a thermal inkjet solution can actually provide a lower total cost of ownership with a positive ROI.

Next Steps

Customer Profile

A leading co-packer and manufacturer of sensitive chemical products including antifreeze, oil, diesel exhaust fluid, dry chemicals, cleaners, windshield wash, and agricultural goods was experiencing critical production inefficiencies. Known for not only their packaging capabilities, but also for blending, quality control testing, blow-mold bottle manufacturing, warehousing, and logistics, their operations required a highly flexible yet reliable, clean, and scalable printing solution.

Challenge

AMI Yellow TIJ print:

Legacy Yellow CIJ print:

• Ink sedimentation and clogging, especially with high-viscosity yellow pigments
• Frequent maintenance and costly service contracts
• Leaking and messy printheads requiring manual cleaning
• High VOC emissions due to MEK-based solvents, requiring expensive fireproof storage and ventilation
• Charge faults, poor print quality, and system instability
• Limited ink flexibility, allowing only a single ink color over the printer’s lifespan
• Hazardous waste handling and disposal issues

Despite best efforts, these printers often produced smudged, unreadable codes. Line operators struggled with constant cleaning and alignment, while maintenance teams managed frequent unscheduled downtime—slowing down throughput and increasing total cost of ownership.

Solution: Migration to Automated Marking Inc.’s AMI/Markoprint TIJ System

After a thorough application review, AMI printing samples seen above for the customer, multiple onsite customer visits and a 14 day live trial on their production line the customer partnered with Automated Marking Inc. to modernize their marking technology. The team installed our German made industrial grade AMI (TIJ) system, built from aircraft-grade aluminum for unmatched durability, and integrated with cutting-edge yellow pigmented solvent ink.

Key features of AMI’s TIJ platform included:

• No maintenance, as printheads are built into the cartridges
• High-resolution print quality (up to 600 dpi) for barcodes, lot codes, and expiration dates
• Hot-swappable cartridges with HP Smart Card technology for real-time quality control
• No mess, no leaks—no cleaning required
• Eco-friendly ink cartridges with reduced VOCs and no HAZMAT storage requirements
• No annual licensing or hidden software fees

Impact & Results

The switch from CIJ to TIJ had a transformative effect on the customer’s packaging line:

The customer eliminated messy CIJ print positions, improved uptime, and freed up floor space. We reduced the printer footprint from a 3FTx3FT cart holding a large cij printer to a printer that is a 6 inch CUBE mounted directly on the conveyor. In addition we eliminated10ftx10ft flammable chemical cabinets freeing up more floor space and eliminating hazardous waste risks. Their team no longer spends time adjusting print heads, changing pumps, filters or troubleshooting charge faults—allowing them to focus on production instead of printer babysitting.

Additionally, the eco-friendly solvent ink helped reduce environmental impact and met the requirements of third-party audits from clients in automotive and agricultural sectors.

Conclusion

By replacing unreliable CIJ printers with AMI’s advanced German-engineered TIJ system, this chemical packaging leader drastically improved operational efficiency, compliance, and profitability. Their success underscores the growing trend toward clean, smart, and low-maintenance TIJ printing technology in high-throughput industrial environments.

About Automated Marking Inc.

The challenges of adding variable codes to products in protein packaging plants are well known, some of which are:

• The cold temperatures
• Wash down and sanitation
• Maintaining print quality
• Tackling downtime
• Being prepared for the new GS1 2D barcodes

While continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers have often been used for these applications, thermal inkjet (TIJ) printers offer several advantages that are discussed in this article.

Everything is magnified on packaging equipment such as thermoformers and horizontal form fill seal machines (HFFS), where multiple packages need to be coded at the same time.

Why are these machines more complicated?

The bottom roll (the forming web) is where the product is placed, before the top web is applied to finish the pack.

There are usually multiple packages across the machine, and a machine cycle usually indexes several packages in the feed direction. There are usually multiple packages across the machine, and a machine cycle usually indexes several packages in the feed direction.

There are usually multiple packages across the machine, and a machine cycle usually indexes several packages in the feed direction.

This graphic shows a 3-across configuration, which would usually be indexed 2 or more rows per cycle – meaning that multiple packs need to have variable information added each machine cycle.

In most cases, the variable information is added to the top web before it joins the forming web.

This graphic illustrates a 3-across configuration and the two common orientations for variable printing.

How is the printing achieved?

The parent multilane machines are usually intermittent motion, after indexing the web, the machine pauses while the protein products are loaded, then the web is indexed for the next cycle. The parent multilane machines are usually intermittent motion, after indexing the web, the machine pauses while the protein products are loaded, then the web is indexed for the next cycle.

Because of the number of packages that need to be printed each machine cycle, either multiple printers need to be employed, or have the print heads mounted to a traversing system that moves them across the web while printing.

Using multiple stationary printheads

When the print is inline with the film feed direction, stationary printheads can be installed, that print when the film is moving. While using multiple CIJ printheads is possible, this means having to install multiple complete printers, amplifying the drawbacks of CIJ, such as:

• Time needed for maintenance and cleaning
• Poor print quality – not suitable for GS1 2D barcodes
• Having to store, manage and dispose of hazardous substances used in inks and for cleaning
• Ink spills around packaging areas

On the other hand, thermal inkjet printheads from Automated Marking, Inc. are compact, self-contained, easy to integrate and offer other benefits:

• Hi-resolution printing at higher quality, for both text and barcodes
• Virtually zero maintenance leading to reduced downtime and increased packaging line efficiency.
• No expensive core replacements or service plans
• Fast ink color change for different packaging applications
• No hazardous inks or solvents to deal with
• IP65 rated versions for demanding environments encountered in protein plants

Traversing printheads

As with using multiple printers, TIJ printers lend themselves to being integrated into linear traversing systems. The small size and light weight of TIJ printers make them easier to install and manage than the long, heavy umbilicals on CIJ printers.

These traversing applications are normally used when the print is perpendicular to the feed of the film and the printing is done while the film is stationary.

Final thoughts

While thermal inkjet printers have clear advantages over legacy CIJ systems in protein plants, the benefits are amplified when it comes to printing codes on multilane applications.

Automated Marking, Inc. is your partner for thermal inkjet printing systems, engineered in Germany to improve print quality while enabling a cleaner and more efficient operating environment.

Continuous inkjet (CIJ) printers have been a mainstay in protein packaging plants for decades. They’re rugged, can run at high speeds, and can print on a wide variety of materials. You’ll see them integrated with thermoformers, baggers, flow-wrappers, and conveyors.

But, as many plant managers already know, in today’s protein packaging environment, those same legacy CIJ systems are showing their age. Between harsh plant conditions, growing sustainability demands, rising maintenance costs, and print quality limitations, the drawbacks are starting to outweigh the benefits.

Let’s look at some key and why thermal inkjet (TIJ) technology is becoming a compelling alternative.

Harsh Environments

Protein processing facilities are tough on coding systems. They are:

CIJ systems constantly measure the ink viscosity and try to compensate with additive addition and sometimes heating elements in the printer body. However, heaters add complexity, and it can still take the printer a while to compensate for temperature changes.

Environmental and Sustainability Concerns

CIJ printers rely on solvent-based inks (usually based on MEK or acetone) and aggressive solvent cleaners. These come with real-world consequences:

• Air Quality & VOCs: Solvents used in both operation and cleaning release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the plant atmosphere, raising occupational health concerns and sometimes triggering additional ventilation requirements.
• Hazardous Storage: Inks and cleaners must be stored in compliance with chemical handling regulations, adding complexity and cost.
• Waste & Disposal: The fluids used with CIJ printers must be disposed of as hazardous waste, increasing a facility’s environmental footprint and disposal costs.

Maintenance Headaches

While they’re running, CIJ printers can be great – but If you’ve managed CIJ printers in a protein plant, you’ll recognize these issues:

• Frequent Cleaning: Nozzles, deflector plates and ink lines need constant attention to prevent clogs — especially in cold, humid environments.
• Messy Ink Spills: Maintenance often means inky gloves, sticky floors, and risk of contamination in sensitive food areas.
• Costly Core Replacements: Many newer CIJ systems require replacing the entire print core (pump, filters, ink system) as one unit rather than being able to replace individual components, driving up costs.
• Service Plan Dependence: Keeping machines running often requires expensive OEM service contracts, as proprietary parts (especially the main core) lock you into the manufacturer’s ecosystem.

Print Quality Limitations

CIJ printing is often fine for simple date codes and lot numbers, but modern coding requirements are raising the bar.

• Low Resolution: CIJ printheads typically print at 60–80 DPI, making them a low-resolution technology. This is generally sufficient for basic product date coding, but when higher-resolution graphics or barcodes are required, this technology often cannot meet the necessary quality standards.
• Not GS1 2D Ready: As the industry moves toward GS1 Digital Link and 2D barcodes for traceability, many CIJ systems can’t produce high-density codes reliably, due to the low print resolution of the technology.
• Ink Color Flexibility: CIJ printers are essentially locked to one ink color per printer. Switching colors isn’t practical—in most cases, it’s not even offered—because it requires the printer to be pulled from the line, completely flushed and prepped for another ink. For operations needing multiple colors, the only real solution is to purchase an additional printer dedicated to each color. Printing on dark colored film, pigmented yellow and (especially) white inks are more difficult to run than standard black ink. This can lead to machine modifications and additional maintenance.

The Hidden Costs of CIJ

When you add it all up, the “cheap to run” reputation of CIJ is not always deserved:

In many plants, the true total cost of ownership offsets the deceptively low cost-per-print.

TIJ: A Cleaner, Smarter Alternative for Protein Packaging

Thermal inkjet (TIJ) printing has matured dramatically in the past decade, especially with the range of inks that are available. In many protein packaging applications, it can now outperform legacy CIJ:

Final Thoughts

In a protein packaging plant, printers have to survive cold, wet, and unforgiving conditions. While legacy CIJ printers once met that challenge, the combination of sustainability pressures, traceability requirements, and high maintenance costs is making them less viable.

The modern, more sustainable solution is the German-engineered and built range of thermal inkjet (TIJ) printers from Automated Marking, Inc.

Designed for the most demanding environments (including environmental protection up to IP65), these compact, simple-to-use printers are an ideal replacement for outdated, legacy CIJ printers.

For many companies, the move to thermal inkjet is not just about improving print quality — it’s about creating a cleaner, safer, and more cost-efficient operation.

If your CIJ printer is costing you more in downtime, solvent handling, and service calls than you’d like to admit, it might be time to put TIJ from AMI on your equipment short list.