— Why manufacturers across industries are rethinking labels and packaging as a core capability — not just a convenience —
Today, manufacturers across industries are under pressure to balance compliance, supply chain volatility, and rising consumer expectations while holding down costs. One strategic response: Rethink how your labels and packaging are produced.
From Disruption to Resilience
Recent surveys show nearly three-quarters of manufacturers have experienced significant supply chain disruptions over the past two years. In response, many are investing in flexibility and vertical integration. Labels and packaging are included in this shift.
Outsourced printing, long assumed efficient, is prone to creating bottlenecks. Lead times stretch, compliance updates lag, and obsolete inventory accumulates. By contrast, in-house label printing, once a tactic to employ in small runs or emergencies, is now a strategic move to promote production agility. The lesson is this: Printing your own labels enables packaging and production teams to pivot quickly, without waiting for vendor schedules.
Pharmaceutical companies illustrate the strategy and the benefits of in-house label printing compared to outsourcing. Evolving FDA rules often require mid-cycle label changes. Weeks-long waits for outsourced printed materials can put compliance and launches at risk.
Food and beverage producers face similar challenges as ingredient lists and consumer demands shift faster than outsourced suppliers can respond.
Expanding for Greater Control
As mentioned, traditionally, in-house printing met specific short-run production needs such as seasonal SKUs or specialty items. That’s still true, but its scope has broadened. While savings and reduced waste are part of the story, the deeper value lies in control. Today, in-house label solutions are a strategic response to maintaining production control in a variety of applications across industries.
A specialty coffee roaster, for example, avoided thousands of wasted labels when introducing their seasonal blends by printing on demand. A consumer electronics manufacturer brought corrugated packaging in-house to synchronize launches with unpredictable demand. Both found that the internal control provided by in-house label printing supports innovation and agility as much as cost efficiency.
Moreover, when disruptions strike, in-house capabilities allow packaging managers to align labeling with real-time manufacturing conditions to ensure continuity. During the COVID-19 pandemic, diagnostic labs scaling up test kit production saw this firsthand. Facilities with in-house printing could pivot instantly, producing compliant labels as requirements evolved. Others, reliant on external suppliers facing backlogs, struggled to keep pace.
Even in long-lifecycle industries like automotive, incremental labeling updates using in-house resources can be integrated without disturbing wider supply chains. As one Tier 1 supplier relayed, bringing printing in-house “removed the bottleneck from innovation.”
From Supplement to Strategy
As in-house printing enhances resilience and agility, it supports lean manufacturing by reducing waste. It also lessens dependence on outside vendors and enables teams to respond quickly, even amid labor and supply challenges. Its utilization mirrors other functions moving closer to the production line. The result is consistent: when control shifts from vendors to internal teams, companies gain flexibility and cost efficiency.
Striking the Balance
Outsourcing, of course, will not vanish. For stable, high-volume product lines, external providers remain a fit. But the strategy has shifted. Startups with frequent launches, mid-sized firms adding SKUs, and global enterprises with product lines facing regulatory change all benefit from in-house capabilities.
The future is not about replacing vendors but managing control to maximize business benefit. Outsourcing can handle scale, but in-house systems deliver responsiveness. The critical question for packaging and production leaders is not whether to adopt in-house printing, but how to integrate it into broader operations.
Agility as a Competitive Necessity
In today’s volatile business environment, agility is a competitive necessity. Bringing label printing in-house is no longer just a matter of cost savings or convenience. It is a strategic shift that ensures business resilience, responsiveness, and long-term competitiveness.
See how the strategy plays out in practice — read Part 2: “Why Bring Your Label Printing In-House.”
