Robert Kohl, CEO of The Grey Elephant (right) discusses advances in smarter tooling management with Jan De Roeck of Esko at the Esko World event in New Orleans
The Grey Elephant has hailed its participation at the recent Esko World event a major success, after three days of productive discussions with global packaging professionals highlighting growing industry demand for better management of printing tools, greater visibility of production assets and improved reuse of existing tooling.
As a presenting partner at this year’s event, held in June, The Grey Elephant joined more than 500 attendees from across the packaging value chain in New Orleans, engaging with converters, printers, tradeshops, brand representatives and workflow specialists exploring the latest innovations shaping the future of packaging production.
“Throughout the event, we demonstrated how our latest software solutions are helping packaging businesses gain complete visibility of their printing tools, identify opportunities to reuse existing assets and make better-informed production decisions,” said Robert Kohl, CEO of The Grey Elephant. “This ultimately helps them to improve tooling management and informs smarter operational decisions.”
The company used the global platform to showcase its flagship solutions, Brain4Tools and Track&Trace4Tools, which provide packaging converters and printers with a complete overview of their tooling assets while helping eliminate unnecessary duplication and improve operational efficiency.
“Track&Trace4Tools enables businesses to digitally manage flexo plates, dies, cylinders and other critical production components throughout their lifecycle, providing real-time visibility of tool location, usage history and maintenance requirements,” he said. “Meanwhile, Brain4Tools identifies common printing tools across multiple jobs, helping businesses maximize reuse of existing assets, reduce unnecessary plate production and minimize press changeovers.”
Robert said the conversations taking place throughout Esko World reflected a wider industry focus on connected workflows, automation and making better use of existing production assets. “One of the biggest discussion points across the three days was how printers and converters can get more value from the tooling they already own,” he said. “Visitors immediately recognized the benefits of being able to identify common printing tools across jobs, understand exactly where those tools are, how often they are being used and whether existing assets can be reused before new ones are produced. Those are practical improvements that reduce costs, shorten set-up times and help eliminate unnecessary waste.”
He said the event’s central themes of connected workflows and smarter packaging production perfectly complemented The Grey Elephant’s own mission of helping printers make better use of one of their most valuable production assets, namely their printing tools. “Digital workflows don’t stop with artwork,” he said. “Once production begins, businesses also need complete visibility of their flexo plates, cylinders, dies and other tooling. By helping customers find common tools across jobs, manage those assets digitally and capture reliable production data automatically, we’re helping them improve efficiency every single day.”
Attendees visiting The Grey Elephant throughout the event were particularly interested in how Brain4Tools automatically identifies common plates across multiple jobs, allowing converters to reuse existing tooling instead of creating duplicate plates, while Track&Trace4Tools provides complete visibility of every flexo plate, die and cylinder throughout its lifecycle. “Together, the solutions help eliminate manual searching, improve asset utilization and ensure production teams always know what tooling is available and where it is located,” said Robert.
The company also highlighted its ongoing collaboration with CarbonQuota, demonstrating how tooling and production data can be combined with carbon measurement technologies to provide a clearer understanding of the environmental impact of different production scenarios. “By connecting operational data with sustainability insights, packaging businesses can evaluate alternative production configurations, reduce emissions and make more informed decisions that benefit both business performance and environmental objectives,” he said.
“The Grey Elephant being a part of Esko World provided us an opportunity to meet with existing customers, strengthen industry partnerships and explore new opportunities for collaboration across the packaging sector,” said Robert. “The event continues to bring together some of the most innovative minds in packaging, creating an environment where ideas, expertise and practical experience can be shared openly. It was an excellent opportunity for us to show how better tooling management can have a direct impact on productivity, cost and sustainability, while also learning more about the challenges our customers are facing.
“Our discussions confirmed that printers are looking for practical ways to improve productivity rather than simply adding more software,” said Robert. “By helping customers find common printing tools, manage those tools throughout their lifecycle and collect reliable production data, we enable them to reduce unnecessary plate production, minimise changeovers, increase press uptime and make better-informed production decisions,” he said. “It is here that The Grey Elephant delivers real value.”
Following the successful conclusion of Esko World 2026, The Grey Elephant will continue working with packaging businesses worldwide to help improve tooling visibility, maximize asset reuse and support more efficient and sustainable production through smarter management of printing tools.
For more information about The Grey Elephant and its tool management solutions, visit www.the-grey-elephant.com