What drives cost per label on short runs?
Short answer
On short runs, preparing the job weighs more than printing it: plates, make-ready, start-up waste and version changes. A digital press with no plates and no click charge cuts that fixed part, leaving cost in ink, substrate and machine time.
Fixed cost per job
In conventional printing every new job needs plates or tooling, register and color make-ready, and substrate lost while the press settles. That cost is spread over the run: the fewer the labels, the more each one costs.
Variable cost per label
It is what each label consumes: ink, substrate, energy, and machine and operator time. In digital it also includes primer or varnish when used.
Versions and variable data
When an order has many versions (flavors, languages, lots), each change repeats make-ready in conventional printing. In digital the change comes from the file, so versions add almost no cost.
How to compare
Run the numbers on your real orders: run length, number of versions, substrates and finishes. Ask Printum for an assessment with your data and a print test; the technical assessment is free.