Ink

Many of those attending the upcoming 16th LatinCan Conference in Brazil will likely be getting their first exposure to INX International Ink Co.'s highly successful  EVOLVE Advanced Digital Solutions.  Supporting this popular concept will be a preview of the new TP UV Fusion, the first UV hybrid low migration inks available in the market for 3-piece metal decorating.  The Conference is being held February 16-18 at the Sheraton Resort & Hotel in Rio de Janeiro.

EVOLVE (www.inxevolve.com) was introduced in 2010 to help traditional printers and converters evolve to digital printing with industrial inkjet systems.  Digital technologies such as the CP100 UV cylindrical printer, the new MD1000 UV flatbed printer, and the NW100 narrow web press for short-run digital prototype packaging and production, help expand portfolios by providing new capabilities to develop niche markets.  EVOLVE's wide array of high quality products include customised inks and coating solutions for every type of digital printer and print-head technology, ranging from solvent, UV-curable and UV LED-curable, to aqueous and thermal and oil piezo inks. 

The TP UV Fusion hybrid inks are specifically formulated for indirect food packaging applications that call for low migration and low odour inks.  Conforming to Nestle requirements for packaging inks, these unique inks are environmentally friendly without VOC solvents, are ITX and Benzophenone free and qualify for the Soy Ink Seal.  With exceptional adhesion to a wide variety of base coated metal substrates, UV Fusion has excellent press stability and color balance that is comparable to the best conventional litho inks on the market.

Triangle inks/Josero will be taking one of the most prominent stands at Sign UK this year. The stand will include a complete range of Triangle ink products including spare parts such as print heads, dampers and wiper blades for both wide and superwide printers.

The stand will feature a Mimaki JV33, a Roland SP540V and an HP8000 showing Triangle inks running in both cartridge and bulk feed systems. Triangle inks is one of the fastest growing alternative ink manufacturers in the world. Josero is the sole distributor in the UK and Ireland for Triangle inks. Triangle has an extensive product portfolio which means Josero can supply alternative inks for virtually every model of wide and superwide format printer across the whole spectrum of ink technologies - traditional solvent, Bio and UV curable.

There will be a high profile team on the stand including all the Josero Directors, senior officials from the European Inx Digital team, (Triangle inks is part of world leading ink giant Inx Digital) plus representatives from each of Josero’s extensive UK and Irish dealer network.

Loic Delor, Managing Director of Josero commented, “We found that customers really enjoyed meeting their local dealers last year, therefore we want to ensure we give new customers the same opportunity this year. Even though we had such a large team on the stand in 2010, they were rushed off their feet with enquiries. That is why we have decided to go for a larger stand in a very prominent position this year, and an even bigger team. Come and see us in Hall 17/18 on stand D2 and F2 from 12-14th April and I’m sure you will be very impressed.”

Global Imaging is now offering Panoply Inks.  Panoply inks are alternative inks available for most solvent and UV printers on the market. These inks offer an excellent colour gamut and save users up to 30 percent on their ink costs.

Produced in an American ISO 9001 manufacturing facility for the highest quality and most consistent product output, each Panoply series ink has been formulated to meet the exacting specifications of the most popular wide and grand format solvent and UV printers. These vibrant, durable inks are warranted to last a minimum of two years on qualified media with no coating or lamination required.

"Our goal at Global Imaging is to partner with our customers to help them add profits to their bottom line. We have been pairing our excellent product portfolio with attention to our customers' business strategies to reach this goal since we started back in 1995," said Tara Lamb, president and founder of Global Imaging. "We are fully aware that profits are derived from both business sales growth and low production costs. With the introduction of Panoply Inks, we can continue to build upon our reputation for offering creative, high quality products to help businesses both large and small achieve these their profit goals."

Each Panoply series ink offer users unrivalled quality and cost efficiency. They have been formulated to meet the exacting specifications of the most popular digital grand and wide format printers including Gandinnovations, HP NUR, HP Scitex, Océ, HP, Mimaki, Mutoh, Roland, Seiko, Zünd, and more.

Customers can expect no-mess conversions, convenient sizes and fully compatible chipped cartridges, litre bottles or bulk ink delivery systems.

Faced with continued increases in the costs of raw materials and volatility in the global supply chain, Sun Chemical will increase prices in Latin America on February 1, 2011 as follows:
 
Liquid Packaging Inks:
Solvent Based: Colours 12–18%
Solvent Whites: 15–18%
NC Base: 15–20%
Water Based: 8–10%
 
Print Media Inks:
Sheefted: 5-8%
Coldset: 8-10%
Heatset: 10-12%

Print Media Chemicals:
Fountain Solutions: 8-10%
 
"With crude oil prices exceeding $90 a barrel, tightness of supply and unprecedented increases in key raw materials, this price adjustment is necessary," said Gregory Lawson, President, Sun Chemical Latin America. "Some of the most affected materials are the main components of our inks like nitrocellulose and alcohol, acrylic and polyamide resins, gum rosin and tall oil resins, TiO2, and pigments like blue, and carbazole violet among others. We will continue to invest in quality, service, and innovation assuring our customers are on the leading edge in their respective markets."

In order to help printers and converters understand why their ink prices may be on the rise, the National Association of Printing Ink Manufacturers, Inc. (NAPIM) issued a bulletin that provides insight into the current volatility facing the raw material printing ink market supply chain.

The bulletin, sent to NAPIM's members, reviewed the availability of critical raw materials likely used in the inks that printers' purchase in all of the major printing processes – lithographic, gravure, flexographic and inkjet.
 
Availability, driven by capacity and demand from competing regions and industries, remains the determinant on how much product any one manufacturer can obtain and at what cost. Some of the key raw materials causing price increases include: rosin, acrylic acid, carbon black, titanium dioxide, nitrocellulose, crude oil and natural gas, vegetable oils, and coloured organic pigments.
 
Rosin
Rosin is a major ingredient in resin production. Gum rosin has experienced a nearly threefold increase in price during 2010 and supply remains constrained with very low inventories.  The resins produced from rosin are not only used in offset, flexographic and rotogravure printing inks but are also used in adhesives, road markings and rubber.
 
Acrylic Acid
Numerous production problems around the world and increased demand from other industrial applications have created a taut market that has experienced sales control initiatives from major producers.  The cost pressure and supply constraints are expected to continue through 2011. These dynamics cause significant and on-going challenges in the water-based and UV markets.
 
Carbon Black
Reduction in available capacity has been seen and lead times have increased significantly.  Automotive demand is increasing as well as the demand in several other markets.  Two major carbon black suppliers are for sale.
 
Titanium Dioxide (TiO2)
Suppliers are not taking on new business as supply remains tight and inventory levels are very low.  Global capacity, during the economic downturn, was reduced by 15 percent over the past 18 months and there is no indication that investment will be made to accommodate future growth in the industry.
 
Nitrocellulose
Growing demand coupled with wood pulp production issues and harvest disappointments with cotton linters have created a difficult situation for nitrocellulose in 2010 that is not expected to improve in 2011. China has reduced exports to meet internal requirements and some industrial product will be removed from the supply chain when Maxam closes a facility in 2011. 
 
Crude Oil and Natural Gas
The refining of crude oil and the cracking of natural gas provide many of the precursor chemicals for printing ink raw materials and their intermediates. World oil consumption is expected to grow in China, Brazil and the Middle East which will sustain the regional competition for products and place the supplier in the advantageous position to sell where the profit is best.
 
Vegetable Oils
Vegetable oils, primarily linseed and soybean oil are in a volatile and complex market.  Prices are driven by several factors including: the acres planted, harvest yield per acre, weather, exports, value of the dollar, crude petroleum oil prices, bio-diesel production, and commodity prices. Based on these factors, it is expected that for the first half of 2011 prices will remain high versus last year. 
 
Colored Organic Pigments
Overall pigment capacity has decreased over the last several years and there is no indication that this will change. The pigment intermediate products derived from the refining of crude oil all continue to increase substantially in price and demand from other industries, which create a competitive situation for printing ink applications.
 
2011 Outlook
In 2011, ink manufacturers expect feedstock inflation, tight markets and shortages to continue.  Ink manufacturers will likely see an increase in issues related to nitrocellulose, titanium dioxide, and additives, as well as persistence of the issues in rosin resin and some pigments.  Oil prices are expected to be higher in 2011 and subjected to high volatility with petrochemicals and oil derivatives following.

Throughout the years, Triangle Digital Ink was associated with producing innovative new ink products. Consolidated under the INX Digital International banner in 2009, the TRIANGLE brand continues to thrive today. The newest product to reach the alternative marketplace is PDQ, a multipurpose, high performance mild solvent pigmented ink that is considered ideal for super wide-format colour printing systems.

The PDQ inks offer tremendous colour gamut and great adhesion to multiple vinyl and banner stocks, including PVC-based substrates such as self adhesive vinyl (SAV) and banner prints. Designed for use in high resolution printers that have 32 to 42 picoliter (pl) print heads with a drop volume between 9-25 pls, these 4-colour CMYK inks provide stronger cyans, richer magentas, a jetter black and a true process yellow. Keeping with INX Digital's 10 year tradition of producing kinder products for the environment, PDQ inks are cycloxehanone free. While the company continues with the same quality control regiment that all of its inks are subject to, INX Digital has found more cost competitive pigments which are aligned with shorter ad campaigns and still boast up to one year of outdoor durability.

"This is a very good time to introduce PDQ, especially in the Latin American market," said Alex Garcia, Director of Latin America Business Development for INX Digital International. "These new inks show how our TRIANGLE brand continues to react and adapt to competitive market conditions, yet continues to offer the highest quality in the market. This gives end users one more tool to compete in today's extremely competitive markets. In Latin America, we are just around the corner from a large number of elections which require shorter advertising cycles and very competitive prices."

"PDQ will give printers many different options with TRIANGLE's huge portfolio of products. The pigment particle size is sub micron and the colour is computer controlled to guarantee batch-to-batch consistency," said Karla Witte, vice president of product development for INX Digital International. "These high performance inks work on Spectra, Xaar, and Ricoh print heads, and perform extremely well on PVC type substrates. We have kept the printer in mind and they will appreciate knowing PDQ is cyclohexanone free and with a reduction in odour."