Steve Katz, Editor03.09.15
Photo courtesy of Flint Group Narrow Web
Ink World magazine, a sister publication to L&NW, estimates that North American ink industry sales were worth approximately $5 billion in 2014. “Of that, packaging inks accounted for more than $2 billion in value, led by water-based flexo inks,” says David Savastano, editor of Ink World. “Packaging, UV and digital inks are the three main growth areas for ink manufacturers, and are the leading ink technologies in the label and narrow web printing market. As a result, label and narrow web ink sales are growing by more than 5%.”
Complementary industries, the tag & label market as a whole and the narrow web ink market are both growing. Fueling this growth are the ink suppliers, whose continuous R&D efforts advance and enhance the label and packaging market.
Flint Group Narrow Web
“Ink development is a continuous effort to improve value,” states Deanna Klemesrud, Flint Group’s global marketing manager, Packaging and Narrow Web. “The root cause for ink development has many different shapes and forms, but the common denominator of all is to create a value for the user. The purpose can be addressing legislative demands or when raw materials are suddenly no longer available; as a responsive supplier, we need to react quickly to this type of disruptive effect of the chemical industry. Of course, the traditional purpose is to drive the industry further into the future in providing the most innovative solutions.”
Klemesrud stresses the true value of this development is “no change” – but, rather, improved properties or process improvement. “The idea of ‘no change’ is actually quite valuable to printers; consistency and batch to batch reliability are fundamental parameters that are of the greatest value to all converters around the world,” Klemesrud says.
As an example of the above, Flint Group recently introduced CombiWhite C3. Jennifer Joyce, global product director, Narrow Web, explains, “A classification and labeling change led by REACH resulted in Flint Group, as a responsible supplier, deciding we could no longer use N-vinyl caprolactam (NVC, CAS number 2235-00-9), in any of our products. While EuPia have initiated a prolonged substation process until March 2015, we are pleased to announce we are ready with re-fomulation work and have had 15 clients using the new product for well over five months; furthermore, we have not had one single negative report from any of these tests. We are very pleased with the results.”
CombiWhite C3 is designed specifically for combination printing with all narrow web ink technologies and can be used on all types of substrates. “Printers will experience perfect combination print results with virtually any print process, such as UV flexo, UV offset, UV letterpress, UV screen or water-based flexo,” Joyce says.
Other Flint Group developments are more a result of listening to printers’ pain points and trying to do something that will result in improved performance. “Recently we have been working with a few printers who want to run flexible packaging on narrow web presses,” Klemesrud says. “This has resulted in a couple of new ink types that will be introduced to the market during quarter one. All of these inks have been used by selected accounts in a prolonged testing phase to ensure we can iron out all eventual application aspects. This is especially important as we enter the field of flexible packaging; it is just one aspect of value to be good on press and have the right attributes to master and excel in the printing process. But, very often it’s the aspects of application ‘post printing’ that are the crucial parts to get right – such as lamination bond strength, heat-sealing properties, and also migration properties. This is just to name three critical areas of final results we are investigating before we fully launch these new inks.”
www.flintgrp.com
Sun Chemical
Sun Chemical offers a full range of inks, coating, consumables, cleaners and plates of the latest technologies for all printing processes used across the label market. Some highlights of the latest offerings are in the area of opaque white inks. These include UV screen inks allowing for increased production speeds, UV flexo inks with industry leading opacity, such as Solarflex Neutron White, and versatile products such as Solarflex Platinum White that can be run flexo or screen are just a few.
Sun Chemical’s full range of special effect products from the SunInspire portfolio allow converters and brand owners to engage and interact with consumers through labels and packaging. New offerings in the area of printable high brilliance metallics, across nearly all ink technologies, are available and can achieve a foil look or replacement and improve production efficiencies over foil stamping.
A number of new products in the SunCure line of UV coatings and UV adhesives can deliver a range of effects from high gloss to super matte, superior lamination bonds, and also meet the needs of compliance with products for low odor, Benzophenone-free, and even low migration.
Sun Chemical also offers a range of products for recyclable label applications with SunCure UV flexo ink and UV coating packages that pass the standards set by the APR. If low migration is required, Sun Chemical’s offerings in the area of sheetfed (SunPak LMQ), UV flexo (Solaris Max D LO/LE and Solarflex LM), UV offset (SunCure FLM) and coatings and consumables should provide the performance and assurance required.
www.sunchemical.com
INX International Ink Co.
INX International offers the flexo label industry its AquaTech ION series of inks. Part of the AquaTech line is the ION-T Thermal series, used for a wide range of thermal laser printers and represents advancement for thermal label printing. The ION PlusT series, specifically designed for printers using higher line anilox rolls up to 1,500 lines, offers outstanding color strength, high heat resistance and excellent transfer. It also provides, according to INX, superior stability at a wide range of press speeds. It is intended for use on substrates such as thermal label, semi-gloss, EDP and treated foils.
The ION-P Paper series label inks print on most prime label, semi-gloss and EDP substrates, plus an array of pressure sensitive and tag liners. Offering strong performance, vivid color strength and outstanding transparency, INX says these inks exhibit superior press stability for a wide range of press speeds. Also available is ION-Plus P for higher anilox rolls up to 1,500 lines.
The ION Film Glow & Sheen Metallic series prints on most prime label, semi-gloss and EDP substrates, as well as most treated films and foils. INX says it features brilliant colors, superior strength and outstanding stability at different press speeds, in addition to excellent transfer and fast drying capabilities. These inks also sport excellent adhesion to various non-porous substrates.
As a way to ensure problem-free printing, INX recently launched its Troubleshooting Guide App. The app is designed to be an easy-to-use tool to recognize symptoms, determine probable causes and find solutions for many printing applications, including sheetfed; web offset/heatset; UV flexo, litho, hybrid and more. It provides the opportunity to select and save your most common printing problems and share it with someone else. It is available for download at iTunes, Google Play and Microsoft stores.
www.inxinternational.com
Fujifilm
Fujifilm North American Corporation, Graphic Systems Division touts the flexibility of its Supernova White, a high density basecoat white specifically engineered for more flexible UV flexo applications.
The advanced design of Fujifilm Supernova White ink provides the extreme opacity and smooth laydown of a rotary screen white, running at flexo speeds. Supernova White is also designed to be an excellent value for everyday white flexo needs by printing exceptional detail when used with fine line anilox volumes. “With Supernova White ink, Fujifilm has added a new flexible version of our market leading Supernova. It delivers the same great opacity with the ability to crease and fold the print,” says John Kaiser, product marketing manager, Fujifilm North North American Corp., Graphic Systems Division.
Designed to print exceptionally well as a backing white using high volume anilox cell volumes, Kaiser says Supernova is also an exceptional white for printing fine and reverse text when used with smaller anilox roll volumes. Supernova White key features include high density basecoat, outstanding opacity, optimized performance with high volume anilox rolls, exceptional adhesion and fast cure response.
www.fujifilm.com
Environmental Inks
Environmental Inks (EIC), a member of the Siegwerk Group, recently introduced its UV LED printing inks for narrow web shrink sleeve applications. The company’s SAS UV LED ink for the shrink sleeve market has the ability to generate adhesion at higher press speeds – a key advantage for UV printers vying to compete for mid- and longer run jobs. The SAS UV LED porfolio, while dedicated to shrink film printing, is also versatile enough for lamination printing and standard prime labeling applications. The product features fast curing (realized at 750 fpm), heat control for thin gauge film, and low odor. Higher speed whites and dense-curing black are available.
EIC also offers converters FastMatch, the company’s “Color on Demand” color delivery system that utilizes X-Rite Color Master Web Edition software and EIC’s proprietary set of calibrated matching inks. Using advanced algorithms and improved proofing methods, EIC says it has finally found the tools for successful on-demand color-matching. According to EIC, “The proof is in the empirical data we have collected over several years of research. FastMatch delivers color within 2.0 DE 90% of the time regardless of substrate or standard. The advantages of FastMatch go beyond improved efficiency in make-ready time. The electronic data files are housed on a central server that can be accessed through the web by multiple locations within an organization. Sharing standards and hitting targets across intercompany locations has never been easier and more secure. Everyone uses the same data and color files; therefore everyone has the same standards to deliver consistent results.”
www.siegwerk.com
Alden & Ott
Alden & Ott’s G-3 flexo ink system for paper labels uses the latest advances in graphic arts raw materials and eliminates the need for press-side additives. The company says what sets this ink apart is its re-wettability, open time, great color strength and low viscosity.
For metallic effects printing, Alden & Ott’s Meteorite can be overprinted while providing excellent coverage on higher line anilox rolls with doctor blade metering systems. Meteorite is operator-friendly when printing solids, type or screens on various paper substrates or some films and foils. Also, there’s no gassing and foaming issues normally associated with water-based metallics.
Alden & Ott’s UV Flexo ink system is standardized on a 550 line/3.3 bcm anilox roll. Its lower viscosity allows for easier handling, and increased strength levels translate to better print quality. It’s formulated to print on coated and uncoated substrates and eliminates the need for multiple ink systems.
In addition, the company’s Multi-Shrink ink system has been designed specifically to meet the market demands for shorter runs and quick turnaround times. The system is formulated to have great adhesion and scratch on a wide variety of corona treated or top-coated substrates for surface print or shrink sleeve applications.
www.aldenottink.com
