Basic Flowchart
January 2000
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Water-based inks remain the overall favorite, but UV-, solvent-, and soy-based inks all retain solid usage niches.
by Susan Friedman
The objective of the third annual packagePRINTING ink usage survey was simple: Take a back-to-basics look at how solvent-based, water-based, UV, and soy-based inks are faring amid package printers' growing number of substrates, specialized and combination printing needs, and environmental concerns.
packagePRINTING asked converters to indicate their ink preferences according to print process and end use. Respondents, speaking from all three major package printing sectors, offered up a blend of selections that illustrate united pockets of need with widely divided issues and applications. Looks like ink suppliers' to-do list will remain on the complex side this year.
Overall, water-based inks came up as the most common choice among respondents, with 67 percent indicating usage. This favorable return mirrored the results of packagePRINTING's first annual ink survey in 1998 (the last time water-based ink usage was measured), in which water-based topped all types, garnering 74 percent usage.
According to David Steele, manager of flexo technology at Kohl & Madden, the key improvements in water-based ink technology that keep printers' gung-ho attitude going strong are grounded in press stability and ease of use, particularly for narrow web. "Our customers are looking to minimize or eliminate the need for press-side adjustments of the inks with respect to color, printability, and viscosity," he adds.
Next up in this year's survey were UV inks, which have found their way onto 48 percent of respondents' presses. Solvent inks weren't far behind with 46 percent usage reported. Finally, soy-based inks netted a 9 percent usage level.
Water-based may have achieved the lion's share of collective usage, but did not come up as the dominant type used with every print process or every package or label end use. In fact, the survey shows that each ink type still dominates a specific niche.
For label printers, water-based inks were most popular with flexographic printing, for which 88 percent reported usage. Ed Dedman, technical marketing manager for Akzo Nobel Inks, offers one reason behind this high percentage. "The strength, or pigment concentration, of water-based flexo inks has increased greatly over the past few years, due to better resin technology and improved manufacturing methods," he comments.
For gravure label printing, solvent-based inks were the top choice, garnering 66 percent usage. Not surprisingly, UV inks were the overwhelming choice for letterpress and screen label printers—with 100 percent opting for UV in each of these processes.
by Susan Friedman
The objective of the third annual packagePRINTING ink usage survey was simple: Take a back-to-basics look at how solvent-based, water-based, UV, and soy-based inks are faring amid package printers' growing number of substrates, specialized and combination printing needs, and environmental concerns.
packagePRINTING asked converters to indicate their ink preferences according to print process and end use. Respondents, speaking from all three major package printing sectors, offered up a blend of selections that illustrate united pockets of need with widely divided issues and applications. Looks like ink suppliers' to-do list will remain on the complex side this year.
Overall, water-based inks came up as the most common choice among respondents, with 67 percent indicating usage. This favorable return mirrored the results of packagePRINTING's first annual ink survey in 1998 (the last time water-based ink usage was measured), in which water-based topped all types, garnering 74 percent usage.
According to David Steele, manager of flexo technology at Kohl & Madden, the key improvements in water-based ink technology that keep printers' gung-ho attitude going strong are grounded in press stability and ease of use, particularly for narrow web. "Our customers are looking to minimize or eliminate the need for press-side adjustments of the inks with respect to color, printability, and viscosity," he adds.
Next up in this year's survey were UV inks, which have found their way onto 48 percent of respondents' presses. Solvent inks weren't far behind with 46 percent usage reported. Finally, soy-based inks netted a 9 percent usage level.
Water-based may have achieved the lion's share of collective usage, but did not come up as the dominant type used with every print process or every package or label end use. In fact, the survey shows that each ink type still dominates a specific niche.
For label printers, water-based inks were most popular with flexographic printing, for which 88 percent reported usage. Ed Dedman, technical marketing manager for Akzo Nobel Inks, offers one reason behind this high percentage. "The strength, or pigment concentration, of water-based flexo inks has increased greatly over the past few years, due to better resin technology and improved manufacturing methods," he comments.
For gravure label printing, solvent-based inks were the top choice, garnering 66 percent usage. Not surprisingly, UV inks were the overwhelming choice for letterpress and screen label printers—with 100 percent opting for UV in each of these processes.
Companies Mentioned:
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Chemistry for the Graphic Arts
What the Printer Should Know About Paper