Flexo ink market analysis 2

Water based ink

For ink manufacturers, water-based inks in the flexo market are a lucrative market and a potential market worth developing. In the end consumer market, water-based inks are mainly used in printing for paper, paper boxes, corrugated paper, household paper and flexo applications. In cardboard printing, flexo-based inks are increasingly used. In addition, the further development of water-based ink technology has improved the solubility of water-based inks. The study of new surfactants and the use of cleaner solvents have improved the printing effect of ink overprinting. Narrow web rotary printers have been using water-based inks for a long time. Based on the consideration of environmental protection and the health of printing workers, wide web rotary printers have also developed a strong interest in water-based inks. But in the foreseeable future, the web rotary printing market still has the demand for solvent-based inks. At least in our opinion, water-based inks are the ultimate choice for printers who have invested a large sum of money in equipment to comply with the VOC (Organic Volatile Organics, hereinafter the same) regulations. From the perspective of a wide web rotary printing press, a clear trend in wide web rotary film printing is to switch to water-based ink printing. Today's water-based inks can be applied to some substrates, mainly polyester films and laminated films.

Ink manufacturers have turned environmental issues as a driving factor in the production of water-based inks. Water-based inks have obvious advantages in terms of compliance with VOC emissions, environmental safety, health and safety of printing workers, and the reduction of storage and transportation costs as non-combustibles. With the improvement of resin and additive technology, the functional characteristics of water-based ink formulations will have a powerful impact on solvent-based inks and energy-curable inks. The future trend is that thin film printing will increasingly use water-based ink flexo printing instead of solvent-based ink flexo printing. People expect the appearance of better quality water-based thin film printing inks. Although the benefits of water-based inks are environmentally friendly, the success of water-based inks does not mean that solvent-based inks will exit the flexo ink market. The biggest advantage of water-based inks is that VOC volatiles are minimal, but the head of Sun Chemical's R&D team believes that there is no reduction in the use of solvent-based inks for this reason.

According to some people's point of view, many printers still use solvent-based inks for printing, but the use of a certain type of technology makes volatile emissions within the scope of the environmental regulations. The print quality of solvent-based inks remains attractive.

Whether to use solvent-based inks or water-based inks depends on the cost. For some printing companies, the use of water-based inks for environmental reasons increases production costs. Which ink is used in the end depends mainly on the local environmental regulations on VOC emissions. For some printing companies that do not consider handling volatiles, the use of solvent-based inks is a little cheaper.

UV/EB curing ink

UV (ultraviolet) and EB (electron beam) curing technologies are still the direction of the ink industry. Flexographic printing continues to favor radiation curable inks. Of course, UV/EB technology is also the most concern for flexo packers. Narrow web rotary label printers have successfully applied cured inks and gained a competitive position in the printing market. For the rest of the printing market, printers are looking for radiation-curable inks. Needless to say, from a print quality point of view, flexo printing with UV inks is the best printing method among all flexo printing techniques. It is superior to the flexo printing of solvent inks and water-based inks.

Like other printing methods, UV/EB flexo inks also face some obstacles. The UV/EB technology in the packaging and printing market faces several challenges. The biggest obstacle is that UV/EB technology cannot adapt to traditional printing technologies. For example, the use of water-based inks instead of solvent-based inks is relatively easy because it can be switched from solvent-based inks to water-based inks without significant investment or many changes to the printer. In contrast, prior to the adoption of UV/EB technology, printing companies must install curing equipment. Although the price is declining, such equipment is a large investment.

In addition, the cost issue is one of the main reasons for the further development of radiation-curing inks/coatings. Raw materials and equipment are still very expensive. According to experts' estimation, if the cost of UV/EB ink is close to the cost of other types of ink, the development speed of UV/EB ink will be 3 to 4 times the average development speed of other inks.

Although the development of UV/EB coatings in the coating market is very rapid, the development speed of UV/EB inks is still relatively slow, especially in wide web rotary printing applications. There are several reasons for the slow development of UV/EB, including the cost of the equipment and the cost of the ink itself. For some food packaging applications, the smell of UV/EB inks is still a headache. In some large printing markets, UV/EB inks are unlikely to replace water-based inks and solvent-based inks.

The future of flexo printing is bright. This is good news for ink manufacturers. As more and more printers feel the benefits of flexo printing and flexographic technology itself, the market for flexo inks will easily exceed the one billion US dollar mark. Experts pointed out that there are two key trends that continue to promote the development of flexo printing: more and more printing companies provide ten-color printing, which means that after printing by color separation processing can provide high-quality images. Six-color printing is becoming more and more popular, allowing the printing to obtain a wider color reproduction of the color gamut. In addition, the advent of hybrid (compound) presses has brought some printers into the flexo field. Composite printing is used in narrow-web web-fed label printing. Several printing and processing methods are used in the machine. May include water-based ink flexo printing, UV flexo printing, rotary screen printing, text printing, offset printing, gravure printing, hot laminating, cold coating, and bronzing. More and more packaging processors are using the production methods of UV flexo printing, UV rotary screen printing, and hot laminating. Printers now using other printing methods may also incorporate flexographic technology into existing printing methods. There are indications that sheet-fed offset printers are also sticking to flexo printing. No matter how flexographic printing continues to develop, costs will remain a key factor in development. The continuous pressure from printing customers has caused printers and ink manufacturers to work hard to reduce the cost of ink. Therefore, the future will continue to put forward higher requirements for printing methods and ink production management.

According to the survey of the US "Ink World", printing companies and ink manufacturers will continue to merge. In the next few years, more printing companies will turn to flexo printing. As the public’s increasing environmental protection demands and the pursuit of environmental protection work conditions, non-traditional flexographic ink manufacturers will also join the ranks of flexo ink manufacturers.

Source: China Ink Network

Flexo Ink Market Analysis 1

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