Printing Inks 

Our grateful thanks to EuPIA, the European body for Printing Inks manufacturers, for providing the information below.

Printing inks are tailor-made products developed to meet specific print technology and end user demands. In order to serve those demands, there are more than 1 million individual ink formulations in use in Europe today.

These formulations are applied in all the different printing and/or coating processes; such as flexography, gravure, offset, screen, letterpress, non-impact printing and roller coating, and, depending on the process, they can be solvent-borne, water-borne, oleo-resinous or energy-curing (UV or electron beam) mixtures.

Since one single formulation can never meet all the possible technological and end use requirements - for example an ink that perfectly meets the high demands for printing a newspaper on very high speed presses, will not be suitable for printing on plastic carrier bags - the manufacturers have formulated solutions to almost every known requirement of an ink.

Printing inks are complex mixtures of substances

Printing inks, coatings and varnishes are mixtures manufactured from combinations of colorants (pigments, dyes), binders, solvents and additives.

A broad raw material base is vital for this wide variety of formulations, and this is especially true for the additives, which, although they are used in comparatively small quantities, are essential for the ink to meet its required converting characteristics. It is in this area that lays the specific know-how and intellectual property of individual ink manufacturers.

The raw materials may be single chemical substances, but are most likely to be mixtures of a number of different substances which results in inks typically containing 20 - 60 unique chemical compounds.

Printing inks are not toxic

When correctly used for their intended purpose, printing inks do not place workers or consumers at risk. Toxic raw materials are not used at all, nor are raw materials known to be carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic for reproduction (CMR). This principle is laid down in the EuPIA Exclusion List for Printing Inks and Related Products. It encompasses all types of printing inks for all types of printing processes. Whenever unacceptable human or environmental risks are identified, action is taken by the ink industry, including the voluntary removal or substitution of the hazardous substances, often well before any comparable regulatory initiatives come into effect.

Printing inks for food packaging are formulated so that the converter is able to meet his legal obligations, and this is ensured by a variety of measures including:

The True Value of Printing Inks

Take a look around you. What do you see? A calendar on your office wall. A newspaper on the table. That beautiful wallpaper you spent hours choosing. A carton of fruit juice. The latest novel you’re reading. Magazines, the holiday brochure for next year’s vacation, CDs, DVDs, a chocolate bar, your children’s school books. All the bright, colourful things in life depend on it, and we consume it without even noticing. Ink - the most important medium of communication, education and decoration in our society.

Inks – Deliver Social Value….

But ink and the clear varnishes and coatings that are used to protect printed images have to deal with a huge variety of conditions and requirements. We need ink to print on thousands of different substrates, and it has to withstand extremes of temperatures, humidity and weather conditions, being handled without rubbing off, or deliberately coming off when needed. In some of its more specialist applications ink conducts electricity, changes colour depending on temperature and helps protect against counterfeit and fraud. Nevertheless, the integrity of the printed image must always remain intact, as it is there to serve a purpose. On food packaging for example it displays dietary information, or storage and handling instructions to reduce the chance of wasted produce. In its most serious role, ink educates and informs, updating us on world events and warning us of danger. Ink also helps us to make life choices; which products to buy, what direction to travel in, what message to send our loved ones. In its most dramatic role it colours our lives and enhances a beautiful world for us to live in.

... and Economic Value

With almost 100 printing ink manufacturers, employing more than 14,000 people across 31 different countries in Europe, it’s easy to see why printing ink is not only a vital medium for communication and education, but it is also a key contributor to the European economy.

In Europe, more than 1 million tonnes of ink and coatings, costing €3.5bn are consumed by printers of all kinds of products every year. This equates to 2kg of ink for every man, woman and child in Europe, which, when you consider that is enough ink to print 35 daily newspapers or 24,000 chocolate bar wrappers, is a lot of ink!

But that is just the tip of the economic iceberg. Almost every product we buy in supermarkets or other retail outlets comes in some kind of printed packaging. Estimates put the value of all printed packaging in Europe at over €150bn per year, not to mention the products contained inside. Add to that the revenues generated by other printed material; newspaper and magazine advertising income exceeds €40bn per annum and book sales in Europe exceed €23bn per annum to mention just two, and you soon realise that ink is a vital component of multibillion Euro businesses, directly employing millions of European workers.

For all these reasons, ink and coatings which protect, educate and enhance the lives of every one of us should not be taken for granted, but should be celebrated and enjoyed.

 

Packaging Inks - the most visible industry

The packaging industry bought inks worth well over £200 million. Coatings usage in packaging is of a smaller order being mainly for food, soft drink and beer cans and closures and labels for glass containers.

Some examples give the magnitude of the sector: 600 million paper sacks, for cement, fertilisers and many other products are made each year in the UK and over 80% are printed with essential health, safety and marketing information.

Take printing of breakfast cereals packets: 24 million corn flake packets every year from one firm – Kellogg’s – and that’s only one manufacturer and one of their many products!

Food safety is a paramount issue and the coatings industry plays a vital part. Packaging must keep the right things in, whilst keeping the wrong things out. We use 10 billion metal cans for food and drink each year. Special internal coatings prevent interaction between the metal and the contents thus ensuring the wholesomeness of the food. The labelling and decoration of paper, plastic and glass containers likewise have to take account of safety and protection during handling and use.

Decorative Coatings

Around 50 litres of decorative paints and other coatings are all that is needed to provide the internal decoration and external protection of woodwork, masonry and garden equipment that a new house requires for five or more years.

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Industrial Coatings

An industrial coating is a paint or coating defined by its protective, rather than its aesthetic properties, although it can provide both. The most common use of industrial coatings is for corrosion control of steel or concrete.

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Wallcoverings

Whilst wallcoverings have transformed the walls of our homes for centuries, the continual development of processes & materials as well as the recent digital revolution has provided a unique platform for today’s consumers to create a home tailored to their more specific design and colour requirements using the various tools and imagery available. As a result, wallpaper has never been more diverse or more popular!

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