Sun Chemical Corp.

Package printers want ink options for less, according to the 2004 packagePRINTING Annual Ink Usage Survey. by Kate Sharon PACKAGE PRINTERS WANT one ink supplier with superior products, and plenty of options, at bargain prices, according to the 2004 packagePRINTING Annual Ink Usage Survey. That's not a novel concept, but it's one of many areas where 2004's survey results differed from last year's. Other areas where most of this year's respondents had a different point of view than last year's included the most important ink issues and capabilities, and what specialty inks they employ. With help from industry ink suppliers, packagePRINTING set out

Coating Excellence International produces photo-quality images with water-based inks on W&H flexo presses. COATING EXCELLENCE INTERNATIONAL (CEI, Wrightstown, Wis.) started out in life in 1997 as an extrusion company, focusing on poly-coating and poly-laminating paper substrates using a 105" Egan Davis Standard high-speed extruder. It wasn't long, however, before the company expanded into the printing business, installing a new 8-color Windmoeller & Hoelscher flexographic press in January of 2000. Later that same year, CEI doubled its capacity, adding another 105" Egan extruder, a second Windmoeller & Hoelscher press, and support equipment. The company has continued to expand its facilities, adding two additional Windmoeller &

Print shops welcome cost-saving opportunities by bringing ink technology in-house with the help of suppliers. WHAT'S COOKING IN more of today's in-house ink kitchens are cost-cutting management practices and first-rate capabilities. Many converters can attribute this to special contractual agreements between ink suppliers and print shops. The agreements, many developed more than a decade ago, have helped converters bring inking competency and ink professionals on-site, allowing them to focus on printing during a time when the ability to handle more short-run jobs and fast turnarounds is imperative to stay competitive. From the beginning Ink agreements run the gamut, ranging from complete overhauls of the

No longer the new kids on the block, ultraviolet (UV) and electron beam (EB) technologies are firmly entrenched in the package printing industry. In the last decade, usage of UV/EB curing and inks has continued to grow to the degree that it can no longer be fairly characterized as new. Yet, many converters continue to ignore the benefits of UV/EB for no other reason than doing so would constitute change. packagePRINTING sat down with a few industry experts this month in an attempt to dispel some of the long-held misconceptions against UV/EB curing and inks. Myth: UV/EB materials are unsafe Tony Bean,

These products and companies were the most sought-after in 2002 by packagePRINTING readers. Top 10: Prepress Equipment 1. Creo—PDF-based packaging workflow Prinergy Powerpack, copydot scanning systems, film imagers, and CtP devices 2. Agfa—Workflow and color management systems including the AgfaScan XY-15 Plus, Sherpa 43 Inkjet system, and Lithostar plates 3. Kodak Polychrome Graphics—Offers Digital and conventional plates, film, and proofing and color technologies including the Kodak Approval XP unit 4. BASF—Offers Nyloflex® and Nyloprint® equipment combinations for processing photopolymer flexo and letterpress plates and sleeves 5. MacDermid—Broad range of sheet, liquid, digital, and water-wash photopolymer plates, platemaking equipment, sleeves,

Package printers are looking for as many different ink options as possible, according to this year's ink usage survey. by Sean Riley, Associate Editor If package printers decided one thing last year in terms of ink use, it is that there is no such thing as too many options. More so than in any other year, converters who responded to packagePrinting's annual ink usage survey are looking for more ink options and ink suppliers in an allout effort to create unique applications that jump out at consumers. Last year, 60 percent of respondents said they use a single supplier for all of

WITH WINTER WEATHER firmly in place, warmth is something that is on everyone's mind. Here's something that is sure to add some heat to 2004. packagePrinting has put together a collection of the hot products of 2004. In categories including prepress, presses, press accessories, substrates, and inks/adhesives, converters can get a glimpse of the latest package-printing products. Prepress Creo Creo's HyperFlex™ screening is new technology aiding in the formation of smaller dots on a photopolymer flexo plate. It provides a thicker foundation of photopolymer material that allows a smaller minimum dot size to be formed and held throughout the print process. DuPont

Numbers show that the usage of EB inks and equipment are on the rise. Now suppliers are working to get them in the spotlight. "POINTING TO THE significant operations and 'enabling' benefits of the process, suppliers of ultraviolet (UV) and electron beam (EB) technology are bullish on near-term growth prospects," says the RadTech biennial survey North American Market Update. "Survey respondents, including over 80 industry suppliers and end users, project market growth of six to nine percent each year over the next three years ... and report growth of UV- and EB-formulated product usage up over eight percent during the two-year period 2000

What products and companies were most sought-after in 2001 by packagePRINTING readers? Here's the scoop on the year's most-wanted technologies, ranked below based on responses to both editorial features and display advertising.*** TOP 10: Prepress Equipment 1. Anderson & Vreeland—Photopolymer plate processing systems, rubber plate molding presses, flexo platemaking materials, digital imaging systems and software 2. DuPont Cyrel—Photopolymer plate and prepress systems, including Cyrel FAST thermal technology 3. BASF—Nyloflex® and nyloprint® equipment combinations for processing flexo and letterpress plates and sleeves 4. MacDermid—Sheet, liquid, digital, and water-wash photopolymer plates, platemaking equipment, sleeves, and plate mounting systems for flexo printing 5. CreoScitex—PDF-based packaging

packagePRINTING went straight to its readers to explore trends in specialty, application-specific, and hybrid ink usage. by Kate Tomlinson, Assistant Editor THIS YEAR, packagePRINTING's annual ink survey spread its wings to cover more emerging usage trends. Among the findings: hybrid ink systems, while fairly new to the scene, are beginning to carve a niche for themselves. And, as printers expand their substrate capabilities, the use of application-specific inks is becoming commonplace. In addition, the tried-and-true specialty ink market continues to grow and release new products. Despite online purchasing's growth in many segments, the numbers show package printers are still fairly hesitant about this buying