DIGITAL INKS Jerry Fitch Sensient Imaging Technologies

History Conventional Printing Methods Have Been with us for 100’s of Years Innovation Has Occurred With Relatively Long Implementation Cycle Technology - Efficiency/ Reliability/ Print Quality Improvements Cost of Equipment Retrofit or Replacement Customer Needs Changing Health and Safety Regulations

History Wide-Format Inkjet Has Been With Us For Barely 30 Years. First Commercial Wide-Format Inkjet Printer Early 1990’s by Encad Incredible 5-6 Sq/Ft per Hr, 300 dpi Rapid Innovation Hardware – Printheads and Transports Hardware – Other Technologies Such As Electrophotography Hardware – Finishing Equipment Software – RIPs and Color Management Substrates – Coatings and Base Materials Finishing – Primers, Laminates, Topcoats Inks – Aqueous, Toners, Oil, Solvent, UV, eBeam    Aqueous

Digital print in our lives You Are Exposed To Digital Print Every Day Grand-Format Photography/ Fine Art Billboards and Bus Signage Banners and Flags Fashion, Sports Uniforms and Fanwear In-Store Displays/ Signage Home Décor – Pillows, Curtains, Upholstery, Wallpaper Ceramics Ad Specialties and Premiums Eggs, Cigarette Packaging Labels, Tags Craft Beverages Non-wovens, Textiles, Metals, Ceramics, Glass, Edibles, Bioprinting, Printed Electronics, Etc. And Of Course, Packaging

considerations with digital ink One Ink, No Opportunity To Change/Modify Based On Substrate Varying Chemistries And Fibers(1) Used To Manufacture Face Sheet Virgin, Craft, Bleached, Clay/Resin Coated Each Interact With Ink Differently Environmental/ Regulatory EPA, OSHA Food, Pharma, Cosmetics (FDA, Brand Imposed Restrictions) (1) Beginning to see the use of renewable non wood fiber sources, such as wheat straw.

considerations with digital ink Regulation Of Inks For Food, Pharma, Cosmetics FDA Regulations Are Tough To Negotiate EU Is In Flux, But Most Follow Swiss Ordinance Nestle Follows Swiss Ordinance, But With Added Restrictions Primary Package - Indirect Food Contact Rules Apply No Migration Of Packaging Components And Chemistry Secondary Packaging – No Regulation, Though Some Brands Try To Control For Shelf/ Aisle Ready Displays

considerations with digital ink Cost In Use Inkjet Is More Expensive Than Conventional Printing Inkjet Is Less Expensive Than Running Analog Short Runs Inkjet Is Not Intended To Replace Analog For High Volume Print Runs Inkjet Is A New Capability That Allows More Cost Effective And Efficient Printing Of Shorter Runs

Digital Ink for Corrugated Focus On 4 Color Printing For Regulated Markets Non-Contact Printing Method - Inkjet Solvent Ink UV Inks Electron Beam Inks Aqueous Inks Uses For Corrugated, Benefits, Challenges

Digital Ink for Corrugated Solvent Inks Not Relevant To 4 Color Process Printing Environmental and Regulatory Issues No Current Hardware Development Used Extensively For Coding And Marking Fast Drying There Are FDA Compliant Options For Primary Packaging

Digital Ink for Corrugated UV Inks Came To Market At Drupa 2000, Introduced By Inca Roughly 30 Years After It was First Available for Analog Printing Most Widely Used Grand-Format/ Industrial Inkjet Inks For Decoration Today Has Been Used For Years For Very Low Volume – Prototyping And POP Fastest/ Easiest Way For Digital Printer OEMs To Enter Packaging With High Speed Options Generally A Good Ink, But Can be Challenging Ink That Is Absorbed Into The Substrate Will Not Cure Can Be Corrected With A Primer Mottling On Some Paper Surfaces Ink Film Thickness of 14-15 Micron VS Analog Of 4 Microns Slow Down To Insure Good Through Cure Wrong Tactile Effect For Some Applications – Can Feel A Bit Like Braille Migration Concerns – Ink is Thin In Viscosity And Component Molecule Size Is Small EU Is Strengthening EHS Warnings, Primarily Photoinitiators, But Other Chemistry Is Being Evaluated

Digital Ink for Corrugated Electron Beam Options For Analog Printing Around 1980 Development For Digital Printing Began In Earnest 6-7 Years Ago - Few Commercially Available Solutions Benefits eBeam Fixes A Lot Of The Shortcomings Of UV Eliminates Photoinitiators – Odor And Some Health Risks Better/ Faster Through Cure – Ink Absorbed Into The Substrate Can Be Cured Not Affected By Ink Film Thickness Challenges Cost Of Entry (Equipment) Is High Requires A Higher Level Of Operator Training / Attention To Detail Ink Film Thickness Of 14-15 Micron VS Analog Of 4 Microns Wrong Tactile Effect For Some Applications – Can Feel A Bit Like Braille Migration Concerns – Ink Is Thin In Viscosity And Component Molecule Size Is Small

Digital Ink for Corrugated Aqueous Inks Water-Based Inks Have Been With Us From The Beginning Of Wide Format Inkjet Currently The Hot Topic With Users, OEMs, Hardware Integrators Replace Electrophotography – Reduce Cost In Use Replace UV – Eliminate EHS And Regulatory Concerns Not As Complicated As Some Other Ink Solutions Benefits Good Ink Film Thickness – 3-4 Microns Ink Is Flexible, Stretches with Substrate Reduce/ Eliminate EHS And Regulatory Concerns Challenges Printer Confirguration Surface Prep and Drying Typically Based On Traditional Aqueous Chemistry

Digital Ink for Corrugated So, Does The Perfect Digital Ink Exist? UV and eBeam Continue To Develop Chemistry Continues To Improve A Number Of Hardware Solutions Currently Available Nagging Concerns With Future Regulatory, EHS And Brand RSL Aqueous Best Cost In Use Model Of Available Options Good Performance Charactoristics – Folding, stretching, adhesion Reduce/ Eliminate EHS And Regulatory Concerns

Digital Ink for Corrugated So, Does The Perfect Digital Ink Exist? UV and eBeam Continue To Develop Chemistry Continues To Improve A Number Of Hardware Solutions Currently Available Nagging Concerns With Future Regulatory, EHS And Brand RSL Aqueous Best Cost In Use Model Of Available Options Good Performance Charactoristics – Folding, stretching, adhesion Reduce/ Eliminate EHS And Regulatory Concerns Sensient SX WaterBased Ink Revolutionary Formulation Developed From the Pigment Dispersion Up Excellent Adhesion to a Wide Variety Of Substrates Ink Sets On Surface And Eliminates Gloss/Color Variations With Difficult Substrates Swiss Ordinance And Nestle Compliant

Thank You Jerry Fitch Sensient Imaging Technologies Jerry.Fitch@Sensient.com +1 (224) 434-9067 (m)