Dave Savastano, Editor10.01.15
Generally speaking, printing equipment manufacturers have a very good idea of what their customers will need from the inks they use. Still, not many of these companies take the next step and actually develop and manufacture their own inks.
New Milford, CT-based Grafix Equipment is an exception to this. Founded in 1983, Grafix Equipment is focused on digital printing equipment, but many aftermarket inkjet inks are low quality. The company decided that it could make its own high-quality inks, and with that, Leap Inks, a division of Grafix Equipment, was born.
“Serendipity often leads us in interesting and unexpected ways,” said John Gallagher, president of Grafix Equipment. “Grafix Equipment had moved into its headquarters in a larger facility, and one of the tenants was a former chemist at HP and DuPont. As luck would have it, a chance meeting led to discussions on ink cartridges and piqued our curiosity as engineers on how they work.
“That led to more discussions on the ink that was going into the cartridges,” Gallagher added. “Over time it became obvious that many of the remanufactured cartridges that were available to the industry were using substandard inks produced overseas and filled in poor quality cartridges. And so Leap Inks was born to make very high quality inks produced in the USA and priced competitively.
“Currently, Leap Inks is focusing primarily on making premium inks in the U.S. for the direct mail industry,” he said. “We’ve also been making a big splash producing private label inks for some of our larger clients.”
Gallagher said that providing excellent quality, reliability and innovation separates Grafix Equipment and Leap Inks from competitors.
“Innovation is everything to Grafix Equipment and Leap Inks,” he noted. “We are continuously improving and inventing new products for our clients. Our products are recognized worldwide for their rugged durability, state-of-the-art capabilities and revolutionary engineering. We design all of our products to complement our client’s presses and our technology makes it appear as though they were built with the original machinery. Grafix Equipment set the bar with our innovative foil stamping for web-based presses and our incredible, first-of-its-kind hologram registration systems. We’re proud to have three covers featuring our holograms on National Geographic.
“Our strong belief in quality extends to our high quality inks, too,” senior sales manager Dan Wright added. “Our customers find our darks are darker and our colors are much more vibrant. Our inks are expertly made and triple filtered by our on-site chemist here in New Milford. And because there is no middleman to mark up our price, we save our customers about one-third of their ink costs while providing them with a better product.”
As a result, Leap Inks is enjoying strong success in the inkjet space.
“Leap Inks has taken the refillable market by storm, introducing our inks in remanufactured and re-certified cartridges as well as in bulk,” Wright said. “Our Ultra Black Versatile is one of the finest inks we’ve ever tested and our clients agree. Those cartridges fly off our shelves. We make and stock dye, pigmented and hybrid inks and have the ability to make any custom color tailored to your exact specifications.
“Our Ultra Versatile Black prints on just about 90% of all non-UV stock but once in awhile our clients receive that aqueous stock that nothing will stick to, no matter the drier used. We’re introducing a new ink that will print on just about any non-UV substrate you can throw at it.”
Gallagher and Wright are optimistic about the future for Grafix Equipment and Leap Inks.
“Both companies have seen rapid growth in the last year, and Leap Ink will continue to grow with our constant desire to supply our clients with world class products and the most affordable inks produced in the USA today,” Wright concluded.
New Milford, CT-based Grafix Equipment is an exception to this. Founded in 1983, Grafix Equipment is focused on digital printing equipment, but many aftermarket inkjet inks are low quality. The company decided that it could make its own high-quality inks, and with that, Leap Inks, a division of Grafix Equipment, was born.
“Serendipity often leads us in interesting and unexpected ways,” said John Gallagher, president of Grafix Equipment. “Grafix Equipment had moved into its headquarters in a larger facility, and one of the tenants was a former chemist at HP and DuPont. As luck would have it, a chance meeting led to discussions on ink cartridges and piqued our curiosity as engineers on how they work.
“That led to more discussions on the ink that was going into the cartridges,” Gallagher added. “Over time it became obvious that many of the remanufactured cartridges that were available to the industry were using substandard inks produced overseas and filled in poor quality cartridges. And so Leap Inks was born to make very high quality inks produced in the USA and priced competitively.
“Currently, Leap Inks is focusing primarily on making premium inks in the U.S. for the direct mail industry,” he said. “We’ve also been making a big splash producing private label inks for some of our larger clients.”
Gallagher said that providing excellent quality, reliability and innovation separates Grafix Equipment and Leap Inks from competitors.
“Innovation is everything to Grafix Equipment and Leap Inks,” he noted. “We are continuously improving and inventing new products for our clients. Our products are recognized worldwide for their rugged durability, state-of-the-art capabilities and revolutionary engineering. We design all of our products to complement our client’s presses and our technology makes it appear as though they were built with the original machinery. Grafix Equipment set the bar with our innovative foil stamping for web-based presses and our incredible, first-of-its-kind hologram registration systems. We’re proud to have three covers featuring our holograms on National Geographic.
“Our strong belief in quality extends to our high quality inks, too,” senior sales manager Dan Wright added. “Our customers find our darks are darker and our colors are much more vibrant. Our inks are expertly made and triple filtered by our on-site chemist here in New Milford. And because there is no middleman to mark up our price, we save our customers about one-third of their ink costs while providing them with a better product.”
As a result, Leap Inks is enjoying strong success in the inkjet space.
“Leap Inks has taken the refillable market by storm, introducing our inks in remanufactured and re-certified cartridges as well as in bulk,” Wright said. “Our Ultra Black Versatile is one of the finest inks we’ve ever tested and our clients agree. Those cartridges fly off our shelves. We make and stock dye, pigmented and hybrid inks and have the ability to make any custom color tailored to your exact specifications.
“Our Ultra Versatile Black prints on just about 90% of all non-UV stock but once in awhile our clients receive that aqueous stock that nothing will stick to, no matter the drier used. We’re introducing a new ink that will print on just about any non-UV substrate you can throw at it.”
Gallagher and Wright are optimistic about the future for Grafix Equipment and Leap Inks.
“Both companies have seen rapid growth in the last year, and Leap Ink will continue to grow with our constant desire to supply our clients with world class products and the most affordable inks produced in the USA today,” Wright concluded.