David Savastano, Editor05.11.18
From waxes and surfactants and dispersants to rheology modifiers, dispersants and many others, additives play a major role in ink formulations. Depending on the type of additive, the finished ink will have a wide range of properties.
It is also a sizable market: In its third Global Coating & Ink Additives study, released last year, Kusumgar, Nerlfi & Growney estimated the global consumption of the five leading additives (dispersants, rheology modifiers, foam control, slip/rub and wetting agents) in coatings and inks at $5 billion in annual sales, with coatings taking 92% of additive volume and ink the remainder.
Kusumgar, Nerlfi & Growney reported that rheology modifiers are the leading additive type with 38% of the volume and 36% of the dollar value, followed by dispersants at 20% of volume and 18% of sales. Foam control additives were third with 17% of the volume and value; slip/rub materials are 12% of the volume and 15% of sales; and wetting agents are 12% of the pounds and 13% of dollars.
On the wax side, Allied Market Research (AMR) issued a report, “Wax Market by Type, and Application: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2017-2023,” which placed the sales value of the global wax market at $9.3 billion in 2016. AMR estimates a CAGR of 3.4% through 2023, with sales growing to $11.8 billion by 2023.
“High adoption rate of waxes in packaging applications and their superior properties such as heat and water resistance make them suitable for use in hot melts, emulsions, and candles, which act as the major drivers of the global wax market,” AMR’s analysts noted.
Breaking the wax market down further, MarketsandMarkets believes the polyethylene wax market will be worth $1.32 billion by 2022.
According to its report, “Polyethylene Wax Market by Process (Polymerization, Modification, Thermal Cracking), Type (LDPE, HDPE, Oxidized, Micronized), Application (Plastic Processing, Hot-melt Adhesive, and Ink & Coating), and Region - Global Forecast to 2022,” MarketsandMarkets set the polyethylene wax market at $1.08 billion in sales in 2017, and predicts the market will grow to $1.32 billion by 2022.
“Based on process, polymerization is expected to be the largest segment of the market, in terms of volume, during the forecast period,” MarketsandMarkets analysts reported. “The polymerization process segment accounted for the largest share in terms of volume in 2016, of the polyethylene wax market. It is produced by the high-pressure polymerization of ethylene. HDPE and LDPE are obtained through this process. These waxes are generally used as a lubricant for PVC processing, a modifier in hot-melt adhesives, and as an additive in the water-based emulsion to improve slip, rub, and scratch resistance.”
The Waxes and Additives Market
Major suppliers of waxes and additives reported that they had solid years in 2017, although there are challenges ahead.
“Additives continue to grow in step with the general economies of the different regions,” said Joon Choo, VP of Shamrock Technologies. “Graphic arts however dipped a bit towards the second half of the year, and continue to show signs of weakness.”
“Quite a few of our customers from the graphic arts industry were facing problems with their supply chain and approached us with higher demands,” Dave Grabacki, president of Keim Additec Surface USA, said. “We were able to meet those increased demands. Overall, we see the graphic arts industry to be stable.”
Jerry Trauth, product manager wax, additives/ink applications, Kustom Group, said that Kustom Group experienced modest growth in 2017, adding that the trend continues to be up and down order patterns, with a strong month followed by a weak one.
“Our wax and additives line showed strong growth in the graphic arts market triggered by new products for energy cure, regulatory compliance such as Nestle and low odor applications. Sales of UV photoinitiator blends have also been strong,” Trauth added.
Raw Materials
As is the case throughout the supply chain, raw materials are a major concern this year, and suppliers throughout the industry reported their own concerns.
“Our raw material costs continue to increase across the board, at a lower rate on the commodity side, and at a higher rate on the specialty polymers,” Choo said. “China’s focus on improving SH&E conditions resulted in some customer and supplier plants having to shut down or relocate, which have led to interruptions in the flow and demand of materials. Customers have been supportive and cooperative as we increase our transparency on the blips in the supply chain.”
Grabacki reported that the past year was mainly influenced by raw material shortages and availability.
“Based on this, we faced two main challenges: price increases and long delays in deliveries,” Grabacki added. “Thanks to our considerable investment in the backwards integration of our wax raw materials, we were able to fulfill our customer needs in spite of our double-digit growth in 2017. We won new customers and expanded offerings to existing customers with our ability to assure them of consistent, high-quality supply.”
Trauth said that cost and supply of key raw materials remain a concern.
“It continues to be challenging with sizable raw material increases and shortages affecting several of our product lines,” said Trauth. “Although there continue to be shortages and availability issue with many common photoinitiators, we were able to help several customers out by offering our photoinitiator blends in place of their current products that they were having trouble sourcing.”
Bob Ruckle, global marketing and sales manager, Siltech Corporation, reported that prices for silicone raw materials are increasing due to supply/demand balance.
“We have largely passed on the cost increases with honest explanations,” added Ruckle. “We have contracted supply for our needs and have also been able to secure spot supply from Chinese manufacturers for additional needs. This new supply chain will probably restore balance in the near future.”
New Opportunities, Challenges in Packaging Inks
The packaging ink market is a growth area for ink manufacturers. It is also a segment that is facing increasing regulations, and additives manufacturers are working closely with their ink customers to meet these needs.
Trauth said that differentiating the various requirements like low odor, low migration, Nestle or Swiss compliance, FDA and Prop 65 labeling are a challenge.
“Confirming compliance and staying updated with suppliers for the various raw materials also presents a big challenge,” Trauth noted. “Gathering this information is very time consuming, but must be done. Fortunately, Kustom has been diligently working with our suppliers and customers on these issues for many years. The challenge is not only to supply compliant products, but as important, these products modified for compliance must perform the same. We are continuously working to ensure that our customer communications concerning SDSs, compliance, and specific labeling requirements are regularly reviewed and in line with current standards.”
“On a case by case basis, we review our specific wax and polymers used for the slip and rub benefits with respect to the molecular weights and dosage levels required to achieve the target performance,” Choo observed.
“From the very early beginning, the keimgroup focused on the production of environmentally friendly ink and coatings additives, typically with relatively low amount of emulsifiers,” noted Grabacki. “As importantly, we kept ahead of all the various food contact regulations to fulfill the needs of customers globally - especially our amine-free additives together with high FDA status are of big interest.”
New Waxes and Additives
To meet the needs of the ink industry, waxes and additives manufacturers are continuously launching new products. Trauth reported that Kustom Group is launching revamped photoinitiator blends for UV, LED, H-UV, and Nestle Compliance; energy cure wax blends, gelled monomers, and adhesion promotors; and oil-base low odor and compliant wax compounds.
“We recently introduced additives to impart non-skid (higher CoF) effect while retaining its rub and mar properties,” Choo said.
“CeraSPERSE 87NS is a new modified wax compound capable of increasing the slide angle for oil and UV varnishes without a loss in gloss or clarity. NonSKID 8001 is a micronized polypropylene with controlled CoF and enhanced mar resistance. Both are used in packaging inks and coatings as well as for floor coatings.”
“keim additec surface offers the cost efficient ULTRALUBE MDD-48, an aqueous wax additive based on a special wax compound for strong rub resistance without significantly decreasing the degree of gloss in water-based inks,” said Grabacki. “SILCONA offers a range of silicone-free and silicone-based additives. SILCO GLIDE T-52, our newest development, is an ultra-high molecular weight silicone based dispersion providing rub/scratch resistance and slip complying with Swiss Ordinance (SR 817.023.21 Annex 10) due to lowest content of potentially migrating ingredients. CERONAS offers a wide range of micronized mju:wax to improve rub resistance. New mju:wax 2002 FN, for use in solvent-based inks, exhibits very good powder flow properties to ensure accelerated feeding during ink production. mju:wax 1310 K is a new cost efficient PTFE-containing PE-wax compound providing high efficiency.”
Expectations for the Coming Year
As 2018 continues, waxes and additives manufacturers see some opportunities and challenges ahead. Choo anticipates that 2018 will likely be a challenging year with respect to supply and price stability for some raw materials, while Ruckle sees continued growth along with supply concerns.
“We are optimistic about 2018 and have had a solid start to the year thus far,” Trauth noted. “We expect our specialty coatings with tactile and visual attributes for packaging printing to continue to grow. Lastly, we will continue to focus on finding untapped market opportunities, and ensuring that we are suppling our customers with the products, service, and quality they need.”
“Due to the global raw materials challenges, our customers relied very heavily on us in 2017, and we responded quite handsomely,” Grabacki said. “Our ability to provide seamless supply, along with our technical prowess, were commercially recognized by many new and existing customers. It is our hope to keep these gained volumes globally. We are quite optimistic regarding 2018.”
It is also a sizable market: In its third Global Coating & Ink Additives study, released last year, Kusumgar, Nerlfi & Growney estimated the global consumption of the five leading additives (dispersants, rheology modifiers, foam control, slip/rub and wetting agents) in coatings and inks at $5 billion in annual sales, with coatings taking 92% of additive volume and ink the remainder.
Kusumgar, Nerlfi & Growney reported that rheology modifiers are the leading additive type with 38% of the volume and 36% of the dollar value, followed by dispersants at 20% of volume and 18% of sales. Foam control additives were third with 17% of the volume and value; slip/rub materials are 12% of the volume and 15% of sales; and wetting agents are 12% of the pounds and 13% of dollars.
On the wax side, Allied Market Research (AMR) issued a report, “Wax Market by Type, and Application: Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2017-2023,” which placed the sales value of the global wax market at $9.3 billion in 2016. AMR estimates a CAGR of 3.4% through 2023, with sales growing to $11.8 billion by 2023.
“High adoption rate of waxes in packaging applications and their superior properties such as heat and water resistance make them suitable for use in hot melts, emulsions, and candles, which act as the major drivers of the global wax market,” AMR’s analysts noted.
Breaking the wax market down further, MarketsandMarkets believes the polyethylene wax market will be worth $1.32 billion by 2022.
According to its report, “Polyethylene Wax Market by Process (Polymerization, Modification, Thermal Cracking), Type (LDPE, HDPE, Oxidized, Micronized), Application (Plastic Processing, Hot-melt Adhesive, and Ink & Coating), and Region - Global Forecast to 2022,” MarketsandMarkets set the polyethylene wax market at $1.08 billion in sales in 2017, and predicts the market will grow to $1.32 billion by 2022.
“Based on process, polymerization is expected to be the largest segment of the market, in terms of volume, during the forecast period,” MarketsandMarkets analysts reported. “The polymerization process segment accounted for the largest share in terms of volume in 2016, of the polyethylene wax market. It is produced by the high-pressure polymerization of ethylene. HDPE and LDPE are obtained through this process. These waxes are generally used as a lubricant for PVC processing, a modifier in hot-melt adhesives, and as an additive in the water-based emulsion to improve slip, rub, and scratch resistance.”
The Waxes and Additives Market
Major suppliers of waxes and additives reported that they had solid years in 2017, although there are challenges ahead.
“Additives continue to grow in step with the general economies of the different regions,” said Joon Choo, VP of Shamrock Technologies. “Graphic arts however dipped a bit towards the second half of the year, and continue to show signs of weakness.”
“Quite a few of our customers from the graphic arts industry were facing problems with their supply chain and approached us with higher demands,” Dave Grabacki, president of Keim Additec Surface USA, said. “We were able to meet those increased demands. Overall, we see the graphic arts industry to be stable.”
Jerry Trauth, product manager wax, additives/ink applications, Kustom Group, said that Kustom Group experienced modest growth in 2017, adding that the trend continues to be up and down order patterns, with a strong month followed by a weak one.
“Our wax and additives line showed strong growth in the graphic arts market triggered by new products for energy cure, regulatory compliance such as Nestle and low odor applications. Sales of UV photoinitiator blends have also been strong,” Trauth added.
Raw Materials
As is the case throughout the supply chain, raw materials are a major concern this year, and suppliers throughout the industry reported their own concerns.
“Our raw material costs continue to increase across the board, at a lower rate on the commodity side, and at a higher rate on the specialty polymers,” Choo said. “China’s focus on improving SH&E conditions resulted in some customer and supplier plants having to shut down or relocate, which have led to interruptions in the flow and demand of materials. Customers have been supportive and cooperative as we increase our transparency on the blips in the supply chain.”
Grabacki reported that the past year was mainly influenced by raw material shortages and availability.
“Based on this, we faced two main challenges: price increases and long delays in deliveries,” Grabacki added. “Thanks to our considerable investment in the backwards integration of our wax raw materials, we were able to fulfill our customer needs in spite of our double-digit growth in 2017. We won new customers and expanded offerings to existing customers with our ability to assure them of consistent, high-quality supply.”
Trauth said that cost and supply of key raw materials remain a concern.
“It continues to be challenging with sizable raw material increases and shortages affecting several of our product lines,” said Trauth. “Although there continue to be shortages and availability issue with many common photoinitiators, we were able to help several customers out by offering our photoinitiator blends in place of their current products that they were having trouble sourcing.”
Bob Ruckle, global marketing and sales manager, Siltech Corporation, reported that prices for silicone raw materials are increasing due to supply/demand balance.
“We have largely passed on the cost increases with honest explanations,” added Ruckle. “We have contracted supply for our needs and have also been able to secure spot supply from Chinese manufacturers for additional needs. This new supply chain will probably restore balance in the near future.”
New Opportunities, Challenges in Packaging Inks
The packaging ink market is a growth area for ink manufacturers. It is also a segment that is facing increasing regulations, and additives manufacturers are working closely with their ink customers to meet these needs.
Trauth said that differentiating the various requirements like low odor, low migration, Nestle or Swiss compliance, FDA and Prop 65 labeling are a challenge.
“Confirming compliance and staying updated with suppliers for the various raw materials also presents a big challenge,” Trauth noted. “Gathering this information is very time consuming, but must be done. Fortunately, Kustom has been diligently working with our suppliers and customers on these issues for many years. The challenge is not only to supply compliant products, but as important, these products modified for compliance must perform the same. We are continuously working to ensure that our customer communications concerning SDSs, compliance, and specific labeling requirements are regularly reviewed and in line with current standards.”
“On a case by case basis, we review our specific wax and polymers used for the slip and rub benefits with respect to the molecular weights and dosage levels required to achieve the target performance,” Choo observed.
“From the very early beginning, the keimgroup focused on the production of environmentally friendly ink and coatings additives, typically with relatively low amount of emulsifiers,” noted Grabacki. “As importantly, we kept ahead of all the various food contact regulations to fulfill the needs of customers globally - especially our amine-free additives together with high FDA status are of big interest.”
New Waxes and Additives
To meet the needs of the ink industry, waxes and additives manufacturers are continuously launching new products. Trauth reported that Kustom Group is launching revamped photoinitiator blends for UV, LED, H-UV, and Nestle Compliance; energy cure wax blends, gelled monomers, and adhesion promotors; and oil-base low odor and compliant wax compounds.
“We recently introduced additives to impart non-skid (higher CoF) effect while retaining its rub and mar properties,” Choo said.
“CeraSPERSE 87NS is a new modified wax compound capable of increasing the slide angle for oil and UV varnishes without a loss in gloss or clarity. NonSKID 8001 is a micronized polypropylene with controlled CoF and enhanced mar resistance. Both are used in packaging inks and coatings as well as for floor coatings.”
“keim additec surface offers the cost efficient ULTRALUBE MDD-48, an aqueous wax additive based on a special wax compound for strong rub resistance without significantly decreasing the degree of gloss in water-based inks,” said Grabacki. “SILCONA offers a range of silicone-free and silicone-based additives. SILCO GLIDE T-52, our newest development, is an ultra-high molecular weight silicone based dispersion providing rub/scratch resistance and slip complying with Swiss Ordinance (SR 817.023.21 Annex 10) due to lowest content of potentially migrating ingredients. CERONAS offers a wide range of micronized mju:wax to improve rub resistance. New mju:wax 2002 FN, for use in solvent-based inks, exhibits very good powder flow properties to ensure accelerated feeding during ink production. mju:wax 1310 K is a new cost efficient PTFE-containing PE-wax compound providing high efficiency.”
Expectations for the Coming Year
As 2018 continues, waxes and additives manufacturers see some opportunities and challenges ahead. Choo anticipates that 2018 will likely be a challenging year with respect to supply and price stability for some raw materials, while Ruckle sees continued growth along with supply concerns.
“We are optimistic about 2018 and have had a solid start to the year thus far,” Trauth noted. “We expect our specialty coatings with tactile and visual attributes for packaging printing to continue to grow. Lastly, we will continue to focus on finding untapped market opportunities, and ensuring that we are suppling our customers with the products, service, and quality they need.”
“Due to the global raw materials challenges, our customers relied very heavily on us in 2017, and we responded quite handsomely,” Grabacki said. “Our ability to provide seamless supply, along with our technical prowess, were commercially recognized by many new and existing customers. It is our hope to keep these gained volumes globally. We are quite optimistic regarding 2018.”