David Savastano, Editor01.21.20
Thermal transfer printing is ideal for markets requiring durability from heat, from printing barcodes to ID labels. Headquartered in Nantes, France, ARMOR is among the key players in the field, having been in the office printing space for nearly 100 years.
Meanwhile, ARMOR USA is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
Among its seven business units, ARMOR’s Industrial Coding and Printing Division houses its thermal transfer ribbon business, while ARMOR Industrial Inks produces inks and toners for industrial decorative printing on glass, wooden flooring, wooden furniture and large-scale textiles. The company also has developed organic photovoltaics for films as well as current collectors for batteries.
Olivier Moreau, product manager Americas for ARMOR USA, said ARMOR’s expertise in developing inks for thermal transfer ribbons has paved the way for new markets.
“Eighty percent of our sales are for thermal transfer ribbons, where we are the world leader,” Moreau said. “From our know-how on thermal transfer ribbons, we developed a great knowledge of ink and chemical solutions.”
ARMOR’s thermal transfer inks are made and coated on film in France, and either converted in rolls for the European market or export on films to the company’s subsidiaries worldwide. ARMOR’s production site in Poland produces its inkjet inks.
The company is noted for its inkanto ribbons, which Moreau noted is the first branded thermal transfer ribbon and also offers a lifetime guarantee and SolFree ribbons without solvents.
“Our global presence, organization and consistency in our thermal transfer ribbons is something our competitors don’t have,” he said. “We have a high focus on innovation in all of our business units. We invest 4% of our revenues from thermal transfer into R&D, and we now have as many engineers in ink chemistry as we do in our production process.
“We are also trying to innovate in our formulations to reduce our footprint in the environment,” Moreau noted. “We adhere to the REACH regulations and make products that use only approved components. We have reduced our solvent consumption by about 15% even though we are growing by 10%. We have launched a new ribbon for textiles that prints on care labels that are the only ink that is Oeko Tex certified. It is the only ribbon that can be in contact with baby’s skin.”
ARMOR USA’s operations are growing with the company; the company has 90 employees, and its sales volume has increased by 170% since 2011.
“ARMOR USA started with eight people and 11,000 square feet and has grown to 81,000 square feet,” said Scott Morgan, North American technical sales manager. An expansion is planned for 2020, which will bring the total square footage to more than 100,000 square feet.
“In parallel with automation, our expansion in the Americas has been impressive,” added Randy Culman, VP of finance and administration. “ARMOR has opened production facilities in Brazil (2007), Mexico (2014), Canada (2017) and Colombia (2018). All of these were projects led by ARMOR USA administrative and operational personnel.”
Moreau said that ARMOR continues to grow in all of its markets.
“We expect to grow even further,” he said. “Today we have about 30% market share. We are investing in the thermal transfer ribbon market, and some of our competitors are getting away from thermal transfer ribbons. We believe we have the highest quality products and the highest focus on social responsibility and sustainability.”
ARMOR USA
2900 Earhart Court
Hebron, KY 41048
Tel: (859) 689-2100
Fax.: 000-000-0000
E-Mail: armor-usa@armor-group.com
www.inkanto.com/armor-usa
Specialties: Thermal transfer ribbon ink, inkjet inks for industrial decorative printing on glass, wooden flooring, wooden furniture and large-scale textiles.
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Meanwhile, ARMOR USA is celebrating its 20th anniversary.
Among its seven business units, ARMOR’s Industrial Coding and Printing Division houses its thermal transfer ribbon business, while ARMOR Industrial Inks produces inks and toners for industrial decorative printing on glass, wooden flooring, wooden furniture and large-scale textiles. The company also has developed organic photovoltaics for films as well as current collectors for batteries.
Olivier Moreau, product manager Americas for ARMOR USA, said ARMOR’s expertise in developing inks for thermal transfer ribbons has paved the way for new markets.
“Eighty percent of our sales are for thermal transfer ribbons, where we are the world leader,” Moreau said. “From our know-how on thermal transfer ribbons, we developed a great knowledge of ink and chemical solutions.”
ARMOR’s thermal transfer inks are made and coated on film in France, and either converted in rolls for the European market or export on films to the company’s subsidiaries worldwide. ARMOR’s production site in Poland produces its inkjet inks.
The company is noted for its inkanto ribbons, which Moreau noted is the first branded thermal transfer ribbon and also offers a lifetime guarantee and SolFree ribbons without solvents.
“Our global presence, organization and consistency in our thermal transfer ribbons is something our competitors don’t have,” he said. “We have a high focus on innovation in all of our business units. We invest 4% of our revenues from thermal transfer into R&D, and we now have as many engineers in ink chemistry as we do in our production process.
“We are also trying to innovate in our formulations to reduce our footprint in the environment,” Moreau noted. “We adhere to the REACH regulations and make products that use only approved components. We have reduced our solvent consumption by about 15% even though we are growing by 10%. We have launched a new ribbon for textiles that prints on care labels that are the only ink that is Oeko Tex certified. It is the only ribbon that can be in contact with baby’s skin.”
ARMOR USA’s operations are growing with the company; the company has 90 employees, and its sales volume has increased by 170% since 2011.
“ARMOR USA started with eight people and 11,000 square feet and has grown to 81,000 square feet,” said Scott Morgan, North American technical sales manager. An expansion is planned for 2020, which will bring the total square footage to more than 100,000 square feet.
“In parallel with automation, our expansion in the Americas has been impressive,” added Randy Culman, VP of finance and administration. “ARMOR has opened production facilities in Brazil (2007), Mexico (2014), Canada (2017) and Colombia (2018). All of these were projects led by ARMOR USA administrative and operational personnel.”
Moreau said that ARMOR continues to grow in all of its markets.
“We expect to grow even further,” he said. “Today we have about 30% market share. We are investing in the thermal transfer ribbon market, and some of our competitors are getting away from thermal transfer ribbons. We believe we have the highest quality products and the highest focus on social responsibility and sustainability.”
ARMOR USA
2900 Earhart Court
Hebron, KY 41048
Tel: (859) 689-2100
Fax.: 000-000-0000
E-Mail: armor-usa@armor-group.com
www.inkanto.com/armor-usa
Specialties: Thermal transfer ribbon ink, inkjet inks for industrial decorative printing on glass, wooden flooring, wooden furniture and large-scale textiles.
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