Ciba Specialty Chemicals recently opened its new Imaging & Inks Technical Center designed to support customers of its broad range of products in this market, including pigments, photoinitiators, acrylic resins, UV absorbers and light stabilizers.  The new laboratory was established at the company’s Newport, DE, facility.
    
The laboratory is in two sections. The first is equipped to study how products perform in a wide range of ink types. In the second area, the lab is the global focus for receptor coating development for the photo realistic ink jet market with all application testing being carried out in the new facility.
    
“We are delighted to emphasize our commitment to the North American graphic arts industry with our investment in this facility,” said John Coy, global head of Ciba’s imaging and inks business. “We look forward to an enhanced ability to serve and innovate with our partners as a result of establishing a strong local base. The inclusion of a global facility for receptor coating development underscores our wish to develop at the center of innovation.”
    
The new laboratory is the latest in a string of investments made by Ciba Specialty Chemicals at Newport. The Newport facility now houses newly-upgraded Technical Center facilities for its coatings, plastics and fibers, imaging and inks businesses as well as its wholly-owned subsidiary, EFKA Additives. The Delaware site is a key pigment production plant, which has invested heavily in state-of-the-art manufacturing of high performance pigments, with special emphasis on quinacridone and diketo-pyrrolo-pyrrole chemistries. The facility runs a continuous site improvement program and is committed to environmental responsibility.