Dave Savastano, Editor05.13.16
For ink manufacturers, the additives market is a wide ranging area, encompassing key ingredients that impart critical performance properties to the inks. Whether it is waxes, defoamers, surfactants or so many more, inks and many other products would not be the same without these additives.
As a result, additives are a sizable market. In its report “Ink Additives Market by Type (Rheology Modifier, Slip/Rub Material, Defoamers, Dispersants), by Process (Flexographic, Lithographic, Gravure, Digital), by Application (Flexible Packaging,
Publication, Corrugated, Promotion) - Global Forecasts to 2019,” Markets and Markets, a global research and consulting firm, predicts that the international market for waxes and additives will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.78% through 2019.
Markets and Markets further estimated global market value of the ink additives market was estimated to $629.02 million in 2013 and is projected grow at a CAGR of around 5.78% between 2014 and 2019. Asia-Pacific is the fastest growing region, with packaging ink the fastest growing segment.
Because additives are used in many applications, from ink to paint and coatings and more, individual additives segments are quite sizable. Markets and Markets, for example, estimated the size of the micronized wax industry to be $870.9 million by 2019.
Surfactants are a huge market, with personal care and oil and gas the dominant end use segments. The Freedonia Group, Inc., a market research firm, reported in its 2016 report, Surfactants, that in the US alone, demand for surfactants is expected to reach 10.9 billion pounds in 2018, with an overall at $14.4 billion. Meanwhile, Grand View Research, another research firm, placed the global defoamers market at $2 billion by 2023.
For major suppliers to the printing ink industry, results from the past year have been mixed, with growth being affected by foreign exchange rates and other challenges.
“Growth in the graphic arts additives area in 2015-16 has been impacted by the slowdown in the global economies, the continued forex swings and regional instabilities,” said Joon Choo, VP of Shamrock Technologies.
James Davis, commercial VP, Emerald Specialties Business Group, discussed the latest trends in the printing market.
“We see a continued decline in traditional printing and printing inks,” David noted. “However, there is growing demand in packaging, which continues to grow as the overall global economy grows, to address specific needs food safety regulations, and in non-traditional printing segments such as inkjet and 3D printing.”
John McAllister, global director of sales, Micro Powders, Inc., noted that the graphic arts industry continues to be an important market segment for Micro Powders.
“We experienced nice growth in the last year, specifically with formulated melt blends like our Polyfluo, Superslip and Polysilk series,” said McAllister. “The demand for improved surface properties and greater efficiency have driven this trend.”
David S. Grabacki, president, Keim Additec Surface USA LLC, said that Keim Additec Surface USA is seeing growth in the graphic arts side of its business.
“We have seen growth in the graphic arts market, especially in the areas of barrier coatings, pigment dispersants, defoamers and other specialty areas,” Grabacki noted.
“Inksolutions sees a general trend favoring additives in the lithographic ink market,” said John Jilek Jr., VP sales and marketing, Inksolutions, LLC. “Additives are used for specific performances, and the ROI on these performances are always heavily debated.
Costing has remained tight; however the future outlooks have become more promising. There have been multiple consolidations amongst printers and ink makers, leaving the current market more stable. With all these conditions improving, we are seeing customers look to using additives again to see if they can perform to create a value above their cost.”
Growth Markets
The ink industry has seen growth in a few key markets, led by digital printing and packaging. Willis Reese, business director, digital technologies at Emerald Performance Materials’ Specialties Business Group, said that Emerald sees the most significant growth in digital printing, which is being employed in an expanding range of applications.
“The process requirements for this platform is different from those of traditional printing, and new raw materials continue to be developed and tailored for those unique needs,” Reese added. “For example, in order to achieve permanence, digital inks based on pigment dispersions may be preferred over dyes. However, they need to have outstanding shear stability needed to avoid process issues such as nozzle clogging. Different approaches have been taken from an additive and formulating standpoint to a pigment standpoint, including the use of self-dispersed pigment dispersions, which incorporate modifications into the pigment particle to achieve the needed performance. This has been the focus of our research and development work in our expanded pilot plant and R&D center in Cincinnati, OH.
“We have also focused on additives in the food packaging area, and providing solutions which have broad and increased FDA clearances,” Reese added. “Examples of these types of products include slip and mar additives and defoamers.
“The majority of our growth in the past year has been in the overprint varnish segment with MicroTouch polyurethane ‘soft touch’ beads and PropylMatte polymeric matting agents,” said McAllister. “Package designers continue to search for visual distinction and tactile properties to attract the eye of the consumer.”
“From the micronized wax and wax dispersion side, we have seen the most growth in the coatings market,” said Grabacki. “We also have seen growth with our Silcona line of pigment dispersant and defoamers for organic, inorganic, carbon black and TiO2 pigments for both inks and coatings.”
“With increased pressure on cost reductions, we are heading back into the labs to work with our customers to help achieve their goals,” Choo said. “Product optimization specific to different segments continues to help create a win-win for both sides.”
Major Challenges Going Forward
There is an increased emphasis on regulations throughout the packaging field, and key additive suppliers are helping their ink customers meet these new requirements.
“Being the additives component of a formulation presents tough challenges for our customers as new regulations come into effect,” Choo observed. “The new labeling requirements and SDS changes required effort in review and communications with our supply chain as well as customers, and this adds cost at a time of slower growth. “
Andrew Recker, R&D director at Emerald, noted that regulations continue to be a focus area for most companies working in the industry.
“These include food safety as well as global inventories such as REACH registration in Europe and TSCA’s SNUR (significant new use rule) in the US,” Recker added. “So as companies look to innovate, they also must be very cognizant of the registrations they will need in order to be able to commercialize these innovations. Our commercial team works with customers to understand these needs and works closely with our product compliance to address these issues.”
Food packaging is the area of most interest in terms of new regulations.
“The food packaging segment continues to grow and change, whether to make more consumer-friendly convenience food products or address food safety regulations, such as the Global Food Safety Regulations and FSMA,” Recker reported. “Migration of materials from food packaging and even from secondary packaging into food has continued to be an area being addressed, which is influencing the materials used in packaging design – from plastics to how recycled paper and corrugated materials are being used in the supply chain and the choice of inks, adhesives and coatings used.”
McAllister said the global economic situation is a challenge for all.
“The biggest challenge going forward is uncertainty in the global marketplace, especially in Europe and Asia,” said McAllister. “If those economies remain soft, it will slow momentum. We are well positioned to meet this challenge with the introduction of innovative wax additives that bring even greater value to the customer.”
Grabacki pointed to regulatory issues and raw materials as key challenges ahead for additives suppliers.
“For many years now, there has been a clear and permanent direction toward all things ‘green,’ said Grabacki. “Since our founding in 1988, our factory in Kirchberg is located in the ‘greenest-of-green’ areas in Europe. Therefore, Keim Additec Surface has always been well ahead of the curve on these issues, even from the very beginning. Our EHQS team stays informed on current and potential new regulations regarding quality and environmental management. This service is of great value to our product technical support and customers’ needs.”
As for raw materials, Grabacki noted that the Keim Group has become backward integrated, thus ensuring supply and quality.
“In 2012, Keim Group purchased a wax production plant in Poland to establish backwards integration of raw materials for our own use,” said Grabacki. “These products were developed and manufactured particularly for the coatings industry as well as for the plastics market. Our wax raw materials are further modified into water-based wax additives at our Keim Additec Surface facility and into micronized waxes at our Ceronas facility. This has had a positive impact on our competitiveness and portfolio range.”
Expectations for the Additives Market
Additives suppliers anticipate a good year ahead for their printing ink customers. For example, Davis said that Emerald is committed to growth in digital, and is currently investing in new equipment and adding R&D hires to bring new products to the market.
McAllister said that Micro Powders is very optimistic about the coming year.
“Ongoing trends in publication and consumer packaging drive the need for wax additives capable of influencing gloss, COF, texture, soft feel and surface protection,” added McAllister. “We’ve positioned ourselves to meet all of these formulation challenges.”
“We are predicting that 2016 will be a good year,” said Grabacki. “We are increasing staff, which will in turn, offer better technical support to our customers and distributors. We have expanded our reach by bringing on distributors in new territories, and are supporting the efforts of our distributors with expanded warehousing.”
Choo said working closely with customers will be the key to growth in the future.
“We are looking forward to working with customers on driving innovation as a means to growth,” Choo added.
As a result, additives are a sizable market. In its report “Ink Additives Market by Type (Rheology Modifier, Slip/Rub Material, Defoamers, Dispersants), by Process (Flexographic, Lithographic, Gravure, Digital), by Application (Flexible Packaging,
Publication, Corrugated, Promotion) - Global Forecasts to 2019,” Markets and Markets, a global research and consulting firm, predicts that the international market for waxes and additives will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.78% through 2019.
Markets and Markets further estimated global market value of the ink additives market was estimated to $629.02 million in 2013 and is projected grow at a CAGR of around 5.78% between 2014 and 2019. Asia-Pacific is the fastest growing region, with packaging ink the fastest growing segment.
Because additives are used in many applications, from ink to paint and coatings and more, individual additives segments are quite sizable. Markets and Markets, for example, estimated the size of the micronized wax industry to be $870.9 million by 2019.
Surfactants are a huge market, with personal care and oil and gas the dominant end use segments. The Freedonia Group, Inc., a market research firm, reported in its 2016 report, Surfactants, that in the US alone, demand for surfactants is expected to reach 10.9 billion pounds in 2018, with an overall at $14.4 billion. Meanwhile, Grand View Research, another research firm, placed the global defoamers market at $2 billion by 2023.
For major suppliers to the printing ink industry, results from the past year have been mixed, with growth being affected by foreign exchange rates and other challenges.
“Growth in the graphic arts additives area in 2015-16 has been impacted by the slowdown in the global economies, the continued forex swings and regional instabilities,” said Joon Choo, VP of Shamrock Technologies.
James Davis, commercial VP, Emerald Specialties Business Group, discussed the latest trends in the printing market.
“We see a continued decline in traditional printing and printing inks,” David noted. “However, there is growing demand in packaging, which continues to grow as the overall global economy grows, to address specific needs food safety regulations, and in non-traditional printing segments such as inkjet and 3D printing.”
John McAllister, global director of sales, Micro Powders, Inc., noted that the graphic arts industry continues to be an important market segment for Micro Powders.
“We experienced nice growth in the last year, specifically with formulated melt blends like our Polyfluo, Superslip and Polysilk series,” said McAllister. “The demand for improved surface properties and greater efficiency have driven this trend.”
David S. Grabacki, president, Keim Additec Surface USA LLC, said that Keim Additec Surface USA is seeing growth in the graphic arts side of its business.
“We have seen growth in the graphic arts market, especially in the areas of barrier coatings, pigment dispersants, defoamers and other specialty areas,” Grabacki noted.
“Inksolutions sees a general trend favoring additives in the lithographic ink market,” said John Jilek Jr., VP sales and marketing, Inksolutions, LLC. “Additives are used for specific performances, and the ROI on these performances are always heavily debated.
Costing has remained tight; however the future outlooks have become more promising. There have been multiple consolidations amongst printers and ink makers, leaving the current market more stable. With all these conditions improving, we are seeing customers look to using additives again to see if they can perform to create a value above their cost.”
Growth Markets
The ink industry has seen growth in a few key markets, led by digital printing and packaging. Willis Reese, business director, digital technologies at Emerald Performance Materials’ Specialties Business Group, said that Emerald sees the most significant growth in digital printing, which is being employed in an expanding range of applications.
“The process requirements for this platform is different from those of traditional printing, and new raw materials continue to be developed and tailored for those unique needs,” Reese added. “For example, in order to achieve permanence, digital inks based on pigment dispersions may be preferred over dyes. However, they need to have outstanding shear stability needed to avoid process issues such as nozzle clogging. Different approaches have been taken from an additive and formulating standpoint to a pigment standpoint, including the use of self-dispersed pigment dispersions, which incorporate modifications into the pigment particle to achieve the needed performance. This has been the focus of our research and development work in our expanded pilot plant and R&D center in Cincinnati, OH.
“We have also focused on additives in the food packaging area, and providing solutions which have broad and increased FDA clearances,” Reese added. “Examples of these types of products include slip and mar additives and defoamers.
“The majority of our growth in the past year has been in the overprint varnish segment with MicroTouch polyurethane ‘soft touch’ beads and PropylMatte polymeric matting agents,” said McAllister. “Package designers continue to search for visual distinction and tactile properties to attract the eye of the consumer.”
“From the micronized wax and wax dispersion side, we have seen the most growth in the coatings market,” said Grabacki. “We also have seen growth with our Silcona line of pigment dispersant and defoamers for organic, inorganic, carbon black and TiO2 pigments for both inks and coatings.”
“With increased pressure on cost reductions, we are heading back into the labs to work with our customers to help achieve their goals,” Choo said. “Product optimization specific to different segments continues to help create a win-win for both sides.”
Major Challenges Going Forward
There is an increased emphasis on regulations throughout the packaging field, and key additive suppliers are helping their ink customers meet these new requirements.
“Being the additives component of a formulation presents tough challenges for our customers as new regulations come into effect,” Choo observed. “The new labeling requirements and SDS changes required effort in review and communications with our supply chain as well as customers, and this adds cost at a time of slower growth. “
Andrew Recker, R&D director at Emerald, noted that regulations continue to be a focus area for most companies working in the industry.
“These include food safety as well as global inventories such as REACH registration in Europe and TSCA’s SNUR (significant new use rule) in the US,” Recker added. “So as companies look to innovate, they also must be very cognizant of the registrations they will need in order to be able to commercialize these innovations. Our commercial team works with customers to understand these needs and works closely with our product compliance to address these issues.”
Food packaging is the area of most interest in terms of new regulations.
“The food packaging segment continues to grow and change, whether to make more consumer-friendly convenience food products or address food safety regulations, such as the Global Food Safety Regulations and FSMA,” Recker reported. “Migration of materials from food packaging and even from secondary packaging into food has continued to be an area being addressed, which is influencing the materials used in packaging design – from plastics to how recycled paper and corrugated materials are being used in the supply chain and the choice of inks, adhesives and coatings used.”
McAllister said the global economic situation is a challenge for all.
“The biggest challenge going forward is uncertainty in the global marketplace, especially in Europe and Asia,” said McAllister. “If those economies remain soft, it will slow momentum. We are well positioned to meet this challenge with the introduction of innovative wax additives that bring even greater value to the customer.”
Grabacki pointed to regulatory issues and raw materials as key challenges ahead for additives suppliers.
“For many years now, there has been a clear and permanent direction toward all things ‘green,’ said Grabacki. “Since our founding in 1988, our factory in Kirchberg is located in the ‘greenest-of-green’ areas in Europe. Therefore, Keim Additec Surface has always been well ahead of the curve on these issues, even from the very beginning. Our EHQS team stays informed on current and potential new regulations regarding quality and environmental management. This service is of great value to our product technical support and customers’ needs.”
As for raw materials, Grabacki noted that the Keim Group has become backward integrated, thus ensuring supply and quality.
“In 2012, Keim Group purchased a wax production plant in Poland to establish backwards integration of raw materials for our own use,” said Grabacki. “These products were developed and manufactured particularly for the coatings industry as well as for the plastics market. Our wax raw materials are further modified into water-based wax additives at our Keim Additec Surface facility and into micronized waxes at our Ceronas facility. This has had a positive impact on our competitiveness and portfolio range.”
Expectations for the Additives Market
Additives suppliers anticipate a good year ahead for their printing ink customers. For example, Davis said that Emerald is committed to growth in digital, and is currently investing in new equipment and adding R&D hires to bring new products to the market.
McAllister said that Micro Powders is very optimistic about the coming year.
“Ongoing trends in publication and consumer packaging drive the need for wax additives capable of influencing gloss, COF, texture, soft feel and surface protection,” added McAllister. “We’ve positioned ourselves to meet all of these formulation challenges.”
“We are predicting that 2016 will be a good year,” said Grabacki. “We are increasing staff, which will in turn, offer better technical support to our customers and distributors. We have expanded our reach by bringing on distributors in new territories, and are supporting the efforts of our distributors with expanded warehousing.”
Choo said working closely with customers will be the key to growth in the future.
“We are looking forward to working with customers on driving innovation as a means to growth,” Choo added.
