Anthony Locicero, Associate Editor07.28.19
The metallic pigments market will be worth more than $2.3 billion by 2024, according to Global Market Insights, Inc. (GMI). Aluminum and copper metallic pigments are experiencing high demand, per GMI’s research.
The products are suitable for gravure, screen, flexographic and offset printing; beneficial product features include enhanced flake geometry, solvent-free product forms, tighter particle distribution and improved adhesion, according to GMI’s report.
Sun Chemical and Silberline both reported a continued demand for metallic pigments in the graphics arts space, particularly in packaging applications.
“Brand owners continue to push for new and exciting ways for their packaging to pop off the shelf. One way to grab the attention of consumers in the store is to provide packaging that utilizes metallic inks,” said Joanne Mitchell, global product manager, metallic effects, Sun Chemical Performance Pigments.
“The continuous battle for brand shelf space has increased the demand for metallic pigments in packaging,” Samantha Brooks, Silberline’s director of marketing, said. “In highly competitive markets, packaging needs to stand out to help drive consumers to purchase their products. Our finer and brighter line of metallic pigments, as well as our Vacuum Metallized Flakes (VMF), help consumer packaged goods differentiate themselves in a big sea of packaging vying for consumer attention.”
“The overall usage of metallic pigments in printing appears to be growing; however BASF Colors & Effects only participates in aluminum vacuum metalized pigment (VMP), which is a smaller niche,” said Caroline Syms, digital marketing communications specialist for BASF.
There has always been an interest in all special effect pigments for graphic arts applications, according to Paul Nowak of CQV.
“Brand owners are always looking for unique eye-catching effects and designs to stand out from the crowd,” he said. “While the color trends may come and go – which has more of an influence on the use of fluorescents – interest in pearlescents and metallics has always been strong due to the fact that they can be combined with any color.”
The demand for metallic effects in graphic arts is typically driven by fashion, according to Steve Clark, director inks & graphic arts North America for Schlenk USA.
“There is currently a greater interest in metallic effects for many types of consumer goods, which in turn drives demand for the same appearance in printed materials,” he said.
Growth rate varies considerably by application and geography, per Darren Bianchi, founder and CEO of Brilliant Group.
“A bright spot is growth in the use of liquid ink for packaging applications and growth in UV offset and flexo,” he said.
Neil Hersh, head of marketing and technical services at ECKART, specifically mentioned labels, folding cartons and flexible packaging.
“I would say the overall market for special effects in the graphic arts is growing mainly due to the number of new products being launched,” Nowak added. “From mass-market to lux these products could be from major brands or, more likely, smaller players selling online. The number of such ‘private’ or ‘craft’ brands has skyrocketed in all categories from food, drink, personal care and cosmetics.
“The cannabis market is a prime example,” he continued. “Key benefits cited are the perception of luxury and quality they provide.
The ability to highlight details of a particular package design and the causation of an emotional experience only color and effect can give. Some customers use the effect pigments as a low-level overt security feature for anti-counterfeiting.”
According to Clark, metallic effects in packaging are always in demand due to their instant shelf appeal.
Packaging inks are a focus for regulations and ink manufacturers and brand owners alike are emphasizing low
migration inks.
“At a foundational level, we are evolving our technology platforms to increase production capacity and sales of sustainable product solutions for waterborne formulations and products absent of substances of concern, such as mineral oils,” Brooks said.
“In doing so, we are also proactively identifying and addressing both existing and anticipated regulatory changes to stay ahead of the curve and meet customer needs.”
For ink manufacturers, raw material cost and availability are having an impact globally. The same is true regarding the raw materials for metallics.
“For energy curable metallic inks there are the same supply and raw material cost issues as with the printing ink industry as a whole, limited to no availability and significant price increases on key raw materials,” Clark observed.
“In general costs are always increasing for raw materials,” Nowak noted.
To combat that, “many suppliers of effects are implementing various technologies in the manufacturing process to be more efficient and thus negate as much as possible such increases,” he said. “Due to a large number of suppliers of effects, most are accepting the new reality of lower margins from as little as 10 years ago.”
“The last 12 months have seen many changes in supply and the price of petroleum-derived goods,” Mitchell said. “Our global manufacturing team has invested in designing production processes with a high degree of flexibility. This flexibility allows us to globally source raw materials and utilize our global manufacturing footprint to consistently deliver quality, service and innovation during volatile periods in the market.”
DayGlo has experienced disruptions in supply and large tariffs on most raw materials coming out of China, according to Dave Heyl, business unit manager, graphic arts, who added that the company has instituted a tariff surcharge on some products. “We are hoping for a quick resolution to the US/China trade conflict,” Heyl added.
Meeting regulations and tariffs are among the largest challenges pigment suppliers face.
“Similar to other pigment industries, the importance of global regulations continues to grow,” Mitchell said. “For printing inks, new legislation is introduced regularly. Controls can differ greatly across the globe. These changes can influence regional pigment selection, binder chemistry and formulation flexibility. The challenge is keeping up with changing local regulations, designing products that meet new criteria and delivering performance.”
“Like other basic material and specialty chemical suppliers, metallic pigment manufacturers are challenged with a very dynamic regulatory environment, the potential for labor shortages, transportation availability/reliability and steady demand,” Hersh said.
Bianchi said he’s witnessed a “dramatic increase” in raw material costs that have been “exacerbated” by tariffs on Chinese imports.
“We are absorbing much of the increased costs and passing on as little as possible to our customers,” he said.
On the other side of the coin, Phil Befumo, manager, specialty pigments at United Mineral & Chemical, said his company hasn’t been greatly impacted by tariffs.
“We are one of the most uniquely positioned pigment companies,” Befumo said. “Everything has been fairly steady across the board. Very few of our pigments are sourced from China.
“Tariffs have not really impacted our pigments,” Befumo added. “Most people get their pigments from China. We get almost all of our pigments from producers outside of China. Our pigments are produced outside of China and as a result, we are not having any tariff-related problems.”
The products are suitable for gravure, screen, flexographic and offset printing; beneficial product features include enhanced flake geometry, solvent-free product forms, tighter particle distribution and improved adhesion, according to GMI’s report.
Sun Chemical and Silberline both reported a continued demand for metallic pigments in the graphics arts space, particularly in packaging applications.
“Brand owners continue to push for new and exciting ways for their packaging to pop off the shelf. One way to grab the attention of consumers in the store is to provide packaging that utilizes metallic inks,” said Joanne Mitchell, global product manager, metallic effects, Sun Chemical Performance Pigments.
“The continuous battle for brand shelf space has increased the demand for metallic pigments in packaging,” Samantha Brooks, Silberline’s director of marketing, said. “In highly competitive markets, packaging needs to stand out to help drive consumers to purchase their products. Our finer and brighter line of metallic pigments, as well as our Vacuum Metallized Flakes (VMF), help consumer packaged goods differentiate themselves in a big sea of packaging vying for consumer attention.”
“The overall usage of metallic pigments in printing appears to be growing; however BASF Colors & Effects only participates in aluminum vacuum metalized pigment (VMP), which is a smaller niche,” said Caroline Syms, digital marketing communications specialist for BASF.
There has always been an interest in all special effect pigments for graphic arts applications, according to Paul Nowak of CQV.
“Brand owners are always looking for unique eye-catching effects and designs to stand out from the crowd,” he said. “While the color trends may come and go – which has more of an influence on the use of fluorescents – interest in pearlescents and metallics has always been strong due to the fact that they can be combined with any color.”
The demand for metallic effects in graphic arts is typically driven by fashion, according to Steve Clark, director inks & graphic arts North America for Schlenk USA.
“There is currently a greater interest in metallic effects for many types of consumer goods, which in turn drives demand for the same appearance in printed materials,” he said.
Growth rate varies considerably by application and geography, per Darren Bianchi, founder and CEO of Brilliant Group.
“A bright spot is growth in the use of liquid ink for packaging applications and growth in UV offset and flexo,” he said.
Neil Hersh, head of marketing and technical services at ECKART, specifically mentioned labels, folding cartons and flexible packaging.
“I would say the overall market for special effects in the graphic arts is growing mainly due to the number of new products being launched,” Nowak added. “From mass-market to lux these products could be from major brands or, more likely, smaller players selling online. The number of such ‘private’ or ‘craft’ brands has skyrocketed in all categories from food, drink, personal care and cosmetics.
“The cannabis market is a prime example,” he continued. “Key benefits cited are the perception of luxury and quality they provide.
The ability to highlight details of a particular package design and the causation of an emotional experience only color and effect can give. Some customers use the effect pigments as a low-level overt security feature for anti-counterfeiting.”
According to Clark, metallic effects in packaging are always in demand due to their instant shelf appeal.
Packaging inks are a focus for regulations and ink manufacturers and brand owners alike are emphasizing low
migration inks.
“At a foundational level, we are evolving our technology platforms to increase production capacity and sales of sustainable product solutions for waterborne formulations and products absent of substances of concern, such as mineral oils,” Brooks said.
“In doing so, we are also proactively identifying and addressing both existing and anticipated regulatory changes to stay ahead of the curve and meet customer needs.”
For ink manufacturers, raw material cost and availability are having an impact globally. The same is true regarding the raw materials for metallics.
“For energy curable metallic inks there are the same supply and raw material cost issues as with the printing ink industry as a whole, limited to no availability and significant price increases on key raw materials,” Clark observed.
“In general costs are always increasing for raw materials,” Nowak noted.
To combat that, “many suppliers of effects are implementing various technologies in the manufacturing process to be more efficient and thus negate as much as possible such increases,” he said. “Due to a large number of suppliers of effects, most are accepting the new reality of lower margins from as little as 10 years ago.”
“The last 12 months have seen many changes in supply and the price of petroleum-derived goods,” Mitchell said. “Our global manufacturing team has invested in designing production processes with a high degree of flexibility. This flexibility allows us to globally source raw materials and utilize our global manufacturing footprint to consistently deliver quality, service and innovation during volatile periods in the market.”
DayGlo has experienced disruptions in supply and large tariffs on most raw materials coming out of China, according to Dave Heyl, business unit manager, graphic arts, who added that the company has instituted a tariff surcharge on some products. “We are hoping for a quick resolution to the US/China trade conflict,” Heyl added.
Meeting regulations and tariffs are among the largest challenges pigment suppliers face.
“Similar to other pigment industries, the importance of global regulations continues to grow,” Mitchell said. “For printing inks, new legislation is introduced regularly. Controls can differ greatly across the globe. These changes can influence regional pigment selection, binder chemistry and formulation flexibility. The challenge is keeping up with changing local regulations, designing products that meet new criteria and delivering performance.”
“Like other basic material and specialty chemical suppliers, metallic pigment manufacturers are challenged with a very dynamic regulatory environment, the potential for labor shortages, transportation availability/reliability and steady demand,” Hersh said.
Bianchi said he’s witnessed a “dramatic increase” in raw material costs that have been “exacerbated” by tariffs on Chinese imports.
“We are absorbing much of the increased costs and passing on as little as possible to our customers,” he said.
On the other side of the coin, Phil Befumo, manager, specialty pigments at United Mineral & Chemical, said his company hasn’t been greatly impacted by tariffs.
“We are one of the most uniquely positioned pigment companies,” Befumo said. “Everything has been fairly steady across the board. Very few of our pigments are sourced from China.
“Tariffs have not really impacted our pigments,” Befumo added. “Most people get their pigments from China. We get almost all of our pigments from producers outside of China. Our pigments are produced outside of China and as a result, we are not having any tariff-related problems.”
