03.15.21
A combination of COVID-19 induced supply disruptions to primary raw materials coupled with an unprecedented increase in demand within China as it emerges from the pandemic has created severe shortages across core printing ink raw materials including pigment and resin supply chains, Flint Group Commercial, Publication and Sheetfed Inks said.
This situation is further exacerbated by increased oil demand with a 40% increase for crude oil USD/ bbl. which over the past 6 months has driven a severe increase in pricing across the entire ink manufacturing supply chain, as ink manufacturers scramble to ensure the availability of products for their customer base, the company said.
"As a market-leading consumable manufacturer, our primary responsibility is to ensure we meet the demand requirements of our partners without disruption, we are therefore working tirelessly with upstream providers to ensure we meet this requirement," said Tony Lord, president, Flint Group CPS. "It goes without saying that we will take all necessary action to minimize cost impact in these challenging times. However, in order to ensure we meet our responsibilities, we have no choice other than to pass onto the supply chain a proportion of the cost increases being applied to us in the form of a significant temporary surcharge effective from April 2021. This action provides flexibility and a fast response time which is essential as we anticipate this will be a temporary measure as primary raw material markets align to post COVID demand".
