David Savastano, Editor11.22.22
Some of the most interesting developments in the ink field can be found at companies focusing on specialty inks. One such company is Nocopi Technologies, a US-based publicly traded company (ticker: NNUP). Headquartered in King of Prussia, PA, Nocopi is perhaps best known for reactive inks for children’s activity books and has been leveraging that expertise as their business expands.
Nocopi began in the early 1990s, developing technologies for inks in the anti-copy document security segment, and soon found new applications.
“Nocopi had the benefit of a running head start, with its established patents and proprietary ink technologies, and capitalized on this by commercializing several solvent- and water-based inks for different applications, including reactive and invisible ink applications,” said Chairman and CEO Michael Feinstein.
“We have always held that ‘innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower,’” said COO Terry Stovold, who first started at the company over 30 years ago. “Nocopi’s high performance inks are formulated with patented and proprietary technologies that we look to improve and optimize at every available opportunity. Nocopi holds numerous patents spanning North America (US and Canada) for technologies related to overt and covert ink technologies and multiple individual marking devices. Whether it's working on a customer order or experimenting with prototypes, we continually advance our ink technologies.”
Nocopi has been at the forefront of a number of advances over the years, both in its children’s book market as well as in the brand security segment. In these markets, excellent quality and support are an absolute necessity, and Nocopi is 100% focused on delivering industry leading ink technology and top-quality support.
“We deeply care about our customers and want nothing more than to forge long lasting win-win relationships,” Feinstein said. “A large majority of our customers have been with us for years, which is a testament to our high standards, responsiveness, and collaborative ethos. We strive to better every day.”
In the security markets, Nocopi recently developed a new formulation for a UV-dried version of their flexographic Copimark fluorescent ink for use in a new application. “The challenge was optimally fitting the Copimark feature with the best suited optical brightener which causes the fluorescence to appear. With successful lab testing and rounds of refining, we reached an optimal formulation and are quite proud of this development,” explained Stovold.
Nocopi Technologies has also made a name for itself in the children’s entertainment book industry, maintaining several longtime media publishing partners. “We have gained advanced technical knowledge over many decades of working with specialty inks across various substrates,” Stovold noted.
Backed by Nocopi’s patented and proprietary specialty reactive inks, Nocopi’s publishing partners produce licensed and non-licensed children’s content for reactive ink activity books. “Our most recent advances have been across the children’s entertainment segment with some improvements and additions to our existing ink technologies that have been successful. Stay tuned in 2023 for more to come on that!” added Stovold.
On the heels of its successes to date, Nocopi is beginning to execute a new growth strategy, after enhancing its Board of Directors in 2022, expanding the leadership team and completing a recent capital raise. With an eye toward both organic and inorganic growth opportunities, Nocopi’s leadership sees plenty of expansion possibilities ahead.
Innovation will continue to be essential for Nocopi to keep its customers ahead in their markets. Feinstein shared that, “Nocopi is now expanding focus on growth in several other segments, including brand security, promotional packaging, and product enhancement. Nocopi’s portfolio of specialty ink technology is versatile and can be printed on a wide range of substrates, including paper, plastics, textiles, and various other surfaces.”
M2A Family Office founder Michael S. Liebowitz and his Director of Investments Matthew Winger recently joined Nocopi Technologies’ Board of Directors. They bring a fresh perspective to Nocopi’s strategy and operations as the company enters its next growth phase in pursuit of both organic and strategic opportunities. Earlier in his career, Liebowitz successfully launched and scaled three financial service-related businesses completing numerous M&A deals along the way.
Nocopi’s portfolio of ink technologies offers future customers a wide range of potential specialty use cases. “Nocopi’s growth strategy includes reaching and servicing new customers with dynamic and innovative inks across a range of applications – packaging, label, security, or as a unique feature of their product. We have a solid history of developing innovative formulas for new uses,” Feinstein concluded. “We are excited about our growth plans for the future, and encourage our industry peers, prospective leaders, and potential operating partners to reach out to us at hello@nocopi.com.”
Nocopi began in the early 1990s, developing technologies for inks in the anti-copy document security segment, and soon found new applications.
“Nocopi had the benefit of a running head start, with its established patents and proprietary ink technologies, and capitalized on this by commercializing several solvent- and water-based inks for different applications, including reactive and invisible ink applications,” said Chairman and CEO Michael Feinstein.
“We have always held that ‘innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower,’” said COO Terry Stovold, who first started at the company over 30 years ago. “Nocopi’s high performance inks are formulated with patented and proprietary technologies that we look to improve and optimize at every available opportunity. Nocopi holds numerous patents spanning North America (US and Canada) for technologies related to overt and covert ink technologies and multiple individual marking devices. Whether it's working on a customer order or experimenting with prototypes, we continually advance our ink technologies.”
Nocopi has been at the forefront of a number of advances over the years, both in its children’s book market as well as in the brand security segment. In these markets, excellent quality and support are an absolute necessity, and Nocopi is 100% focused on delivering industry leading ink technology and top-quality support.
“We deeply care about our customers and want nothing more than to forge long lasting win-win relationships,” Feinstein said. “A large majority of our customers have been with us for years, which is a testament to our high standards, responsiveness, and collaborative ethos. We strive to better every day.”
In the security markets, Nocopi recently developed a new formulation for a UV-dried version of their flexographic Copimark fluorescent ink for use in a new application. “The challenge was optimally fitting the Copimark feature with the best suited optical brightener which causes the fluorescence to appear. With successful lab testing and rounds of refining, we reached an optimal formulation and are quite proud of this development,” explained Stovold.
Nocopi Technologies has also made a name for itself in the children’s entertainment book industry, maintaining several longtime media publishing partners. “We have gained advanced technical knowledge over many decades of working with specialty inks across various substrates,” Stovold noted.
Backed by Nocopi’s patented and proprietary specialty reactive inks, Nocopi’s publishing partners produce licensed and non-licensed children’s content for reactive ink activity books. “Our most recent advances have been across the children’s entertainment segment with some improvements and additions to our existing ink technologies that have been successful. Stay tuned in 2023 for more to come on that!” added Stovold.
On the heels of its successes to date, Nocopi is beginning to execute a new growth strategy, after enhancing its Board of Directors in 2022, expanding the leadership team and completing a recent capital raise. With an eye toward both organic and inorganic growth opportunities, Nocopi’s leadership sees plenty of expansion possibilities ahead.
Innovation will continue to be essential for Nocopi to keep its customers ahead in their markets. Feinstein shared that, “Nocopi is now expanding focus on growth in several other segments, including brand security, promotional packaging, and product enhancement. Nocopi’s portfolio of specialty ink technology is versatile and can be printed on a wide range of substrates, including paper, plastics, textiles, and various other surfaces.”
M2A Family Office founder Michael S. Liebowitz and his Director of Investments Matthew Winger recently joined Nocopi Technologies’ Board of Directors. They bring a fresh perspective to Nocopi’s strategy and operations as the company enters its next growth phase in pursuit of both organic and strategic opportunities. Earlier in his career, Liebowitz successfully launched and scaled three financial service-related businesses completing numerous M&A deals along the way.
Nocopi’s portfolio of ink technologies offers future customers a wide range of potential specialty use cases. “Nocopi’s growth strategy includes reaching and servicing new customers with dynamic and innovative inks across a range of applications – packaging, label, security, or as a unique feature of their product. We have a solid history of developing innovative formulas for new uses,” Feinstein concluded. “We are excited about our growth plans for the future, and encourage our industry peers, prospective leaders, and potential operating partners to reach out to us at hello@nocopi.com.”