Current situation and development of the hottest p

Current situation and development of plastic gravure printing inks

plastic gravure printing inks are mainly used in food packaging, salt packaging, cosmetics and daily necessities packaging, and pharmaceutical packaging. Food packaging is mainly based on compound printing ink, and some candy paper uses surface printing ink; Cooking packaging uses high-temperature cooking ink, while general vacuum packaging uses polyester ink; Dairy products should be packaged with water-resistant, acid resistant and temperature resistant inks; Polyester ink is mainly used in drug packaging and cosmetics packaging; Some manufacturers of salt packaging use surface printing ink, some manufacturers use compound inner printing ink, but more manufacturers use polyester ink; With the improvement of the level of the packaging market, more and more products use composite internal printing and special special inks

the application of water-based inks is the general trend

gravure printing inks currently used in China contain a large amount of organic solvents (accounting for about 50%). Toluene, ethyl acetate, butanone and other solvents have low boiling points, high volatility, and contain aromatic hydrocarbons, which are toxic and flammable, and are the main sources of environmental pollution

intaglio printing ink is generally made of chlorinated polymer. In the process of ink production, chlorinated polymers need to be dissolved in strong solvents (such as aromatic solvents such as toluene), and toluene is used to adjust the viscosity of ink in the printing process. Chlorofluorocarbons emitted by chlorinated polymer inks in production will destroy the ozone layer of the atmosphere. During the printing process, the use of aromatic solvents (toluene) will endanger the health and safety of workers (fire risk). In addition, ink solvent residue in packaging products is a problem that needs attention. Benzene is very easy to remain in the dry ink film (xylene is needed to adjust the drying speed of the ink for low-speed printing, but xylene is easier to remain), and benzene residue will pollute the food or supplies in the package. Although gravure alcohol ester ink is the leader of alcohol soluble ink, although it is benzene free and ketone free, it will still pollute the environment and there will be solvent residues

the production of plastic gravure printing ink is restricted by fire protection law, labor safety law, health law and other laws and regulations, and once the paint surface of steel is damaged or the early anti-corrosion is not done well, it is easy to rust and corrode. Therefore, it will become an inevitable trend to actively develop and apply green gravure printing ink that meets the requirements of environmental protection, that is, water-based ink. As an alternative system of solvent ink, water-based gravure ink has attracted the attention of many departments, and the characterization of oil ink in packaging film printing is also developing vigorously

on the whole, the important reason why water-based gravure inks have not been further popularized is that the printing performance and quality still fail to meet the standards of solvent based gravure inks. Mainly due to the large surface tension of water, it is difficult to wet the ink; The water does not volatilize, and the printing speed cannot go up

if we want to obtain the printing speed and printing quality of gravure solvent ink, not only the water-based ink itself needs advanced technical improvement, but also the gravure equipment and printing plate roller need to be improved

for example, the etched version roller or electric engraving roller with a printing depth of about 38 microns to 42 microns was changed into a laser plate making roller with a printing depth of about 24 microns to 28 microns. They briefed the staff of the U.S. Embassy on the worries of the industry. The printing version roller also needs to be made of corrosion-resistant materials. It also needs to install more powerful and effective ink drying system, ink scraper and other equipment components on the printing machine. These improvements require considerable investment and a long time

as water-based gravure printing ink can not completely replace solvent ink except printing on paper. Therefore, the ink industry has been working hard to develop alcohol soluble inks with less environmental pollution. Alcohol ester composite plastic gravure printing inks have the characteristics of low odor, no benzene, ketone and so on. Alcohol soluble inks can help us solve the problems of benzene damage caused by toluene inks to health and the impact of benzene residues on the quality of packaged food

the production of this kind of environmental friendly ink will certainly improve the competitiveness of gravure printing in the field of plastic flexible packaging printing. In Japan, South Korea and Southeast Asia, toluene inks have been eliminated and replaced by alcohol soluble gravure inks. In Europe, it is strongly advocated to use alcohol soluble inks for flexographic printing and gravure printing (benzene soluble inks are prohibited), and the United States has taken the lead in the development of water-based inks. Alcohol soluble ink has been gradually applied in the domestic gravure printing industry. It can be predicted that in the near future, the development trend of ink for flexible packaging in China is that benzene soluble ink will be replaced by alcohol soluble ink, and water-soluble ink will have a lot of development space

at present, the domestic gravure printing industry is looking forward to: a gravure printing ink that only uses a single solvent (easy to recycle), surface printing, internal printing, compounding, cooking in one, all kinds of plastic films are suitable for any climate (which can reduce the production cost of enterprises), high-speed, medium speed, low-speed are suitable, low-cost, and in a broad sense appears in the market

related link 1

suggestions for ink manufacturers

foreign printing machines have fast printing speed, standardized production environment, large variety batch and single color, so the requirements for inks are limited to high solid content, low viscosity, bright color, strong coloring power, etc. In China, medium and low-speed printing machines are mainly used, and the domestic printing machines are uneven, the performance gap is too large, the product batch is small, the variety is various, the production environment is relatively poor, and the operation is not standardized. Therefore, the requirements for inks are relatively diverse, including strong adaptability, good liquidity and low price. In addition, due to the mentality of the operator, if there was a problem with printing with imported ink, he chose to adjust the printing machine. On the contrary, if printing with domestic ink has a problem, it is usually the problem of finding ink and printing plate

the ink circulation system of domestic gravure printing machines is poor (except for high-speed printing machines that transfer ink supply), and many small and medium-sized packaging color printing plants even do not use the ink circulation system. Some operators do not understand the inking law of gravure printing, know little about the performance of ink, and the ink dilution is not in place (it is observed that the average waste rate of ink is 25% - 30%, and many small packaging color printing plants even have a waste rate of 40% - 50%). Therefore, what is more needed is to popularize the production technology of plastic flexible packaging, to ensure that the pressure of the accumulator is in a normal working state, to provide basic knowledge education, and to provide technical services after the sales of ink

current situation and development of gravure printing ink industry

at present, in the domestic plastic flexible packaging industry, large-scale enterprises account for only about 10%, while small and medium-sized enterprises account for more than 90%

large plastic packaging enterprises have advanced printing machines with fast printing speed (high-speed printing machines); The product is of high grade, large batch, specific variety, high quality and large amount of ink. Generally, the ink produced by two to three ink manufacturers is used at most

however, the printing machines of many small and medium-sized plastic packaging enterprises have been updated in recent years; However, medium and low-speed printing presses still account for the majority. Its equipment and conditions are relatively poor, but it produces a wide variety, small batch and small quantity. Therefore, there are relatively more varieties of inks, and the purchase of inks is more diversified. Generally, low-cost inks are the first choice

large plastic packaging enterprises are large users of ink, but they are small markets in the domestic ink market; Medium sized plastic packaging enterprises are medium-sized users of ink, and are also the ideal market for ink manufacturers; Many small plastic packaging enterprises are small users of ink, but at present, it is a big market for ink sales in China

over the years, the number of ink production enterprises in China has been increasing, and various inks for gravure printing have been produced in China. Both in terms of quality and quantity, it can meet the needs of gravure production. And the quality of ink has generally improved, and the gap with foreign products is getting smaller and smaller

manufacturers of plastic gravure printing inks should first understand the current situation and demand of the market, and then strengthen enterprise management and formulate a series of feasible marketing strategies according to their own characteristics and advantages. Secondly, we should avoid our own shortcomings, train and improve the personal quality of all marketing personnel, cultivate the belief of team spirit, and strengthen market service. Then the production personnel should closely cooperate, take product quality first as the foundation, increase production and save as the purpose, develop steadily and survive

related link 2

the competition in the ink market is intensifying

at present, the competition in the domestic plastic intaglio printing ink market continues to intensify, and it is still in a state of oversupply. The sales volume of high-priced ink decreased, the sales of medium priced ink focused on service, and the low-priced ink was almost saturated. Alcohol ester ink has gradually become a trend to replace benzene soluble ink. Although water-soluble ink is environmentally friendly, it is not yet mature. What the production and packaging enterprises want: a single solvent, a wide range of applications, surface printing, internal printing, compounding, cooking integrated, affordable, ideal gravure printing ink, which is also the subject that the current domestic ink production enterprises are committed to studying

in view of the large amount of ink used by large users, large price discounts and rebates, large amount of money pressed, and long payment collection period, ink manufacturers need strong funds and certain strength to do the business of these large users, with large investment in the early stage and large risks in the later stage

middle users are convenient for sales management and are ideal targets for sales, but ink factories need the support of sales policies and long-term and patient human investment

at present, many small users are the big market for ink sales in China, which requires a lot of human investment and depends on after-sales services

in terms of marketing strategy, we should control large ink users, develop medium-sized ink users, and develop small ink users. Give priority to producing varieties with high profits, plan to produce varieties with small profits, and reduce or not produce varieties with losses. Users and dealers who pay in cash should ensure and meet the supply. Users who pay in the reconciliation period should plan supply. Users with poor business conditions, poor reputation and large arrears should be cautious and put an end to supply. In order to concentrate the limited funds of the enterprise, reduce the risk to the minimum and obtain the maximum economic benefits

the rapid expansion of the domestic plastic packaging industry, the weakness of the plastic flexible packaging market, and the continuous rise in the price of petrochemical products. This has intensified the competition in the ink market, made sales difficult, reduced the profit margin of sales, and made some varieties profitable or unprofitable. A large number of sales will cause losses to the enterprise, and the manufacturing enterprises are struggling, especially the manufacturers of medium price ink

due to the soaring price of global crude oil in 2004, the prices of solvents, titanium dioxide, pigments, additives, containers and other raw materials required for ink manufacturing have also risen all the way since the second half of 2004, which has become a major factor in the rise of costs. What's more, there is a lack of supply of some main raw materials. From the standpoint of ink manufacturers, it undoubtedly increases the burden of on-time delivery and reduces the profit space. From the perspective of future development trends, the oil price may still remain at a high level for a period of time, but the price of plastic gravure ink is difficult to adjust. Therefore, ink production enterprises need to tap the potential within the enterprise, reduce costs, and while maintaining low profits, they should consider more for customers and society, and contribute to the stability of China's gravure printing market

gravure printing currently used in China