Making printing ink is fascinating!
These days, commercial printing inks are environmentally-safe and manufactured using sustainable materials and practices. The materials used are high quality, renewable resins, organics, natural minerals, and vegetable oils, so no toxic chemical are used in their creation or clean up.
The manufacturing process involves combining pigments with binders to hold the pigment particles together, and solvents to control the viscosity and drying time. Additives provide enhancements for specific properties of the ink. Next, the raw materials are blended according to a precise formulation to achieve the desired ink properties. For example, the famous color standards company, Pantone, has created their own collections of benchmarks and formulas to standardize printing inks. We have had custom inks made for our customers, too.
The Raw Materials
Organic, carbon-based compounds and natural mineral dispense all the color in printing inks. These pigment sources deliver a wide range of colors that are characterized by vibrancy, transparency, and lightfastness.
Binders hold the pigments while ensuring that they adhere to the printed surface. Binders provide ink with film-forming properties, adhesion strength, and resistance to external factors such as abrasion and moisture.
Solvents control the viscosity, drying time, and flow properties of printing inks. They help dissolve the binders and pigments, allowing for easy application and transfer of the ink onto the printing surface. Common solvents include water, alcohols, esters, and glycol ethers.
Additives in printing inks enhance their performance and achieve specific properties. These additives include dispersants, wetting agents, drying agents, and anti-foaming agents, among others.
Made in the USA
We source our printing inks from a local company in the USA. Our inks provide excellent ink-to-water balance while maintaining clean and sharp print characteristics. These inks supply exceptional dot transfer for true color and clarity of detail. Our inks allow us to produce high-quality printing that brings your words and images to life while adhering to your brand guidelines.
Ink Making Video
A very interesting video about manufacturing printing inks was filmed at The Printing Ink Company in Canada. The entire video is only a couple of minutes long. So, take a break and enjoy something new today.
Video by Jasper Pickering, [email protected].