Your 2021 Ultimate Price Guide to Solvent, Eco Solvent and Latex Inks

I'm probably the only ink CEO that's still around since 1995.

Most ink CEOs have moved on.

Many factories have exited.  AIJ.  AIT.  Budget.  Bordeaux.  Dominion.  Durafos.   InkMill.  London.  Lyson.  Sepiax.  Staedtler.  Triangle.  Tulip.  Countless Chinese ones too.

 

What is Water-based Inkjet Ink?

Water-based inks consist of dye colorants, pigments, latex polymers, surfactants, glycols, and humectants.  It first emerged in 1951, exhibits the brightest colors, and have evolved into latex inks of today.

Water-based prices are the most competitive.

Factory prices to Original Equipment Manufacturers are US$1 per liter.  Price into the distribution channel is about US$5 a liter.

Oversupply has caused 20 manufacturers to exit.

Consolidation has crashed prices to the bottom since 2005.

 

What is eco-solvent ink?

Eco-solvent ink is popularly known as ink with Diethylene Glycol Diethyl Ether (DEGDEE) as its primary solvent.  DEGDEE is a byproduct of petroleum from which BASF of Germany is a big supplier.

It is odorless with no harmful volatile organic compounds.  Eco-solvent inks are jetted through piezo inkjet printheads of Epson, Ricoh, Toshiba, Konica-Minolta, and Seiko.  Eco-solvent ink for Epson DX4, DX5, and DX7 printhead is the most popular.

Eco-solvent ink price is the third most competitive.

Factory prices to Original Equipment Manufacturers are as low as US$6 per liter.  Price into the distribution channel hovers around US$11 a liter.

Factories with geopolitically stable economies-of-scale are found in Singapore and China.

Oversupply has caused as many as 10 factories to exit.

Consolidation has bottomed out prices since 2015.

 

What are mild-solvent and solvent inks?

Mild-solvent is popularly known as ink with Butyl Glycol Acetate (BGA) as its primary solvent carrier.  BGA is also a byproduct of petroleum from which BASF of Germany is the largest supplier.

Mild-solvent ink has an odor but it does not have harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like Cyclohexanone, Toluene, and Xylene found in solvent inks.

Mild-solvent and solvent inks are jetted through piezo inkjet printheads of Konica-Minolta 512i, Ricoh, Seiko SPT, and Xaar.

Its prices are the second most competitive.

Factory prices to Original Equipment Manufacturers are US$4 per liter.  Price into the distribution channels is at about US$6 a liter.

Factories with geopolitically stable economies-of-scale are found in Singapore and China.

Oversupply has caused as many as 15 factories to exit.

Consolidation has bottomed out prices since 2010.

 

What is solvent-vinyl or solvent-media?

Vinyl is nowadays commonly used for printing of both indoor and outdoor display banners.  Vinyl is a thick, flexible, and portable material, it is also known as PVC.

Vinyl can be printed in three ways - solvent, eco-solvent, and latex.  Vinyl printing provides a photo-quality output.

What is a solvent printer?

Solvent ink printers today are commonly known as 3.2 meters wide-format printers that use mild-solvent and eco-solvent inks.

Desktop eco-solvent printers are not as popular.

Popular wide-format eco-solvent printer brands are Roland, Mimaki, and Mutoh.

Popular solvent printer print head manufacturers are primarily Epson, Konica-Minolta, and Seiko.

The popular latex printhead manufacturer is HP today.

UV ink is not as popular because its raw materials of oligomers, monomers, and photoinitiators are inherently more expensive.

Prices of eco-solvent printing machines have bottomed out.

A second-user Roland eco-solvent printer can go as low as $3,499.

When you shop online, you will quickly find an eco-solvent printer for sale.

 

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Thank you.

Sam Leong MSc MBA | WhatsApp +65-9011-2282 | sam@sam-ink.com