Future Links April 21st
Today our news roundup from the printing industry covers a Chinese consortium buying Lexmark, a PwC study on the state of 3D printing in industrial manufacturing, Scandy attracting 1 million USD in investments, Mimaki’s new stretchable inks, Liqui Box’s expansion of production capacities, Siegwerk’s LED UV inks for food and pharmaceutical packaging and new on the drupa blog: What’s a bottle without a title.
Lexmark bought by Chinese consortium for 3.6 billion USD
US printer manufacturer Lexmark is being bought by a Chinese-led group for 3.6 billion USD. The buyers include Apex Technology, which makes ink cartridge chips, and PAG Asia Capital, one of Asia’s largest private equity firms. The deal still needs to be approved by regulators and is expected to close in the second half of this year.
More at BBC
New PwC study shows that 3D printing industry is maturing
A new PwC report titles ‘3D Printing comes of age in US industrial manufacturing’ says 3D printing is growing out of the experimental stages in U.S. manufacturing. According to the survey, 51 % of U.S. manufacturers have implemented 3D printing to their process in one way or another, while the amount of experimenting on how it can be applied has dropped down 17 % compared to 29 % in the PwC study conducted two years earlier.
More at 3D Printing Industry
Scandy raises 1 million USD for spherical prints
360 degree cameras are gaining in popularity but since most screens are flat, the visual representation sometimes falls short of expectations. Scandy, a start-up, aims to change that. It has figured out a way to turn the images into photographs that are printed on a spherical object. Callais Capital has now funded the company with 1 million USD.
More at Tech Crunch
Mimaki’s new stretchable ink expands wide format capabilities
Mimaki has announced that a new stretchable ink will be available in summer 2016. Mimaki LUS-350 is a unique ink suitable for a wide range of thermoforming applications, especially those requiring exceptional hardness and durability such as automotive parts. Mimaki LUS-350 ink is compatible with the Mimaki UJF-7151plus and JFX200-2513 printers and will be available in CMYK, white and a unique clear ink.
More at Graphic Repro Online
Liqui Box invests 4 million USD in new equipment
Liqui-Box manufactures bag-in-box flexible packaging and pouches for the dairy, beverage and food and non-food markets. Applications include fountain beverage syrup, milkshake mix, coffee drinks, pumpable liquid foods such as concentrates and sauces, as well as non-food products like oils and paints. Anticipating rising demand, the company invested 4 million USD in new equipment, including three new high capacity, multi-lane bag machines and 1 new single lane bulk bag production line.
More at PR Newswire
Siegwerk introduces first LED UV inks for food and pharmaceuticals
Siegwerk says it is now the first company in the market to offer LED UV printing inks for food and pharmaceutical packaging. By launching the SICURA Nutriflex LEDTec ink series, Siegwerk is specifically expanding its low migration UV printing ink portfolio. The food and pharmaceuticals packaging segment presents a host of requirements and challenges regarding product safety, minimal migration risk and efficiency.
More at Ink World Magazine
New on the drupa blog: What’s a bottle without a title
The world of cosmetics is the place to show off, often with fancy printed bottles and glass containers whose value is higher than the contents inside. Yes, the container has been more important to this industry than any other. With a good-looking bottle, you can sell more; with a good fragrance in an ugly bottle, the sales are likely to be low and unprofitable. This presents a great opportunity for digital print. A guest article by Mimaki.
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