Getting it covered
Image: Actega
CanTech International examines the latest developments in the inks and coatings sectors
With projections in the market anticipating a CAGR of 3.3 per cent between the years 2022 to 2030, the global coating and inks sectors are on a steady trajectory. This, along with demand for not only more assurance of food safety compliance, but also innovation in can design, means that manufacturers, more than ever, must take a leading approach in versatility across their operations.
In coatings, many companies are reducing the BPA content in their offerings or removing it entirely, which is the case for the Netherlands-based Diostyl, whose founder and owner, Jantinus Boer, told CanTech International, “Our strength is in BPA- NI products, so coatings to which neither Bisphenol A nor bisphenol compounds were intentionally added. Today, we’re seeing a higher worldwide demand for these products.”
This has become more of a prevalent issue in coatings due to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) publishing a re-evaluation in 2023 of the tolerable daily intake of BPA in food and drink containers – the advice was to significantly reduce the previously-published intake.
For security in ink safety, INX International Ink Co, headquartered in the US, developed the EcoCan metal decorating ink, which received a Gold Level Material Health Certificate from Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute, in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Encouragement Agency (EPEA).
In order for brand owners to provide differentiation for their cans on-shelf, many inks manufacturers are developing varied ranges to provide aesthetically pleasing effects. For instance, Actega, global expert in speciality coatings, inks, adhesives and sealing compounds, has developed its Polistar portfolio which is PTFE-free and features ‘spider’ inks which provide a crackled/marbled effect, fluorescent and thermochromic (colour- changing) inks.
2023 moves & takeaways
In April last year, Actega also confirmed a US$5 million investment in its New Jersey facility. The investment funds numerous developments across the US site. The multiple expansion projects and process improvements planned for the New Jersey site – which is mainly dedicated to coating operations – have already begun, with the full development plan set to be completed in the first quarter of 2024, the company reported.
In the coffee capsule market, Actega introduced its ACTseal PVC-free heat seal lacquers, eliminating the need for PVC coatings, which are harder to recycle and which are increasingly subject to regulatory restrictions. The company also unveiled its UV direct to metal process at Metpack 2023, which saw a collaboration with Plasmatreat and Brasilata. Global partnerships such as this are being forged to accelerate toward more targeted and specific sustainability goals.
Indeed, many inks and coating businesses are reminding their customers of their sustainability targets. Inks provider, Sun Chemical, achieved a silver EcoVadis rating in July 2023, which, according to Mike Simoni, the company’s global sustainability director, proved “a strong reflection of our dedication to improving eco-efficiency and providing industry advancements in sustainability as we work with DIC Corporation toward our goal of carbon neutrality by 2050.”
PPG’s global packaging coatings sector, which saw various senior leadership appointments during the past year, announced its decarbonisation targets in June 2023, including a commitment to reduce absolute emissions from its own operations (scope 1 and 2) by 50 per cent by 2030 from a 2019 base year. The PPG group recently achieved record fourth quarter results from all of its various segments in 2023, with reported net sales of US$4.4 billion.
Those in the inks sector did witness a small downward trend in the past year, however. Alex Folloso, director of metal decorating technology at INX International Ink Co, told CanTech International that the company experienced a slight decline in ink sales volume in 2023. “We think this is due to a weakened economy and less consumer spending, including consumer drinking. Most if not all of the companies in the can making supply chain are destocking inventory they had from 2022,” he said.
Staying ahead of regulation
Inks and coatings companies must increasingly stay ahead of new regulatory rules, to become the ones driving change – as governments and decision makers are generally seen to be slow on the uptake by much of the industry.
Chris Rogers, vice president, partnerships & business development at Kao Collins, which supplies inkjet solutions for packaging substrates, said, “Understanding and acting upon annual trends is critical for our industry’s sustained success. It’s not just about keeping up. It’s about shaping our path forward.”
Sherwin-Williams’ Sustainability by Design – emphasised by Laura Tonucci, global marketing manager, household products – at this year’s Paris Packaging Week edition, hones in on this concept. Tonucci commented that, as there is no worldwide regulation to follow, Sherwin- Williams uses a dynamic, forward-thinking approach when developing products, which is something all companies must adopt, but there are also broader considerations. In terms of sustainability- related advice for the rest of the sector, INX’s Folloso imparted, “Firstly, focus on reducing CO2 emissions across your entire supply chain. Next is to continue promoting the recyclability of the metal can; for example, metal versus plastic packaging. Lastly, consider using products focused on energy reduction and containing raw materials with bio-renewable content, or products that have little to no impact on the environment.”
R&D
Another major player in the inks and coatings space, AkzoNobel, has recently announced its involvement in the SusInkCoat project in the Netherlands, which will explore how to make inks and coatings even more sustainable. The programme, which will run for the next five years, is backed by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy and the Dutch Research Council (NWO).
“Our discussions about collaborating with our SusInkCoat partners have been very positive,” said AkzoNobel’s R&D director of scientific academic programmes, André van Linden, who is also the co-lead of SusInkCoat. “We’re all facing the same societal challenges – how to become more circular – and we’re looking for the same solutions in different application areas. But we’ve never done that together for this specific research topic, so we need an ecosystem to help us solve these challenges.”
Van Linden adds that the programme – one of many R&D projects the company is involved with – will also support AkzoNobel’s ambition to achieve 50 per cent less carbon emissions in its own operations – and across the value chain – by 2030. AkzoNobel will be collaborating with Canon, Evonik, GFB, PTG and RUG Ventures, who together possess extensive knowledge of market demands, supply chains and production processes. All the
SusInkCoat partners will also work with academic researchers at several Dutch universities in an effort to identify promising developments that can be commercialised, used for education purposes or for outreach to the public.
2024 outlook
INX’s Folloso has a determined outlook for the next year, commenting that the company’s R&D group “continues to develop new inks or modify existing products with product safety and regulatory compliance in mind.”
“We also continue to support our customer’s individual sustainability goals and explain so in the sustainability report we released in December 2023,” he said.
Diostyl’s Boer predicts that the demand for BPA-NI products will “increase significantly in 2024 in North America and Asia,” and that he is optimistic about future sales in the coatings segment despite expecting “somewhat lower sales in the first quarter” of the year.
He added that he would “like to make a serious plea to have a closer look at the costs of coating applications rather than the costs of the coating itself. Often a serious approach of the application costs, for instance, changing from two layers of coating to one layer, enables higher savings compared to trying to lower the costs of the coatings themselves.”
There will no doubt be further discussion points in this area as the year progresses, and CanTech International will continue to be your source for updates in these areas of the metal packaging supply chain.
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