Advanced Ink & Chemical sees opportunities in niche markets.

Opening up a new manufacturing business is never easy even in times of economic prosperity, and when the economy is going through a downturn, a new business can be even more challenging.

However, for Advanced Ink & Chemical, a Bensalem, PA-based specialist in water-based inks, inkjet inks, specialty inks, coatings, pressroom cleaners and chemicals, the time is right for a company that serves niche markets and emphasizes high quality.

"Even though the market is soft right now, there's more than enough room for a specialty company that makes a good product," said Scott Lever, president of Advanced Ink & Chemical. "We saw a niche in the market for water-based inks and high-end coatings, where the competition has some holes. The market is more high-volume, and we'll stay out of the commodity market. We're happy with the peripheral business."

Operating out of a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, Advanced Ink & Chemical also makes specialty printing products, including pearlescent, matte, tactile and gloss coatings as well as fluorescent and security inks. Advanced manufactures all of its own products using media mills, large volume mixers and a stringent quality control process. Advanced represents more than 50 years of experience in the manufacture and sales of inks and pressroom supplies.

Advanced Ink & Chemical offers an extensive range of specialty inks. For example, the company has a premium line of water-based flexographic fluorescent inks, which can be custom tinted for extra-long life. Advanced offers a wide range of security inks, available in flexo and rotary screen versions, as well as invisible inks that actuate at different wavelengths and are available in a variety of different shades and intensities.

Advanced also offers water-based glow-in-the-dark inks for flexo and rotary screen printing applications, as well as a premium line of inks for inkjet printing, as its expertise in the intricate chemistry related to inkjet printing enables the company to offer a full range of products for digital imaging, including wide format, photo quality inks for home and commercial applications, desktop and industrial applications.

In addition, the company has a wide variety of specialty water-based coatings for flexo applications. These include tactile effect coatings; high gloss coatings; matte and satin coatings; work and turn coatings; primers for UV overprint and laminations; heat resistant coatings; pearl coatings; security coatings; FDA compliant coatings; and no skid and COF regulated coatings.

Advanced Ink & Chemical also manufactures pressroom cleaners, wash up solutions and various other chemicals. For example, Advanced Ink has introduced Ink Sol WB 1000 and Ink Sol UV 1000, environmentally friendly cleaners utilizing a proprietary formulation that has been designed to break down and dissolve the resins used in all water-based inks, completely dissolving all components of the ink.

These cleaners can be used on anilox rollers and any other surface where dried inks wreak havoc on anilox rollers, diminishing their ability to transfer the right amount of ink. Ink Sol WB 1000 is ideal for water-based inks, while Ink Sol UV 1000 works equally well on oil-based and/or UV curable inks.

So far, the results are promising for Advanced Ink & Chemical.

"We've had our inks, matte coatings and cleaners out on tests with customers, and we are getting good interest," Mr. Lever said. "Our largest product is our coatings, which are cost effective and produce good results. Even though the market is soft, we feel that niche products are very appealing to printers."

At a glance

Advanced Ink & Chemical 736 Dunks Ferry Road Bensalem, PA 19020 Phone: (215) 639-8580 Fax: (215) 639-8642 www.advancedinks.com Specialties: Water-based inks, inkjet inks, Specialty inks and coatings, Pressroom cleaners And chemicals