The Continuing Evolution of the Printing and Ink Industries

The printing industry is evolving. New technologies are driving this change, either within printing itself (digital printing) or how people get their information (the Internet). Some regions are growing (Asia-Pacific, Latin America), while others have stagnated. Some sectors are doing well (packaging and UV), while others are declining (publication and commercial). Consolidation is also changing the shape of the printing industry.

For ink manufacturers, growing along with their customers is essential. During the past year, leading international ink manufacturers have made their own strategic calculations. In response to the growth in digital printing, T&K Toka and Wikoff Color have added inkjet to their portfolio. DIC Corporation and Flint Group acquired Latin American ink manufacturers. DIC (Turkey), Toyo Ink (Vietnam and Brazil), Sakata INX (Japan, UK and U.S.), Siegwerk (Colombia) and others added new manufacturing plants to better serve their customers.

The most important news, of course, is the acquisition of Flint Group by Goldman Sachs and Koch Industries, which should be completed in the second half of this year. Flint Group is the second-largest global ink manufacturer, with consolidated sales of $2.9 billion in inks, pigments and printing supplies.

As industries evolve, successful companies will find opportunities to grow. The same holds true for the ink industry, and time will tell which companies will have the vision to move forward.

The Top International Ink Companies (Ink and Graphic Arts Sales)

1	DIC/Sun Chemical	$3.55B
2	Flint Group	$2.90B
3	Toyo Ink	$1.44B
4	Sakata INX	$1.34B
5	Siegwerk Group	$1.33B
6	Huber Group	$1.08B
7	T&K Toka	$500M
8	Tokyo Printing Ink	$478M
9	SICPA	$400M*
10	Fujifilm North America	$375M*
11	ALTANA AG	$300M*
12	Dainichiseika Color	$290M
13	Yip’s Chemical Holdings	$215M
14	Epple Druckfarben	$191M
15	Wikoff Color	$170M*
16	Sanchez SA de CV	$131M
17	Royal Dutch Van Son	$130M*
18	Letong Chemical	$100M*
18	Xinxiang Wende Xiangchuan	$100M*
20	Zeller+Gmelin	$100M*
21	DYO Printing Inks	$56M
22	Chimigraf Iberica	$48M
23	RUCO Druckfarben	$47M

* Ink World estimate