Major Products: Gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

No. of Employees: 5,143 (consolidated)

Comments: Sakata INX and its subsidiary, INX International Ink Co., had a strong year in 2024, with sales of $1.56 billion (¥236,513 million) in printing ink and graphic arts and strong performance across all geographies.

“Thanks to a strong economic performance in Southeast Asia and India, as well as a recovery in consumer spending in the United States and expanded sales efforts in South America, we saw significant growth in the sales of packaging inks and metal inks,” said Toru Kaneko, GM for the International Operations Department of the Corporate Planning division of Sakata INX. “Sales of packaging inks increased across the Americas, as well as in Southeast and South Asia.

“Additionally, inkjet inks experienced growth driven by both increasing demand and the rollout of new products across key lifestyle sectors such as food, clothing, and housing. As a result, we achieved both higher revenues and increased profits.”

Sakata INX strengthened its position worldwide, acquiring North Carolina-based Coatings & Adhesives Corporation and adding new packaging ink plants in Brazil and the Philippines.

“In November 2024, we acquired Coatings & Adhesives Corporation in the United States, a company with over 35 years of expertise in coating solutions and a strong reputation for performance, service, and quality,” Kaneko reported. “This acquisition enables us to enhance our product capabilities, improve production efficiency, and share sales expertise, thus creating new opportunities and driving further expansion in the packaging market.

“To meet growing demand and expand our presence in the South American market, we constructed a new packaging ink plant in Brazil,” added Kaneko. “Similarly, we established another new packaging ink facility in the Philippines to support our growth in Southeast Asia. In terms of organizational changes, we appointed a new president for our operations
in India.”

Tariffs are a significant concern, and Kaneko said that Sakata INX is prepared for whatever may happen.

“The market has been understanding of the tariff situation and the difficulty in making substantial changes quickly in formulation and source of supply,” Kaneko said. “Based on these difficulties, we have passed on tariff costs in our selling prices with a commitment to mitigate those costs. This mitigation will come from finding alternative sources and seeking exemptions. We will continue to utilize our US manufacturing capabilities and use domestic raw materials where available. We will also seek exemption relief where domestic alternatives simply do not exist.”

As for 2025, Kaneko said that Sakata INX expects increased revenue driven by the steady expansion of packaging ink sales in both the Americas and Europe, as well as contributions from the recently acquired coatings company.

“On the profit side, although we anticipate higher costs related to system investments and personnel expenses, we also expect profit growth,” added Kaneko. “This will be supported by the continued expansion of packaging ink sales, efficiency improvements through business structure reforms, and price revisions in the Japanese market.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

No. of Employees: 5,035 (consolidated)

Comments: Sakata INX and its subsidiary, INX International Ink Co., had a solid year in 2023, with sales of $1.55 billion (¥219,972 million) in printing ink and graphic arts. Overall, sales held steady, with Asia doing particularly well.

“Sales were sluggish in the United States, Europe, and Japan due to reduced demand which resulted from a drop in consumption,” said Toru Kaneko, GM for the International Operations Department of the Corporate Planning division of Sakata INX. “The Asian region saw growth in 2023, especially in Indonesia, India, Thailand, and Vietnam. Profits increased significantly year-on-year due to lower raw material prices in the Americas and Asia, as well as the effect of sales price revisions in various regions.”

Kaneko reported that Sakata INX is looking to grow significantly in the next two years, adding new capacity in Vietnam as well as beginning new projects in Japan and Brazil.

“We were able to achieve the goals of the medium-term management plan that we worked on from 2021 to 2023,” said Kaneko. “Sakata INX also announced a new medium-term management plan with targets up to 2026, including plans to achieve sales of 270 billion yen and an operating profit of 18 billion yen in 2026.

“In 2023, we expanded our packaging ink facilities in Vietnam,” Kaneko added. “We also made progress on the construction of a new factory in Brazil and the introduction of a core system in Japan, both of which are scheduled for completion this year.”

To further meet these goals, Sakata INX is lining up investments in its infrastructure in the Americas.

“In the Americas in particular, we are planning large investments to build new factories in the United States and Brazil,” added Kaneko. “In addition, we are working to strengthen the consolidated management of the Sakata INX Group and are deepening cooperation across the group with initiatives such as the environment, human resource development, and governance.”

With crude oil process coming down some, raw material costs continue to stabilize, and Sakata INX worked to strengthen its supply chain.

“As the price of raw materials stabilized due to the reduction in crude oil prices, we worked to ensure a stable supply by securing new procurement routes, joint purchasing, and the allocation of materials within the Sakata INX Group,” Kaneko reported. “We are also strengthening our supply chain by adopting systems such as EcoVadis.”

Kaneko observed that the rest of 2024 should continue to be good for Sakata INX.

“Although there are concerns about falling sales prices and rising labor costs, raw material prices are expected to remain relatively stable,” Kaneko said. “Sales of packaging inks and metal deco inks are expected to grow as sales are strong particularly in Asia as well as in the Americas and Europe.

“In recent years, sales of inkjet inks have also been growing, not only with traditional paper printing but also in the clothing and building materials fields. We aim to expand in the inkjet ink field, along with packaging and aluminum cans,”

Kaneko concluded.

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

No. of Employees: 4,862 (consolidated)

Comments: For Sakata INX and its subsidiary, INX International Ink Co., 2022 was another strong year, as the company’s sales grew to $1.566 billion (¥205,844 million) in printing ink and graphic arts. However, the end of the year saw some softening in sales, while raw materials still were a concern.

“Although the sales volume of inks for packaging had increased until the third quarter, sales dropped sharply in the fourth quarter. This was mostly due to less consumption in the U.S.,” said Katsuya Tanaka, GM for the International Operations Department of the Corporate Planning division of Sakata INX. “The South American market, Brazil in particular, performed well, as did India and the Philippines. Raw material prices soared more than we expected at the beginning of our fiscal year. Freight, personnel and utility costs also rose significantly due to global inflation.”

Bryce Kristo, president and CEO of INX International, pointed to challenges from supply chain disruptions that made providing continuity of supply to customers a top priority in the first half of 2022.

“Those disruptions and inflation increased costs for our primary raw materials; in some cases it forced us to find alternative materials at a greater cost that required reformulation,” Kristo observed. “By the end of 2022 we saw more stability and lower demand, which reflected excess inventories that were driven in the first half by supply and recession concerns. It was a down year overall, but we have recovered by staying with our strategy where we continue to focus on sustainability and safety in strong growth market segments.”

INX believes that there will be a general rebound of demand across all segments in the second half of this year.

“Excess inventories have been lowered and the supply chain has stabilized,” Kristo added. “One of the strongest markets is inkjet industrial applications that are beginning to emerge.”

In terms of personnel, the past year was a time of change for Sakata INK and its subsidiary, INX International Ink Company, with new leaders coming into both companies. Dr. Kotaro Morita stepped down as chairman of Sakata INX and there were many changes in the U.S. John Hrdlick retired as president and CEO after 46 years with the company in April 2023. After 32 years with INX, Bryce Kristo is the new president and CEO. In the same month, Toshihiko Fukunaga replaced Dr. Morita as chairman of Sakata INX.

There were other substantial changes at INX: David Rossi became the new CFO; he and Shane Bertsch, SVP of strategy planning and innovation, joined the INX International Board of Directors as senior vice presidents.

Rick Westrom retired as senior vice president of strategic sourcing and was replaced by Anthony DeFrancesco as director of supply chain. He reports to Jim Kochanny, who is now a senior vice president. Joe Kelly also retired as the VP and liquid technical director, and was succeeded by Ross Roxas. Paul Edwards was hired in May 2023 as the VP of the Digital Division.

“In the last 12 months we have seen a series of our long-term employees reach retirement,” Kristo said. “There has been a successful transition for many in taking on new leadership roles and the recruitment of people from outside the industry who have blended well together.”

Tanaka pointed to Sakata INX’s sustainability programs as important highlights from the past year.

“Sustainability activities began based on the company’s long-term vision that was formulated in 2021,” noted Tanaka. “We are strengthening the development of environmentally friendly products to the global market and have expanded our Botanical ink series, which uses plant-derived ingredients. We also endorse the SDGs and Global Compact led by the United Nations, and are actively promoting group-wide initiatives for the sustainable development of society. This includes various aspects such as the environment, human rights and governance.”

“The supply chain disruptions demanded much of our energy, but it was also a catalyst for change,” Kristo said. “We have progressed with our sustainability efforts and learned and adopted much stronger supply chain and product line management tactics.”

Raw materials are stabilizing, although Japan remains hardest hit by higher petroleum prices.

“Since the second half of 2022,” said Tanaka, “the prices of petroleum-derived raw materials gradually stabilized in many regions except Japan. They have now peaked and fallen slightly. In Japan, raw material prices peaked in the first half of 2023.”

“Raw material price volatility has stabilized compared to last year,” said Kristo. “The growing concern is now regulatory. Domestically, the federal government is being displaced by state regulations and it is driving additional complexity. Given the unpredictability of the past few years for numerous and at times unforeseen reasons, we are now more inclined to expect the unexpected.”

As for the rest of 2023, INX’s leaders anticipate further growth.

“We expect the economies of the United States and China – which were depressed from 2022 to the first half of this year – will gradually recover in the latter part of 2023 and lead to an increase in sales volume,” remarked Tanaka. “Although raw material prices have stabilized somewhat, there are concerns that rising logistics and labor costs due to global inflation will cause major cost increases in various regions.”

“The first half of 2023 has been one of recovery and we expect it to flow through the end of the year,” Kristo added. “We also expect demand to increase to normal levels as inventories decrease and inflation gets reined in. We remain committed to providing outstanding service and innovation to the market. INX will continue to pursue investment opportunities with our Corporate Venture Capital effort. It will focus on novel materials and other solutions that support our strategy and market needs.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

Number of Employees: 4,766 (consolidated)

Comments: Sakata INX and its subsidiary, INX International Ink Co., enjoyed a very successful year in 2021, with sales up 12.4% with the increase virtually across the range of its products.

“Although Sakata INX’s sales of commercial printing ink – including newspaper ink – were sluggish due to digitization and the COVID-19 pandemic, sales of packaging ink did well due to the stay-at-home order and global economic activities recovery,” said Sakata INX GM Katsuya Tanaka.

Tanaka noted that price revisions in the US and Asia also contributed to the increase in sales.

“Digital and specialty products showed recovery with inkjet ink and toner sales due to economic activities resumption,” said Tanaka. “The demand for pigment dispersions for liquid crystals remained firm from the prior year, which resulted in increased sales. Profit wise, there was only a slight increase as raw material prices increased worldwide, and mostly in the US. This was caused by the supply chain disruptions and deterioration in the balance of supply and demand resulting from the resumption of economic activities.”

John Hrdlick, INX International’s president and CEO, reported that INX International’s sales were very strong.

“Our leading growth markets included metal decorating, solvent packaging, energy curable and digital,” Hrdlick said. “Most of the growth was organic with our existing customers, who added facilities and equipment and saw their business expand. The majority of our business is packaging and those customers remained very busy throughout last year. I think the new normal has not been determined yet, and we are all trying to adjust.”

Still, the severe chain supply chain problems and ongoing raw material price increases hampered INX’s ability to build new business.

“It continues to be an uncomfortable situation,” Hrdlick observed. “Despite the strong top line growth and our own price increases to the market, we were not able to stay ahead of the significant and relentless increases we were faced with. The second half of 2021 was particularly difficult, but we finished the year with some momentum despite the circumstances.”

Tanaka reported that packaging and metal deco sales were highlights.

“Packaging ink sales grew steadily as higher growth was achieved in some regions, compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Tanaka. “As far as packaging ink customers are concerned, many of them are performing well due to demand growth resulting from the resumption of economic activities after the COVID-19 pandemic. Our sales of metal deco ink were also strong as demand for aluminum cans increased due to its high recyclability and low environmental impact. By acquiring A.M. Ramp & Co. GmbH (RUCO) in 2020, it promoted our restructuring of the Europe segment.”

Tanaka said that sustainability is an area of opportunity for Sakata INX.

“In 2021, we formulated and launched a long-term vision aimed at achieving sales goals for 2030,” said Tanaka. “By expanding our existing business and taking on the challenge of adding new businesses, we are focused on strengthening our Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) and sustainability initiatives. Currently, we are advancing a variety of internal reforms and new initiatives to achieve our targets.”

Hrdlick noted capital improvement projects that were completed this past year.

“We completed the expansion of our Lebanon, OH plant with a new warehouse addition and reactor installation,” Hrdlick said. “Our ongoing project of reinventing the Dunkirk, NY facility continues its various stages. Last year we completed the Water Manufacturing expansion and digital manufacturing department modification. We also began installing and operating new equipment in Dunkirk to add to our metal division capacity needs. The implementation of our new strategies and goals progressed very well and those efforts are gaining momentum halfway through 2022.”

As for raw material sales and logistics issues, the rest of 2022 will likely see more price increases all around.

“Unfortunately, raw material price increases continue to be a major concern with almost quarterly increases,” said Hrdlick. “We’ve been told these increases will continue for the rest of the year. Various material shortages and delays continue, and while freight logistics seem to have improved, it hasn’t been consistent. Increased inventories and expedited freight costs continue to be a concern since they are related to these issues.”

For Sakata INX and INX International, the first half of 2022 continue to show growth, but the specter of further raw material issues remains in the forefront.

“Sales have been growing worldwide, mainly in packaging ink, and surpassing levels from the last two years,” said Tanaka. “On the other hand, the cost of ink is starting to rise. This is due to the sharp rise in crude oil prices caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and soaring personnel costs of global inflation. Although we have been making price revisions of our products, profits have declined compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year.”

“INX International sales remain very strong and we are continuing our growth. However, our overall results are tracking similar to the second half results from last year,” said Hrdlick.

“Based on the information I have, the raw material costs, supply and logistics challenges will remain with us into 2023 and possibly longer,” Hrdlick added. “I think we will have a better idea in the next 60 days of how our year will end. Raw materials have the biggest impact on our business and it remains as the most significant concern.”

“Although sales are steadily rising due to active demand and the expansion of environmentally friendly inks, raw materials and other costs are increasing more sharply. Hence, the current situation is more difficult than our initial assumption,” said Tanaka. “Since the situation in Ukraine is extremely difficult to forecast, it is hard to predict the second half of 2022.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

Number of Employees: 4,598

Comments: Headquartered in Tokyo, Sakata INX is the third largest ink manufacturer in the world. COVID-19 impacted Sakata INX in a variety of ways, although its ink and graphic arts sales were relatively flat at $1.412 billion.

“In Japan and Asia, ink sales for information media were sluggish due to a decrease in advertising demand as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Katsuya Tanaka, GM – International Operations Department of the Corporate Planning division for Sakata INX. “Sales of packaging inks declined due to the decrease in leisure and inbound demand, as well as a reduced demand for toner and other office products. On the other hand, profits increased as a result of cost reductions and two other factors – a steady increase of packaging ink sales due to greater consumption caused by people staying home, and increased demand for hygiene-related products.”

“From a business standpoint, we were able to do reasonably well,” said John Hrdlick, president and CEO of INX International Ink Co. “Over 80% of our products are used in the packaging markets that supplied grocery stores, and we were still able to experience growth.”

Sakata INX and INX made some key moves during the past year to ensure growth, including plant expansions.

“Sakata INX acquired M. Ramp & Co. GmbH in Germany, and construction of our plant in Bangladesh will soon be completed. Preparations for production have already begun,” said Tanaka. “We have also formulated our long-term 2030 vision and mid-term 2023 plan. Primarily through ESG and our sustainability initiatives, we will focus on developing new revenue sources and expanding the print ink and functional material businesses.”

“In addition to our employees reacting very well to the COVID guidelines,” said Hrdlick, “we continued with the expansion of the INX facility in Lebanon, Ohio, and reset our long term vision and strategy along with the Sakata global organization. Our acquisition of Ruco Germany and USA was finalized and the transition went very well considering the travel limitations related to COVID. Our company in Brazil also continued to show growth and expansion throughout South America.”

Sustainability is a key focus at Sakata INX and INX, and the company is developing new products and solutions to further its goals.

“Everything we do,” Hrdlick added, “is heavily focused on our long term plan. Most of it involves providing new and improved sustainable products to all markets we are involved in. It is exciting to see where those efforts will take us going forward.”

COVID-19 had a major impact on raw material pricing and availability, and Sakata INX and INX were no exception.

“The price of crude oil and naphtha dropped, which contributed positively to our business as a whole,” commented Tanaka. “However, the alcohol supply was tight due to high medical demand and that negatively impacted business in Europe due to soaring prices. As of June 1, the price of crude oil and naphtha is rising in sync with the economic recovery. Various costs are escalating due to the influence of the severe cold wave in the United States a few months ago and the disruption of logistics due to COVID-19, which had a negative impact on our profits this past year.”

“INX International experienced supply chain challenges in 2020, as did everyone,” pointed out Hrdlick. “However, we again were able to manage through those challenges and maintain our position in the supply chain. The situation did not show signs of stabilizing throughout the year.”

Both Tanaka and Hrdlick say they are seeing improvements in terms of sales, but raw materials remain a concern.

“The economy in Japan remains sluggish and has not yet recovered due to a respread of infections by a mutant coronavirus,” said Tanaka. “In Asia, sales and profits are expected to increase due to steady sales of packaging inks, and a recovery trend taking place in China and India where business activities were severely restricted in 2020.”

“With the many ongoing effects of COVID, raw material supply and extreme freight logistics issues in 2021, we do not see our situation stabilizing until later this year,” said Hrdlick. “This past year has led to unprecedented raw material and freight cost increases and shortages. Sales demand in packaging remains high, and the commercial markets have improved in a few areas but not consistently.”

As a result, Tanaka said that it is very difficult to estimate the outlook for the rest of 2021, as business is being impacted by the ongoing COVID situation.

“Sales are expected to grow on the premise the economy would recover with the expansion of vaccinations,” he added. “That said, costs are expected to increase due to the impact of soaring raw material prices and expenses associated with the resumption of sales activities.”

“We have a very strong team and I’m confident in our ability to weather the challenges in 2021,” said Hrdlick. “However, our ability to do that will rest heavily in how much we are able to mitigate and pass along the increased costs we have been absorbing.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

Number of Employees: 4,547

Comments: The third-largest ink manufacturer in the world, Sakata INX had a strong year in 2019, led by packaging ink and inkjet ink sales, overcoming sluggish ink sales for information media in developed countries and slow sales in Japan and the Asia-Pacific region.

“Favorable packaging ink sales in North America and Europe, and good sales of inkjet ink in the digital and specialty product business, resulted in growth in revenue,” said Katsuya Tanaka, GM – International Operations Department of the Corporate Planning division of Sakata INX Corp. “Successful price increases in each region led to an improvement in profit and increases in sales volume contributed to the increased profit.

“As for the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, there have been drastic ink production volume decreases, price increases in some raw materials, and some difficulty in the procurement of raw materials due to the lockdown by the government in some parts of Asia,” Tanaka added. “Ink sales for information media remained at low levels. In Japan, packaging ink sales were weak due to food loss, waste reduction and climate instability. Sales in the Asia region also grew at a sluggish pace.”

Sakata INX and its US subsidiary, INX International Ink Co., were active in the past 12 months, making a significant acquisition and adding new facilities worldwide.

In June 2020, INX International Ink Co. announced it finalized its acquisition of RUCO Druckfarben. Headquartered in Eppstein, Germany, RUCO Druckfarben was the 24th ranked ink manufacturer in the 2019 Ink World International Top Ink Report, reporting sales of $44 million.

A specialist in inks for screen, pad, gravure, flexo and dry offset printing, the company has approximately 150 employees.

Meanwhile, the company has added new facilities in Asia Pacific and the US.

“Last year we announced new plant construction in Bangladesh and it’s expected to be completed in 2021,” Tanaka reported. “In June, the inkjet ink research and development functions were consolidated with our recently redesigned R&D facility in West Chicago, IL. In July, the second packaging ink plant will be built in the same industrial park as the first plant that launched operations in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam.”

Tanaka noted that Sakata INX is coping with raw material pricing and availability.

“We have taken various measures to absorb the increased cost by streamlining production, cutting various expenses, changing procurement methods, etc.,” Tanaka said. “We have implemented price increases for two years to cover the increase in cost that we can no longer absorb.”

Overall, the world economy is reeling from COVID-19, making it hard to project what the rest of the year holds.

“The COVID-19 global pandemic has greatly affected our business,” Tanaka noted. “It is very difficult to get a clear view of the future due to the possibility of a major change in future social and economic situations. On top of it, the US-China trade dispute has become an international issue and there has been no hint of improvement. The crude oil price dropped rapidly the other day; we have such instability factors in both sales and material purchases. On the other hand, in developing countries that have experienced remarkable economic growth, we should be able to continue to expect increases in packaging demand with increasing population and economic development.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

Number of Employees: 4,203

Comments: SAKATA INX had a solid year in 2018, enjoying 3% growth in its printing ink and graphic arts sales to $1.375 billion, led by packaging inks and specialty products.

“While ink sales for paper media in 2018 were sluggish in developed countries, packaging ink and digital and specialty product sales both grew,” said Shingo Watano, GM of IOD for Sakata INX Corp. “However, raw material prices increased globally, resulting in a decrease in profits. We have expanded sales from the start of 2019, but raw material prices remain at high levels due to tight environmental regulations and an increase in import duties from the U.S.-China trade dispute.”

Watano said that Sakata INX had a number of highlights during the past year, beginning with its new Executive Officer System.

“Sakata INX Corp. introduced the Executive Officer System in March 2018,” Watano noted. “This system should enable us to respond appropriately and promptly to changes in the business environment. As such, Sakata INX shared the division of responsibility between management decision-making and the supervisory and business execution functions. This system is also aimed to streamline operations and efficient management by clarifying the division of responsibility of business execution.”

The company also expanded its efforts in South America, adding a new 24,000 square foot plant in Itatiba, Brazil that will manufacture 2-piece metal deco inks. The facility is designed to produce approximately 9 million pounds of product every year.

Sakata INX is coping with higher raw material costs, combing cost-cutting with price increases of its own.

“We have taken various measures to absorb the increased cost by streamlining production, cutting various expenses, and changing the procurement method,” Watano reported. “We are asking for a price increase from our customers to cover the increase in costs that we can no longer absorb.”

Watano said that Sakata INX will be continuing its R&D efforts, which will, in turn, lead to further growth in the coming years.

“It goes without saying that we will develop environmentally friendly products. Furthermore, we are utilizing our core technologies such as polymer design, pigment dispersion and material control technology to deploy image display material, functional coating material, energy material, functional colorants and others,” Watano added.

While Watano and Sakata INX are concerned about geopolitical issues facing the industry in general, he believes that there are significant opportunities ahead, particularly in packaging and environmentally friendly products.

“The situation is not optimistic due to economic effects and raw material prices as there are many matters to be concerned about, such as Chinese environmental regulations, the US-China trade dispute and Brexit,” Watano said. “On the other hand, we continue to see steady economic growth in newly developing countries, mainly Asia. The global demand for packages continues to grow, and we believe that packaging ink sales volume will increase. As marine plastic and plastic waste become a global issue, we think film packaging will be reconsidered globally. We will propel development and expand sales of environmentally friendly products since we expect the demand for such products will increase even more.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inkjet inks, toners and coatings.

Number of Employees: 4,068

Comments: Sakata INX had a strong year in 2017, with Ink & Graphic Arts sales rising to more than $1.3 billion. In particular, packaging and digital ink segments flourished for the company.

“While ink sales for paper media were sluggish in Japan, packaging ink and digital & specialty products sales both grew in 2017,” said Yuichi Kataura, GM International Operations Division’s GM at Sakata INX. “However, raw material prices increased globally from the latter half of last year, resulting in a decrease in profit. We continue to expand sales in 2018, but raw material prices are at an even higher level. We are addressing this issue by making further efforts to improve profitability.”

One highlight for Sakata INX was the award it received for its TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) efforts.

“As we are dedicated to conducting TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) activities, Sakata INX’s main plants in Japan won the TPM Advanced Special Award in December 2017,” Kataura reported. “We were honored based on the innovative production method, overseas TPM development, years of continuous efforts put into TPM activities, contribution to management, etc.

Kataura also noted that Sakata INX announced its “mid-term plan 2020” last November. “We will achieve sustainable growth as a global company by promoting innovations and challenges in our group,” he added.

Sakata INX is continuously investing in its operations. The company has centralized its inkjet ink production in Ohio, where it streamlined its production and added new equipment. In November 2016, INX acquired Creative Industria e Comercio Ltda., a leading Brazilian packaging ink company, and Sakata INX has strengthened its operations in Brazil and South America. Kataura also noted that the company is adding to its strong position in the Asia-Pacific region.

“We are planning to build a second plant in China (Maoming city, Guangdong Province) to respond to the expanding ink market for paper media and our efforts in expanding sales,” Kataura reported. “As the packaging ink market in Vietnam is growing, we are planning to build a second plant in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam for packaging ink, which is nearby the current facility.”

Sakata INX is facing challenges in raw material pricing and availability and is coping with these concerns.

“China’s tightening of environmental regulations resulted in a shortage in supply of pigments that are used as a main raw material and a global surge in prices for oil and naphtha, etc. causing raw material prices to increase,” said Kataura. “We have taken every measure that we can think of to absorb the increased cost by streamlining production to reduce cost, cutting various expenses, etc. However, the increase in cost has come to a level that we can no longer absorb. As such, we have announced a price increase to our consumers.”

Overall, Kataura sees excellent opportunities ahead for Sakata INX.

“We forecast that our packaging ink and environmentally conscious ink sales will continue to increase, which are the main focus in Sakata INX Group’s printing ink business,” Kataura concluded. “In the digital and specialty products business, we anticipate further increase in sales in inkjet ink for industrial use and pigment dispersions for liquid crystal display. On the other hand, we forecast that raw materials used in printing ink will stay at a high level for the time being. We expect increases in labor cost, depreciation expenses, etc. for strengthening our business foundation and making investments to expand operations.”

Major Products: Commercial offset (sheetfed, heatset and newspaper offset inks); gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks for sheetfed, flexible packaging and metal decorating; inks for inkjet printers, toners and coatings.

Number of Employees: 3,979

Comments: As Sakata INX celebrates its 120th anniversary, the company enjoyed a good year in 2016, with sales increasing to $1.297 billion, led by growth in packaging and offset inks.

“Newspaper ink sales were sluggish but packaging ink and offset ink sales expanded,” said Kotaro Morita, president of Sakata INX. “In the Asian region starting with Indonesia and Vietnam, packaging ink sales grew. Newspaper ink and offset ink sales also increased in India and China. Against the backdrop of an increased demand and production capacity in North America, packaging ink and metal decorating ink sales were strong.”

Morita noted the company celebration, and looked back at how Sakata INX has grown through the years.

“We marked our 120th anniversary in November 2016,” he observed. “Sakata INX Corp. was composed of only four employees dating back to 1896. Today, it has grown into a global company with nearly 4,000 employees.”

As a result of its investments, Sakata INX will continue to grow. In November 2016, the company acquired Creative Industria e Comercio Ltda, headquartered in Brazil. It manufactures and sells solvent-based ink for packaging through US subsidiary INX International Ink Co. Morita noted that Sakata INX also has capital projects underway in the Asia-Pacific and US.

“We are planning to reinforce our equipment for gravure ink in Indonesia, and for metal decorating ink in Guangzhou, China,” Morita said. “We have plans to build a new offset ink plant in Maoming, China. In the US, we completed expansion of the facility in Edwardsville, KS for UV and EB ink. We also plan to reinforce equipment for newspaper and offset ink in our Shiga, Japan plant.”

As an international ink manufacturer, Sakata INX is coping with the differences in regulatory issues from region to region.

“We are watching the revisions and trends taking place with regulations, and we are developing, manufacturing and selling ink to meet those regulations,” said Morita.

Morita said he is optimistic about the coming year.

“We expect a steady increase in the demand for packaging related and environmentally friendly products, which we have been focusing on in our printing ink business,”

Morita concluded. “In the digital and specialty products field, we anticipate an increasing number of demands for inkjet inks and pigmented dispersion due to the progress of digitization. We will continue to expand sales of printing ink, plus our digital and specialty products.”

Major Products: Commercial offset, sheetfed, heatset, and newspaper offset inks; gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks and coatings; UV/EB inks; inks for inkjet printers; and toners.

Number of Employees: 3,877

Comments: Sakata INX had a solid year during 2015, with sales of $1.224 billion (¥148,249 million) during the past year. The company did change its fiscal year to end in December, which impacted its final numbers for 2015, but overall, Sakata INX recorded 7% growth through all product lines and regions.

“Newspaper and offset inks sales were weak but packaging ink sales were steady,” said Kotaro Morita, Sakata INX president. “Sales expanded for both offset and packaging in North America against the backdrop of economic recovery. Despite the effects of an economic downturn in the Asian region starting with China, Asia experienced steady sales because newspaper and offset ink sales increased, mostly in India. As a result, sales on a group level increased by about 7% compared with the previous year.”

The shift in media toward digital is having a significant impact on the offset and news ink markets.

“With the digitalization of paper media in Japan, Europe and the US, the newspaper and offset markets are decreasing,” Morita observed. “On the other hand, demand is expanding in countries where the population is increasing, such as India. We expect newly developing countries to increase demands due to economic growth and population increases. We will work to increase sales by introducing differentiating products. As for packaging ink, the market is expanding and is centered around newly developing countries that are expecting economic growth. We will deploy environmentally-friendly products that are suitable for local needs.”

In terms of raw materials, Morita said that the decline in oil prices has led to similar trends throughout most of the raw material chain.

“The effect from the foreign exchange is having a positive result on operating income,” he added. “However, pigment prices, etc. remained at a high level. We will continue to implement various measures to generate steady profits in spite of effects of changes in raw material prices and the foreign exchange rate.”

Recently, Sakata INX added new manufacturing facilities in Asia-Pacific and the US, with plans for more upgrades on the way.

“About one year after a fire at our plant in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam in 2014, a new plant was constructed with state-of-the-art safety considerations and was completed in October 2015,” Morita said. “A new plant in Lebanon, OH USA was completed in February 2015, and it mostly manufactures package printing ink.”

Meanwhile, Sakata INX and its US subsidiary, INX International Ink Co., have significant plans to upgrade facilities. Sakata INX Group is planning to reinforce equipment in several countries, including Japan, China and India, and plans to expand two manufacturing plants in the US – Charlotte, NC for metal deco ink and Edwardsville, KS for UV/EB ink.

For Sakata INX, 2016 is the company’s 120th anniversary, and Morita said that the company is looking forward to many more years of success.

“We will mark our 120th anniversary in November 2016, and will focus on developing products that will enable sustainable growth on a global basis,” Morita concluded.

Major Products: Commercial offset, sheetfed, heatset, and newspaper offset inks; gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks; UV/EB inks and varnishes; inks for inkjet printers; and toners.

Number of Employees: 3,719 (consolidated basis); 822 (non-consolidated basis)

Comments: Sakata INX had an excellent year in 2014, with ink and graphic arts sales increasing 5.3% to $1.302 billion (138,586 million yen). On a consolidated basis, sales for 2014 increased 4.8% to $1.376 billion (146,569 million yen). In particular, the company overcame declining sales in Japan with stronger sales in the rest of Asia as well as in North America.

“Due to sluggish personal consumption, sales in Japan decreased,” said Yuichi Kataura, GM of the International Operations Division of Sakata INX Corp. “There were sales increases of packaging and offset inks in Asia and North America and of packaging ink in Europe. However, in Japan, there was a consumer backlash to the incentive to spend before a sales tax increase. This resulted in a slowing of personal spending that led to a decrease in sales quantity of printing ink.”

Sakata INX reported some important highlights during the past year, beginning with its Shiga plant in Maibara City, which will begin manufacturing inkjet and specialty inks.

“The Shiga plant will operate as an important base to expand our digital and specialty products and to reconstruct the production structure for printing ink,” said Kataura.

“Phase 1 construction included production and logistics facilities, and with completion of phase 1 construction at Shiga, the facility operation rate increased,” he added. “As a result, digital and specialty product sales have steadily increased. Phase 2 construction is underway and we are building an offset ink production facility. The expected completion date is December 2015.”

Kataura added that in terms of further capital investment, there is a plan to expand the metal decorating and UV ink plants in the U.S. Kataura said that digitalization is changing the nature of the printing industry.

“Offset ink, including newspaper ink using paper media, is expected to decline mainly in developing countries due to digitalization,” Kataura observed. “However, we will expand sales by introducing differentiating products. We will deploy environmentally friendly products that respond to the local needs centered around newly developing countries where we expect there will be economic growth for packaging ink.”

Higher raw material prices did impact the company’s operating income.

“There was an impact on operating income in Japan that led to a decline in profit,” said Kataura. “We have been asking customers to accept an increase in price due to the rise in raw material prices. Price negotiations on gravure ink are proceeding, but we cannot raise the price of offset ink enough due to adverse market conditions.”

Kataura said that another highlight for Sakata INX is its new mid-term business plan.

“Sakata INX has prepared a new mid-term business plan for a three-year period ending in fiscal year 2017,” Kataura said. “Sakata INX Group will respond quickly and flexibly to the changing business environment in order to enhance our stakeholders’ confidence. We will build sustainable growth as a company and strengthen the management platform through enhancing CSR activities. As a business strategy, we plan to grow steadily by deploying our global business by securing a position in each global market.”

Major Products: Commercial offset, sheetfed, heatset, and newspaper offset inks; gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks; UV/EB inks and varnishes; inks for inkjet printers; and toners.

Number of Employees: 3,385 (consolidated basis); 794 (non-consolidated basis)

Comments: For Sakata INX, 2013 was an excellent year, with consolidated sales growing 13.7% to ¥131,589 million ($1.342 billion), driven by a 14% increase in ink and graphic arts to ¥131.589 million ($1.342 billion). These increases came primarily from the packaging ink side. Meanwhile, the company enjoyed greatly increased profitability.

“Packaging ink sales figures, including North American metal ink sales, grew in Japan and North America,” said Toshihiko Fukunaga, international operations division general manager for Sakata INX. “In Asia, packaging ink and offset ink also experienced sales growth. As a result, Sakata INX Group sales increased by 13.7% compared to 2012. Raw material costs in Japan did rise. However, the increase in sales volume from emerging countries and cost reductions in Asia and North America resulted in a 42.6% increase in profit compared to 2012.”

Fukunaga said that the improved results were across the board in terms of printing processes.

“With the diversification in media – the conversion from paper to electronic media – in developed countries, offset ink printing and the need for ink is decreasing,” Fukunaga observed. “However, with the economic recovery in Japan, there have been signs that the downtrend is coming to an end. Steady growth in emerging countries was seen with economic growth, and due to strong demand, packaging ink sales volume increased. There is also steady demand in developed countries.

“Packaging and offset inks in Asia, and packaging ink in Japan and North America experienced large increases,” he added. “The developments of environmentally friendly, highly functional ink, strengthening capital investment and human resources, were the factors that made this possible. The completion of the Shiga plant in Japan in March 2014 will become key to expanding digital and specialty products sales, as well as restructuring the printing ink production system in Japan.”

In addition to the new plant in Shiga, Sakata INX’s U.S. subsidiary INX International Ink Co. has been actively adding new capacity. In September 2013, INX International UK Ltd. was running full production at its new 40,000 square foot metal decorating ink manufacturing facility in Heywood, UK. The new facility is 75% larger than the previous one, located in Rochdale, UK.

In the U.S., INX International Ink Co. officials broke ground Dec. 5, 2013 on a new 62,000 square-foot manufacturing facility in Lebanon, OH, which should be completed by early 2015. The new facility will produce solvent-based packaging ink as well as three-piece metal decorating, UV/EB and some water-based flexo inks.

“We have plans for capital investments,” Fukunaga said. “Our new plant near Cincinnati, OH is projected to be operational in January 2015.”

“We will work towards installing a production facility that is compliant with environmental standards and on the same level as developed countries,” he added. “We also plan to introduce environmentally friendly products to the marketplace, and we intend to further increase sales volume in growing markets.”

Major Products: Commercial offset, sheetfed, heatset, and newspaper offset inks; gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for flexible packaging, corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks; UV/EB inks and varnishes; inks for inkjet printers; and toners.

Number of Employees: 3,385 (consolidated basis); 794 (non-consolidated basis)

Comments: Sakata INX had a strong year in 2012, with graphic arts sales increasing to 115,425 million yen ($1.225 billion), driven primarily by growing ink sales in Asia. The company’s consolidated sales also rose, from 119,571 million yen in 2011 to 123,098 million yen ($1.306 billion) in 2012.

“In 2012, total sales increased 3% compared to the previous year due mainly to the sales of printing ink in Asia,” said Toshihiko Fukunaga, international operations division general manager for Sakata INX. “Our operating income also showed improvement with the sales increase and price revisions.

“Our key market is Asia, with gravure packaging ink serving as the main product as we have expanded sales in India, Indonesia and Vietnam,” Mr. Fukunaga added. “ The other highlight is the profitability improvement we experienced in North America.”

Mr. Fukunaga said that the strongest growth was seen in packaging in developing countries.

“In developed countries, sales in the offset printing and printing ink markets shrank due to the diversification of media and decreased advertising as a result of the economic downturn,” Mr. Fukunaga said. “On the other hand, the package printing ink market continued to be strong with booming demand in developing countries.”

With an eye on further growth internationally, Sakata INX is constructing new facilities around the world.

“We are proceeding with new factories in England and Vietnam, in addition to our production expansion in India as planned,” Mr. Fukunaga said. “Sakata INX Corp. in Japan just began construction on a new factory in Maihara.”

Sakata INX has long emphasized environmentally friendly products, and is ideally positioned to meet increasing regulatory demands.

“We are finding environmental regulations becoming more important in developing countries, so using environmentally friendly technology remains a high priority and will increase sales in a developing market,” Mr. Fukunaga concluded.

Major Products: Commercial offset, sheetfed, heatset, and newspaper offset inks; gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks; UV/EB inks and varnishes; inks for inkjet printers; and toners.

Number of Employees: 3,385 (consolidated basis); 794 (non-consolidated basis)

Comments: Sakata INX enjoyed slight growth in 2011, with its ink and graphic arts sales increasing 0.6 percent to ¥112,538 million ($1.413 billion). Overall, the company grew 1.6 percent to ¥119,571 million ($1.501 billion).

“Total sales for Sakata Inx Corp. in 2011 were above the previous year by 1.6 percent, due to the sales increase of printing ink, mainly in Asia,” said Kotaro Morita, managing director of Sakata INX Corp. and chairman of INX International Ink Company, Sakata INX’s U.S. subsidiary. “The operating income in 2011 was below the previous year. Sales quantity has increased, but we delayed the price revision and we were unable to absorb the raw material cost increases.”

Mr. Morita noted that while the offset ink market declined in developed countries, packaging inks remained strong, particularly in Asia.

“In developed countries, the offset printing and printing ink markets shrunk due to the diversification of media and the demand decrease of advertisements caused by the economic downturn,” Mr. Morita said. “On the other hand, the package printing ink market continued to be strong mostly in Asia, due to booming demand.

“The key market continues to be Asia, especially with gravure packaging ink as a main product that has expanded in India, Indonesia and Vietnam,” Mr. Morita added.

With an eye on the growing Asia-Pacific and European markets, Sakata INX is adding capacity in those regions.

“We have almost completed expanding our offset and packaging gravure ink production capacity in Asia,” Mr. Morita said. “We also broke ground on our new manufacturing facility in the UK, and expect it to be open in 2013.”

During the past year, Sakata INX added to its product portfolio of inks as well as digital equipment.

“We introduce highly cost effective inks every year to meet our customers’ requirements,” Mr. Morita noted. “INX International also introduced the NW140 narrow web digital press with inline cutter and a full line of Low Migration inks for packaging. We will also introduce safe, environmentally friendly inks to meet market requirements for food packaging inks.”

Major Products: Commercial offset, sheetfed, heatset, and newspaper offset inks; gravure inks for flexible packaging; flexo inks for corrugated carton and paper bag; metal decorating inks; UV/EB inks and varnishes; inks for inkjet printers; and toners.

Number of Employees: 3,121 (consolidated basis); 787 (non-consolidated basis)

Comments: Sakata INX followed up a solid 2009 with more growth in 2010, with its ink and graphic arts sales increasing 2.5%, to ¥111,828 million. Overall, the company grew 3.5% to ¥117,663 million.

“Total sales for Sakata Inx Corp. in 2010 were above the previous year by 3.5%, due to the economic recovery in the U.S. and the sales increase of printing ink, mainly in Asia,” said Kotaro Morita, managing director of Sakata INX Corp. and chairman of INX International Ink Company, Sakata INX’s U.S. subsidiary. “The operating income in 2010 exceeded the previous year due to improved profitability with the sales increase and cost reduction. Comparing fiscal year 2010 with the fiscal year of 2009, our sales and operating income have increased, so we can see business improvement.”

In particular, Mr. Morita said that Asia was particularly strong, notably gravure for packaging.

“The key market is Asia, especially with gravure packaging ink as a main product that has expanded in India, Indonesia and Vietnam,” Mr. Morita noted.

This growth has led to Sakata INX’s decision to expand its manufacturing base throughout Asia.

“We have been expanding our production capacity in order to meet the customer demand in the growing Asian market,” Mr. Morita said. “In March 2011, we completed expanding the packaging gravure ink production capacity in Vietnam. We also plan to complete the new plants in Indonesia and Thailand, as well as expand production in Maoming, China, and India in fiscal year 2011.”