SIT is the inks wing of Sensient Technologies. The Switzerland-headquartered business makes a range of high-performance inkjet inks, including water-based sublimation, pigmented, reactive dye, and acid dye inks.
It also makes UV inks and edible inks, and sustainability is a big part of the firm’s messaging.
Sun Chemical said it had reached a definitive agreement to acquire the entire SIT business along with certain assets related to ink production. The deal is expected to complete in Q2.
Mehran Yazdani, president of Sun Chemical Advanced Materials, commented: “We’re excited for the opportunities this acquisition presents not only for Sun Chemical but the future of digital inks.
“Sensient Imaging Technologies’ portfolio and expertise in the industry, combined with our extensive background in industrial inkjet ink solutions, will enhance our combined customer support. Our customers rely on digital print’s agile supply chain and production flexibility, so they will value this acquisition because it will drive future innovation and expansion.”
The terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
Last year US-headquartered Sensient Technologies said it planned to divest non-core product lines where it lacked the scale to compete.
It said the sale of SIT to Sun Chemical would allow the business to focus on its core markets of colours, flavours and speciality ingredients.
“We are pleased that we can transition the business to a buyer that is committed to the industry. Our service and quality commitments to our customers will be maintained, and we will work to ensure a seamless transition,” said president and CEO Paul Manning.
Sun Chemical is the world’s biggest ink maker with sales of more than $7.5bn (£5.95bn) and 20,000 employees worldwide. It is part of the giant Japanese DIC Group.
SIT’s inks can be used for a wide range of applications, from textiles, to corrugated packaging and display graphics. Its edible inks are used for printing onto sweets, cakes, and pharmaceutical pills and capsules.
Its brand names are ElvaJet, Xennia and SensiJet and the inks work with a range of printheads including Fujifilm Dimatix, Epson, Ricoh, Konica Minolta, Kyocera and Xaar.
Sun Chemical sealed a partnership deal with Epple for food safe offset inks in the autumn of last year.
