What does the product do?
DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet is one of a class of papers for inkjet printing called pigmented papers, which are a halfway house between uncoated and full coated papers designed to produce higher quality results at lower prices. "On high ink coverage jobs the ink is much more expensive than the paper, and pigment inks are more expensive than dye inks," says Bernhard Cantzler, Mondi business development manager for high-speed inkjet print. "On DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet the results from dye inks look as good as the results from pigmented inks on other stocks. You get the strength of colour without paying the premium for pigmented inks."
When was it launched?
It was first announced in the autumn of 2012 and then launched earlier this year at the Hunkeler Innovationdays in Lucerne in February.
How does it work?
According to Cantzler "it has a light, functional inkjet coating". It is a halfway house between dedicated inkjet coated papers and uncoated and inkjet optimised papers. Dedicated inkjet coatings can produce stunning results but cost several thousand euros per tonne, and therefore are unsuitable for most commercial work. Uncoated paper is just that and the water-based inks get soaked up like a sponge. DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet differs from optimised grades in that dyes in the ink adhere to the coating of white pigment, holding the colour on the surface.
How does it differ from previous products?
Mondi has been focused on inkjet for the past three to four years; DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet is the latest development in the range. "We launched this portfolio with DNS high-speed inkjet and diversified the range, bringing in DNS high-speed inkjet CF, an uncoated paper with a coated feel and DNS high-speed inkjet NF [natural feel]," says Cantzler. "Our high-speed inkjet portfolio also includes 100% recycled Nautilus high-speed inkjet and the totally chlorine-free bleached Bio Top 3."
What is the USP of the product?
Top quality results at a lower price point than previously possible for colour continuous-feed inkjet, which Mondi claims will expand the range of applications address-able with inkjet to include commercial print and direct mail.
How easy is it to use?
The paper has been tested by a number of printers using presses from a range of manufacturers, including Océ, Kodak Versamark VL, Ricoh and Screen equipment with dye inks, and HP T-series, Kodak Prosper and Ricoh and Screen presses with pigment inks.
What support is on offer?
Mondi will ensure the paper meets requirements by slitting reels to the appropriate width for the wider web machines from KBA, Océ and all the way up to the 1m-plus HP T400 series. It also offers a range of different weights, including those not produced as standard. According to Cantzler: "DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet is available in three weights: 80, 90 and 100gsm. We are also able to fulfil requests for heavier weights up to a maximum of 160gsm, which is a limit imposed by most high-speed inkjet machines."
How much does it cost?
Mondi was unable to give exact pricing, as this will depend on individual contract negotiations, including volumes and duration. However, it did say that pricing for DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet was 15%-20% higher than its inkjet optimised grades. (Inkjet reel paper prices have started to fall as the volumes used have increased and it is now estimated that market pricing starts at around €800 [£672] per tonne.)
What is the sales target and what is the uptake currently worldwide and in the UK?
Mondi claims to have one UK customer for DNS Enhanced Color Inkjet although was not prepared to reveal the customer’s identity. In terms of total potential sites that could use the stock it depends on the number of installations of high-speed continuous-feed colour inkjet presses and the applications for which they are used. Also Mondi is not alone in this market, with a number of firms offering comparable pigmented grades in the European market.
SPECIFICATIONS
Type Pigmented inkjet paper for high-speed reel-fed printing
Weights 80, 90 and 100gsm as standard. Weights of up to 160gsm available as a special order
Price 15%-20% uplift on Mondi’s uncoated and optimised inkjet grades
Contact Mondi Uncoated Fine Paper +43 (0)1 790130 www.mondigroup.com
ALTERNATIVES
Crown van Gelder Crown Digital FC
Dutch paper mill Crown Van Gelder has been one of the leading suppliers to the reel-fed inkjet market to date as it was one of the few smaller mills targeting the market when the volumes were too small for the major players to show much interest. Crown Digital FC is its pigmented paper, it also offers optimised papers.
Weights 90 and 120gsm
Contact Crown van Gelder +31 (0)251 262233 www.cvg.nl
Drewsen ProInkjet C
German specialist mill Drewsen is one of the firms with a pigmented paper that is on Océ’s list of materials suitable for use with its dye-based inks.
Weights 90gsm
Contact Drewsen Special Papers 01442 245766 www.drewsen.com
Ziegler Z-Evolution
Swiss mill Ziegler is another smaller mill that has specialised in inkjet papers. Z-Evolution is its pigmented paper. It all produces optimised grades Z-Advance and Z-Plot 650.
Weights 80, 90 and 135gsm
Contact Ziegler +41 (0)61 745 12 12 www.zieglerpapier.com
