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M A Y 2 0 0 2 w w w . b r a n d p a c k a g i n g . c o m

P A C K A G I N G T H A T S E L L S

PACKAGING GROUP

Packaging Group, Stagnito Communications Inc./An MWC Company

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SPECIAL EFFECTS TEMPT CONSUMERS
WITH ‘TOUCH-ME’ PACKAGING
Specialty inks, pigments and colorants add sparkle, ‘intrigue’ and even security to
plastic bottles, cartons, labels and flexible films.
I f consumers pick up your package
from the store shelf, most of them
will put it in their shopping carts.
Bravo, you’ve just made a sale.
But how do get busy and time-chal-
lenged shoppers to notice your prod-
uct in a sea of thousands of SKUs?
One way is to use specialty inks,
pigments and colorants in your pack-
aging. These products can add vari-
ous special effects: pearlescence,
metallic finishes, iridescence, multi-
color surfaces, 3-D and more.
The result: packaging that “pops” on
the store shelf and “wows” consumers.
But special effects do more than
please the eye. In many
ChromaFlair pigments
from Flex Products
give plastic bottles
the ability to
change color
when viewed
from different
angles. Clariant
Masterbatches
Div. uses the
pigments to
produce custom
colorants for plas-
tic bottle makers.
BRANDPACKAGING
BY BOB SWIENTEK
instances, they support the essence of
the brand.
This is the case with a new vegetable
oil spread from Fleischmann’s. The
product, which contains olive oil,
comes in a pearlized, olive-green bottle.
The squeezable, HDPE bottle’s color
and pearlescent effect reinforce the
product’s point of difference: olive oil.
The packaging also stands out against
other spreads in yellow bottles.
According to the Color Marketing
Group (CMG), an association of more
than 1,700 color and
design professionals,
special effects will influ-
www.brandpackaging.com
ence color trends in 2003.
In addition, colors will reflect a
return to elegance and sophistication
by utilizing more luxurious compo-
nents that are both subtle and com-
plex in nature.
“Color is no longer uni-dimensional.
New technologies in color design,
materials and manufacturing have
opened an exciting world of color
expression for creators and users of
color in all industries. Pearlescence,
metallics, iridescence, texture, layering
and even colors that change with light-
ing conditions have given designers the
ability to create fresh approaches to
their products and materials,” says Jay
de Sibour, President of CMG.
Multicolor dimensions
New technology allows us to view
color as three-dimensional instead of
just a flat surface, explains Kristin
Fraidenburgh, CMG Contract Color
Directions Co-Chairman. She adds that
“Metallic, pearlized, holographic, lac-
quered and suede effects are just a few
special finishes that are being combined
with color to change its dimension. It is
a growing belief that the special effect is
inherent to the color and that they are
meaningless if separated.”
Amy Brattain, Packaging Industry
Manager at Holland Colors America,
concurs: “All special effects, including
pearls and iridescent colors, are hot.
Advances in aluminum-based pig-
ments have increased the use of silver
in PET injection molding. But some
restrictions still apply.”
MAY 2002
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She adds that the opal look is
very popular, but is difficult to
achieve in PET. However, Holland
has had a few successes.
Consumers want colors with
special effects, Brattain says. “By
doing this, the color takes on a
‘touchable’ appearance.”
ChromaFlair pigments from Flex
Products give packaging inks and plas-
tics the ability to literally change color
when viewed from different angles.
The light-interfering pigment, for
example, can “move” from cyan
through purple into reddish orange
on a blow-molded plastic bottle. This
color shift occurs even in low light.
Using this same basic color-shift-
ing technology, Flex Products offers
SecureShift pigments. These pigments
enable brand marketers to protect
their products against counterfeiters
seeking to produce cheap knockoffs.
Available in five colors, SecureShift
can be flexo-, gravure- or screen-
printed on labels, coated on shrink
‘MIRROR-EFFECT’ INKS APPROACH BRILLIANCE OF FOIL
Along with hot-stamp foil and metalliza-
tion, brand marketers now have another
tool to create visual excitement and a
premium look on labels, cartons and
flexible films.
“Mirror-effect” Ultrastar inks from
Eckart America can mimic metallized
substrates, foil stamping or foil transfer.
These new inks are more reflective
than traditional metallic inks. How much?
Eckart uses a gloss meter to deter-
mine the level of brilliance or reflection.
As a reference, a mirror registers 922 at a
60-degree angle of incidence.
Flexo-printed on polypropylene film,
Ultrastar achieves about a 550 reading on
the gloss meter. This means that the ink is
reflecting more than 50 percent of the
light reflected by an actual mirror. Flexo-,
reverse-printed metallic inks register only
75 to 95 on the meter.
Ultrastar inks achieve brilliance using
vacuum-metallized pigment (Metalure)
MAY 2002
sleeves or injection molded into
a packaging component, such
as a closure.
The pigments use both
overt (color shifting) and
covert (sub-microscopic
particles) technology.
Flex Products newest pig-
ment is SpectraFlair. This
light-diffractive pigment pro-
duces a “liquid- metal” finish. It
has the appearance of multiple,
bright rainbow-producing prisms
moving over a silver base.
Although the pigment has applica-
tion in plastics, most of its packaging
uses initially will be for inks. The iri-
descent pigment enhances the con-
tours of 3-D packaging and creates
spectacular visual effects.
Iridescent films
Aurora special-effect films from
Engelhard deliver striking graphics on
cartons and labels. The iridescent films
can be laminated to SBS board and
Ultrastar inks from Eckart America can mimic
metallized substrates, foil stamping or foil
transfer. These new inks are more reflective
than traditional metallic inks.
from Avery Dennison.
Several factors affect the degree of
reflection. They include: smoothness of
substrate and clarity of substrate. In gen-
www.brandpackaging.com
The crumpled, iridescent film from
Engelhard creates a shimmering green and
gold bed that acts as textured backdrop to
the body lotion and fragrance products.
polypropylene labels. They also can be
used with clay-coated chipboard.
Recent consumer research, con-
ducted by Perception Research
Services and underwritten by
eral, polyester substrates provide the
greatest degree of reflection, followed by
polypropylene and then polyethylene.
For snack-bag packaging, Ultrastar
represents a lower cost alternative to de-
metallizing. The ink delivers an attractive
foil-like finish, plus allows for a window
for product viewing.
You can add color two ways: either by
tinting the ink or by printing a transparent
ink over or under the Ultrastar.
Heat shrinking can adversely affect
metallized shrink sleeves around con-
tainers. The metallization may become
“milky” or hazy. Mirror-effect inks avoid
this problem, as they retain their reflec-
tive properties during the heat-shrink
process.
Where to go for more information...
♦ Ultrastar inks. At Eckart America, con-
tact Oliver Crowhurst at 800.556.1111, ext.
412, or ocrowhurst@eckartamerica.com
BRANDPACKAGING
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Engelhard, suggests that Aurora film
can help sell products.
Four hundred qualified consumers
who purchased products in at least two
of the four categories (soft drinks, bar
soap, body wash and mouthwash) par-
ticipated in the study.
Half of the participants viewed a
shelf of products containing their tra-
ditional packages. The other half saw a
shelf of products in Aurora iridescent
film-enhanced packaging. All were
asked questions about their “favorabil-
ity” to purchase the product, the over-
all appeal of the product, the image
TINTLESS COLORANT ADDS FROST
EFFECT TO PET BOTTLES
As part of its roll out of Tropico, a rum
and citrus liqueur, Bacardi-Martini
USA wanted to sample the product in
plastic bottles that looked just like the
real package—a tall, 750-ml, frosted-
glass container.
Captive Plastics came up with a solu-
tion. It developed an injection stretch blow-
molded PET bottle, frosted with a premium
sprayed-on, UV-curable matte coating.
The sample bottle’s appearance satis-
fied Bacardi. But the cost of the package
was too high.
Following the initial launch of
Tropico, Bacardi made it clear to
Captive Plastics that it needed to find a
less expensive way to achieve frosted
plastic bottles.
BRANDPACKAGING
SecureShift pigments from Flex
Products enable brand marketers
to protect their products against
counterfeiters seeking to produce
cheap knockoffs.
the product presents, and
the attributes of the package.
The study concluded that
consumers are more likely to
notice and purchase products
using iridescent film-enhanced packag-
ing vs. products in traditional packag-
ing.
Other key findings:
Because FX Frost does not significantly
change the surface gloss of the material,
PolyOne proposed using the colorant
with a finely textured mold surface to
produce the desired dull or matte finish.
The bottle maker turned to its key
colorant supplier, PolyOne, for help.
PolyOne engineers suggested a cus-
tom-formulated color concentrate
called FX Frost.
The tintless colorant imparts a
diffused translucence to the plastic
without the need for an expensive
secondary process. Because FX
Frost does not significantly change
the surface gloss of the material,
PolyOne proposed using the colorant
with a finely textured mold surface to
produce the desired dull or matte finish.
This two-prong approach duplicated
the frost appearance of the premium
coating. It also reduced the bottle cost by
nearly 40 percent, meeting Bacardi’s need
for a less expensive container.
Where to go for more information...
♦ FX Frost colorant. At PolyOne, contact
Dan Martelli at 203.384.0509 or
dan.martelli@polyone.com
♦ Plastic containers. At Captive Plastics,
contact Jim Ness at 312.848.3179 or
jness@caplas.com
www.brandpackaging.com
• In many
categories, the use
of Aurora film
improved the image of
the brand, so that it
appeared trustworthy.
• Consumers perceived packaging
using Aurora film as more attractive,
distinctive, colorful and contempo-
rary than traditional packaging.
Revlon uses Engelhard’s Aurora iri-
descent coating on glass bottles of its
Ultima II Glowtion skin moisturizer
and on no-look labels for plastic
tubes of Glowtion lip brightener.
The iridescent film adds an opal-
like effect to the packages. It also
imparts a luxurious look and an eye-
catching shimmer to the products.
Coty’s Lancaster Group used
Aurora film in its 2001 holiday gift
sets of Isabella Rossellini’s Manifesto.
Inside the round container, the
crumpled film creates a shimmering
green and gold bed that acts as tex-
tured backdrop to the body lotion and
fragrance products. The film also adds
elegance and luster.
Functional inks
SICPA North America, a global ink
supplier, markets a line of thermochro-
matic inks that causes a message to
appear at a certain temperature.
The ink consists of an encapsulated
thermal dye, holding a temperature-
sensitive chemical compound that is
colorless until it reaches its tempera-
ture threshold. The ink comes in a
wide variety of colors as well as differ-
ent temperature threshold specifica-
tions, ranging from -13º F to 104º F.
A German brewer uses the temper-
ature-sensitive ink on its labels to
MAY 2002
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INKS AND VARNISH CREATE 3-D, EMBOSSED IMAGES ON FILM
DimensionalFX, a patented product from
UV Color, creates an illusion of 3-D,
embossed film.
This is done by printing transparent
inks on the backside of a clear substrate,
followed by various levels of opaque
white ink. The process then applies a very
high ridge of clear varnish, similar to
indicate when its beer is at its proper
drinking temperature.
In this application, a “K” symbol
appears gradually on the product’s
label as the temperature cools. Once
the beer reaches its optimum drink-
ing temperature, approximately 42° F,
the “K” becomes fully visible.
Similarly, as the product warms
above 50° F, the “K” symbol begins to
fade. It disappears completely when the
product’s temperature exceeds 59° F. BP
The author, Bob Swientek, is Editor-in-Chief
of BRANDPACKAGING magazine.
Reprinted with permission from Brand Packaging May 2002
Braille. The final step involves the appli-
cation of a reflective ink, such as
Ultrastar from Eckart America.
This material can be laminated to any
surface, including pressure-sensitive adhe-
sive and liner and SBS for folding cartons.
The net result, when looking through
the clear surface of the film, is an em-
Where to go for more information...
♦ Special-effect pigments. At Holland
Colors America, contact Amy Brattain at
765.935.0329 or
abrattain@hollandcolours.com
♦ Color-shifting pigments. At Flex
Products, contact Jerry Droll at
707.525.7337 or jerrydroll@flexprod.com
♦ Special-effect films. At Engelhard,
contact Ted Rulon-Miller at
732.205.6981 or
edward.rulon-miller@engelhard.com
♦ Special-effect inks. At SICPA North
bossed image. The combination of trans-
parent inks, clear varnish and reflective
inks make standard graphics appear 3-D.
Where to go for more information...
♦ DimensionalFX embossed film. At UV
Color, contact Barry McKillip at
913.322.0753 or bmckillip@uvcolor.com
America, contact Kim Skog at 763.535.7600
or kim.skog@sicpa.com
♦ Special-effect pigments. At EM Industries,
contact Suzanne Bernardi at 914.592.4660, ext.
309, or sbernardi@emindustries.com
♦ Special-effect colorants. At Clariant
Masterbatches Div., contact Laurie Warner at
401.438.4080 or
laurie.warner@clariant.com
♦ Special-effect inks. At Flint Ink, contact
Steve D’Angelo at 734.622.6599 or sdange-
lo@flintink.com
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