Schaumburg, IL -- INX International Ink Company recently was the recipient of the Rexam BCE Award for excellence in innovation.  INX International received the honor for its work on the new ink system for the Fusion bottle can project, which Rexam is in the process of rolling out this year.  Rexam is the world’s second largest consumer packaging group and the world’s leading beverage can maker, producing 55 billion cans per year primarily for the U.S., European and South American markets.

“The Fusion project was the continuation of a great working relationship between the world’s leading and most innovative beverage can maker and its most innovative ink supplier INX,” said Els Michiels, Purchasing Manager - Supply Chain for Rexam BCE.  

“In today’s competitive world, it’s all about adding brand value and differentiation,” added John Reeves, Rexam’s Marketing Director.  “Customers want to customize the bottle to suit their needs, whether it is the type of closure, the shape or the serving size.  Fusion offers it in abundance with a full spectrum of ink and varnish finishes and debossing, and the design possibilities are endless.”

INX worked with Rexam to reformulate a system to be compatible with a specific overprint varnish on the lightweight and cost-effective 330 ml bottles.  In conjunction with Klaas Moser, Rexam BCE’s Ink & Coating Specialist, the Charlotte facility of INX International and the INX manufacturing site in Rochdale, England, worked with Alex Folloso and his team of chemists at the R & D department in West Chicago, Illinois, to optimize the rheology of the whole system in a matter of days.  After making the bases in Rochdale and Charlotte and shipping them to Rexam, Tim Sullivan and John Shireman of INX helped match and blend the correct colors on site.

“This was a true demonstration of teamwork,” said Jonathan Ellaby, INX VP of International Operations.  “Our guys did a tremendous job of pulling everything together and helping Rexam produce good cans in less than two weeks.  Their tireless efforts helped make this process a win-win situation for both parties, and they are most deserving of this award.”

The cans were manufactured at Rexam’s Beverage Technology Center in Elk Grove Village, Illinois.  Rexam operates 16 facilities in the U.S. and another 35 in other parts of the world.

INX International Ink Co. is the third largest producer of inks in North America with over 30 facilities in the U.S. and Canada, and is a global supplier as part of Sakata INX worldwide operations.  For more information, visit the Web site at www.INXinternational.com or contact Bob Wolff with The Drucker Group at 312.867.4960.