DÜSSELDORF, May 6, 2004 — Jetrion LLC, a leading global provider of advanced products, services and specialized solutions for industrial inkjet applications, and a separate business unit of Flint Ink, is introducing an exciting panorama of new high-performance CIJ and DOD inks today at drupa 2004 (Hall 3, Stand E52). Also at drupa 2004, Jetrion is announcing a strategic partnership agreement with Crown Holdings, Inc., a global leader in metal packaging of food and beverage, aerosol and specialty packaging, to develop technology specific to digital printing for metal packaging. Inkjet For Metals Jetrion and Crown have partnered to solve a long-standing technology barrier relating to digital printing on metal packaging materials prior to forming. The two companies have overcome early challenges in moving toward creation of new technologies that will enable development of the world’s fastest inkjet color printer for volume production of high-quality metal containers. Both Jetrion and Crown are investing resources in developing this technology to help brand owners address rapidly-changing consumer preferences in their respective markets. Commenting on the agreement, Dr. Kenneth Stack, president of Jetrion LLC, noted, "Development of a digital printing process that can withstand the harsh requirements of metal forming can only be accomplished with this kind of strategic partnership. We are excited to have Crown challenging us to drive these technology advancements in digital printing and look forward to bringing them to the marketplace.” Introducing New Inks Jetrion is introducing new ink product lines for a wide range of digital printing systems at drupa 2004. They represent important additions to Jetrion's rapidly expanding ink portfolio for all printing, publishing, packaging and converting inkjet applications. "The new innovative inks we're presenting for the first time at drupa are formulated to provide the highest levels of performance and quality for today's best industrial digital printers," observed Dr. Stack. "They represent Jetrion's response to the industry's needs for products that not only do an outstanding job of supporting traditional inkjet applications, but also provide new advantages that can present opportunities for the expansion of digital inkjet printing into new, high-value applications and open untapped markets." New CIJ Inks Jetrion's new continuous inkjet (CIJ) ink introductions complement their existing portfolio of advanced inks developed specifically for high-performance results on Domino, Scitex, VideoJet and Willet digital printing systems. Delivering outstanding print quality, accuracy and reliability on a wide spectrum of substrates, the new CIJ inks assure maximum compatibility and functionality for leading printer/ink combinations such as VideoJet PrintPro (16-30, 16-50, 16-81); VideoJet Excel (16-5600, 16-8200, 16-8420, 16-8530); and Domino A-Series (270BK). This new family of Jetrion CIJ inks is specially formulated to help printers and converters reduce OEM consumables costs by as much as 40 percent without compromising performance or service. New Fast Cure UV DOD Inkjet Inks The new Jetrion fast-cure UV drop-on-demand (DOD) ink line is formulated to take advantage of the productivity of high-frequency printheads to deliver excellent print quality on high-speed printing systems. Durable and abrasion-resistant, Jetrion's UV inks produce exceptional results on an extensive range of substrates including coated and uncoated papers, films, foils and many other types of hard-to-print surfaces. Reduced printer maintenance and easy start-up are also important operating benefits of these new high-performance inks, which contain no volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and are currently available for Spectra printheads. New Low-Temperature UV DOD Inkjet Inks These are the first in a major new series of Jetrion UV inkjet inks for DOD applications to be introduced based on the company's proprietary, low-viscosity technology platform. The new low-temperature UV inks are designed to benefit both manufacturers of inkjet printers and end-users. These low-viscosity inks require no heating in the printhead prior to use. This feature allows manufacturers to develop simpler, lower-cost inkjet printing systems. Using the proprietary chemistries of Flint Ink’s UV ink formulations and Jetrion’s own in-depth knowledge of inkjet inks and digital printing technology, these new high-performance inks allow commercial printers and converters to gain greater flexibility to print on a wider range of substrates, including plastics, film, foils, metal sheeting and paperboard. The six-color, pigment-based inks deliver enhanced runnability, adhesion, fade-resistance and color gamut, and cure under a range of UV lamp options. Jetrion low-temperature UV DOD inks are currently available for Xaar and Konica printheads, with others in development. New HAPS-Free Solvent Inkjet Inks Jetrion introduces a full line of HAPS-free solvent color inks for large-format inkjet printing. Completely free of hazardous air pollutants (HAPS), these new inks provide excellent print quality on a wide range of the vinyl and coated/uncoated paper substrates most often used in large-format applications such as billboards and posters. Available in both CMYK and CMYKcm sets, Jetrion's HAPS-free inkjet inks offer a large color gamut, excellent image stability, and exceptional reliability with two-year outdoor weather resistance. Jetrion HAPS-free inkjet inks have been initially formulated for Xaar 128 printheads, with additional Spectra and Xaar formulations slated for release shortly.