When companies invest in a CIJ printing system, they often focus first on the printer itself, printing speed, and total cost of ownership. Understandably. What is frequently underestimated, however, is that the ink is not simply a “consumable” – it is a critical process factor. Ink plays a decisive role in ensuring codes remain permanently readable, adhere reliably, dry quickly, and allow the production line to run stably without developing hidden issues over time.
This is relevant across industries – from food and beverage to cosmetics and extrusion applications. Changing materials, high production speeds, demanding environments (condensation, dust, heat), and increasing requirements for traceability and process reliability make ink selection a true success factor.
CIJ does not work with “just any ink” — it works with the right match
A clean CIJ print is always the result of the right combination of four factors:
- What is being printed? Text, logos, barcodes, 2D codes — and what are the requirements regarding contrast and scanner readability?
- What is being printed on? Material class, surface characteristics, coatings, additives (e.g., plasticizers).
- At what speed and in what environment? Line speed, temperature, humidity, condensation, cleaning chemicals.
- What performance requirements apply? Abrasion resistance, drying time, washability/removability, or special functions such as UV fluorescence or colour-changing properties.
Why is this matching process so important? Quite simply: set-off, smearing, and poor adhesion are often the result of ink that is not ideally matched — or of changes in the substrate or production process.
A practical example is PVC. On rigid PVC, such as pipes, coding is often relatively straightforward. In more flexible PVC applications, such as cable insulation, plasticizers make adhesion significantly more challenging. If the ink formulation is not optimized, the risk of set-off increases considerably. This clearly demonstrates that the material name alone is far from sufficient – the exact composition of the material is what matters.
What industrial CIJ inks really need to deliver and why so many variants exist
In CIJ applications, success is not about finding “a good ink,” but the right combination of properties. That is why different ink classes, colours, and specialty formulations exist. At LEIBINGER, the portfolio includes around 70 inks – developed, manufactured, and tested with one clear objective: delivering the best possible combination of ink and coding technology for each specific application.
Typical properties that make a real difference in production environments include:
Quick-drying
For high line speeds and immediate handling. Many applications require drying within seconds – sometimes milliseconds – to prevent smearing or set-off.
High temperature resistance
For processes involving significant thermal exposure, including very high temperatures depending on pigmentation and formulation.
Light and UV resistance
To prevent codes from fading – especially important under UV exposure, during storage, or in demanding quality environments.
Condensation-resistant / washable
Essential in beverage and cold-chain applications: the ink must remain legible and firmly adhered despite condensation. At the same time, some applications require removability, for example during recycling processes or alkaline washing.
Sterilisation-resistant (retort/autoclave)
For steam sterilization processes where contrast and adhesion must remain intact after treatment.
Chemical resistance
Critical when aggressive cleaning agents, alcohols, fuels, or solvents are present in the production environment.
Plasticizer-resistant
Designed for particularly demanding PVC applications, especially common in cable manufacturing.
Adhesion on films or low-surface-energy substrates
For “difficult” plastics such as PE and oily surfaces where standard inks often reach their limit.
High-contrast / Highly pigmented
Required when opaque, highly visible coding is needed on dark substrates — common in cable production and certain FMCG applications.
Fluorescent / UV-readable
Ideal for security applications or where visible codes would interfere with packaging design – particularly attractive in cosmetics and premium packaging.
Thermochromic (colour-changing)
When the code itself should indicate whether a sterilization process was correctly completed.
Environmentally focused inks (“Green Coding”)
Low-odour, MEK-free, low-VOC inks (VOC = volatile organic compounds) for environments where workplace safety and sustainability are priorities — including fully recyclable cartridges.
The decisive difference: Printer and ink expertise belong together
When printer and ink come from a single source, a major practical advantage emerges: the coding solution can be designed and optimized as one complete system. Leibingerdevelops and manufactures both CIJ printers and matching inks in-house. This means the performance of the entire solution — from droplet behaviour in the printhead to adhesion and readability on the substrate — is managed as a fully integrated system.
This matters because CIJ ink must not only perform “on the material,” but also inside the system under real production conditions. In-house ink development and manufacturing make it possible to test and continuously optimize printer and ink together – ensuring maximum reliability and consistently reproducible print quality in daily operation.
Leibinger printers prevent ink drying
One technical aspect that is often underestimated in practice is what happens when ink dries inside the printhead area. The issue is not only visible contamination – the real problem lies in what cannot immediately be seen.
In CIJ technology, ink droplets are electrostatically charged inside the printhead and guided via deflection plates for precise positioning on the product. To maintain permanently clean coding, this droplet control must remain stable throughout daily production.
In conventional CIJ systems, startup involves an abrupt pressure build-up to generate the ink jet. This causes the so-called “spitting effect” inside the printhead. Tiny ink particles spread across the electrostatic components in the printhead area, interfering with the charging and precise deflection of droplets. Initially, these are only small deviations, but over time they increase, leading to visibly misplaced droplets. At the same time, a second critical issue occurs: during production stops, these system-critical areas remain exposed to air in conventional CIJ printers. Ink residues dry on the nozzle, deflection plates, and return line, creating deposits. The result: print quality gradually deteriorates.
Leibinger solves this differently by design. Its automatic nozzle sealing technology hermetically seals the system during production pauses. At the same time, the system continuously circulates the ink, maintaining stable viscosity. As a result, no spitting effect occurs during startup and its associated disadvantages are avoided: no deposits on electrostatic components, no drying – and consistently high print quality from the first print to the last.
Pigmented inks? Absolutely YES — with CIJ models designed for them
Highly pigmented inks are extremely valuable when strong contrast is required on dark substrates. At the same time, pigments place greater demands on process control: sedimentation, deposits, and fluctuating viscosity can negatively affect print quality and system stability.
Leibinger addresses these challenges directly at the system level. Intelligent ink management with an automated stirring system inside the tank keeps pigments moving, reduces sedimentation and related deposits, and stabilizes viscosity.
For production and technical decision-makers, this is highly relevant because it directly impacts key operational questions: How stable does the production line run? How frequently does the printer require cleaning? How reproducible are codes over weeks and multiple shifts?
The fastest way to the right ink:
Don’t guess – test
The reality is this: with modern materials, coatings, and additives, the “right” ink cannot reliably be selected based on instinct or a datasheet alone. That is why Leibinger follows a practical, application-driven approach:
Send us your original samples – we print and test them free of charge
At our Application Centre, we test the compatibility of substrates, process requirements, and inks under realistic conditions — including acceleration units that simulate actual production speeds and, where necessary, suitable pre-treatment methods such as corona or plasma treatment to optimize adhesion. The result is a well-founded, application-specific decision basis for a complete CIJ solution that performs reliably in everyday production.
Planning to introduce a new CIJ system or stabilize your coding process?
Send us your product or packaging samples along with your application requirements. We will provide a complete CIJ solution that does not just print — but delivers reliable production performance.
