Ink Isn't Just Ink . . .

As Bob Plant, marketing manager at Superior Printing Inks, explains: "PANTONE ink generally represents about 50 percent of a printer's ink purchase, yet it's the most inefficiently purchased. Printers will frequently outsurce their PANTONE color mixes, fearing that they won't be able to make them accurately themselves. Traditionally, when he knows he's going to need a few pounds of PANTONE color, a printer will overestimate and overpurchase the ink, to protect himself from running short."