Clariant Masterbatches opts for X-Rite colour management tools for worldwide facilities implementation

Citation

(2011), "Clariant Masterbatches opts for X-Rite colour management tools for worldwide facilities implementation", Pigment & Resin Technology, Vol. 40 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/prt.2011.12940bab.014

Clariant Masterbatches opts for X-Rite colour management tools for worldwide facilities implementation

Article Type: Industry news From: Pigment & Resin Technology, Volume 40, Issue 2

With more than 50 manufacturing operations and sales offices on five continents, Clariant Masterbatches must communicate in a number of languages and service a wide range of industries. But for the world’s largest provider of colour and additive concentrates for the plastics manufacturing, no language is more important than exact communication of colour, which is why they selected the X-Rite colour management solutions.

Tailoring for various markets

“What we sell is basically a tailor-made, turnkey solution to colouring plastics for a great variety of industries,” says Patrick Emmel, Head of Colour Communication for Clariant Masterbatches, a division of Clariant International Ltd in Muttenz, Switzerland. “Colour has been added to nearly every plastic part around you – packaging, automobiles, appliances, even cables and wiring – at some point in the manufacturing process.” An expert in colour science, Emmel is in charge of colour communication, colour QC, and colour matching systems for more than 50 labs worldwide.

To help develop robust processes for its customers, Clariant Masterbatches relies on colour measurement solutions developed by X-Rite Inc., the world’s largest designer and manufacturer of colour measurement instruments and software.

X-Rite provides benchtop spectrophotometers and Color iMatch software that can precisely determine the constituent colours that make up even the most complex hue, as well as software package called NetProfiler that can calibrate instruments remotely so all companies in a supply chain can produce and share reliable data.

Worldwide customer service guaranteed

With 3,500 employees worldwide, Clariant Masterbatches first works with a customer to completely understand the application of the product, plastic resin used, additives, equipment and how precisely colours must match between locations or markets, Emmel says. Through its years in serving the plastics industry, the company has accumulated various types of production equipment used at its technical facilities to produce prototype parts or samples.

With thousands of customers worldwide, Clariant Masterbatches develops approximately 80,000 colours annually that can range from a simple black to sophisticated metallic flake and pearlescent colours, Emmel says, and the company stores about one-third of those formulations in its massive database for future reference.

During development of a plastic formulation and process, Clariant Masterbatches identifies and defines the colour standard that a customer wants to achieve, then runs tests with pigments and resins to replicate that colour. The resulting samples are then compared using spectrophotometers and X-Rite software against the agreed upon standard.

Armed with this precise data, Clariant Masterbatches is able to quickly develop a process for customers that satisfies or is very close to meeting all specifications when a finished sample is run on a piece of equipment or assembly line for final approvals, which can be a very expensive proposition.

Complementary companies

One advantage Clariant Masterbatches has over its competition is its presence in virtually every industrialized country in the world: another reason why his company selected X-Rite when it decided to modernize its colour measurement processes, Emmel says.

“ X-Rite’s presence in many countries was a major selection criteria for us,” he says. “ We need a partner who is able to support us in all the major regions of the world.”

As the world leader in colour measurement, X-Rite has sales and service offices that cover Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Many of its software packages are translated into native languages, and its sales and technical staff are familiar with doing business in any region of the world. Mr Roland Nikles, Sales Director Export at X-Rite, summarizes how X-Rite assists its customers in colour assessment: “We offer a full suite of solutions that deals with every aspect of precise colour measurement, including viewing booths that illuminate samples under exact lighting, and tests to check whether an individual has any colour vision deficiencies.”

Multinational corporations that manufacture and sell in many countries expect vendors such as Clariant Masterbatches and X-Rite to provide seamless and reliable communication between far-flung facilities and vendors. The stakes can be high for some of the world’s largest corporations that sell foods and beverages, personal care products, and other goods because they must protect their colours as part of their strong brand identity, Emmel says.