International. Covestro and TTP, a technology company with expertise in digital printing, announce a milestone in the development of digital coating and adhesive technology that has the potential to enable this transition: the digital printing of polyurethane adhesives.
The partnership of TTP's revolutionary new technology for the rapid digital application of coatings and adhesives, with Covestro's adapted polyurethane raw materials has demonstrated a new opportunity for digital printing in next-generation manufacturing. "We have recently successfully tested covestro's raw material-formulated adhesives," says Dr. Andrew Baker-Campbell, Project Leader at TTP, "demonstrating an ability to print materials much more difficult than typical inkjet inks."
To exploit the development, Covestro has set up its own laboratory for digital printing. "This variant of inkjet printing could become a complete new production method in the context of Industry 4.0," says Dr. Jörg Tillack, who leads the development of 2D printing for Covestro's Coatings, Adhesives and Specialties business unit. "The positive test result takes us an important step forward."
To understand the opportunity of digital technology, Covestro conducted a survey of more than 100 people from the coatings and adhesives industry. The majority of respondents to Covestro's survey – 93% – believe that digital printing will create additional value for their business, and 50% of machinery suppliers surveyed have customers asking for digital printing solutions today.
Now, both companies are looking for manufacturers of printheads, printers and automation systems that wish to invest in delivering this technology to the market.
