Articles By Mark Bale

Inkjet consultant with 17 years of experience in offering practical hands-on knowledge of inkjet deposition as applied to a diverse range of industrial applications.

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Featured image for “Si-MEMS Heads – What is the Fuss About?”
February 17, 2022

Si-MEMS Heads – What is the Fuss About?

In this article we explain a little more about why we hear so much about this buzz-phrase with reference to latest print head technology and try and explain a little print head manufacturing jargon along the way.
Featured image for “Inkjet for Decorative Surfaces”
January 13, 2022

Inkjet for Decorative Surfaces

The amazing thing about inkjet is the number of applications inkjet has managed to penetrate by offering short runs that generate freedom of design.
Featured image for “Ceramic Tiles & The Recirculation Revolution”
November 2, 2021

Ceramic Tiles & The Recirculation Revolution

Mark Bale discusses the technical aspects of ink and printheads in one of the early inkjet applications: ceramic tiles.
Featured image for “Is Pigment the Ink for Textiles?”
September 28, 2021

Is Pigment the Ink for Textiles?

A look at the growing popularity of pigment inks for textile production and the compatibility with different substrates and processes.
Featured image for “Nozzle Correction for Image Quality”
July 28, 2021

Nozzle Correction for Image Quality

Since inkjet printing uses arrays of nozzles to precisely jet ink, the effect of blocked or deviating nozzles is one of the biggest barriers to quality. Learn how different systems approach the problem.
Featured image for “What it Takes to Print Folding Carton”
July 21, 2021

What it Takes to Print Folding Carton

PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP CONTENT This content is part of our premium membership offering. If  access to unbiased actionable insight on production inkjet is relevant to your business, please consider supporting us
Featured image for “What it Takes to Print Flexible Packaging”
June 3, 2021

What it Takes to Print Flexible Packaging

In the second of our three-part technical series on what it takes to print packaging, we focus on the challenges of flexible packaging and consider the specific ink attributes and drying considerations that explain the printers we are beginning to see in the market.
Featured image for “What it Takes to Print Corrugated Packaging”
April 20, 2021

What it Takes to Print Corrugated Packaging

Mark Bale kicks of a series of “what it takes” substrate challenges beginning with corrugated packaging from 2009 to today.
Featured image for “Security Inks – Invisible Inkjet & Beyond”
March 31, 2021

Security Inks – Invisible Inkjet & Beyond

PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP CONTENT This content is part of our premium membership offering. If  access to unbiased actionable insight on production inkjet is relevant to your business, please consider supporting us
Featured image for “Hybrid Ink – The Best of Both Worlds?”
January 5, 2021

Hybrid Ink – The Best of Both Worlds?

In industrial inkjet, water-based inkjet is undergoing a renaissance. When it comes to the most demanding applications, it is a challenge for aqueous inks to reach the required resistance properties without posing a longer term risk to blocking the head. This is where hybrids inks offer a potential solution.
Featured image for “Energy Curable Inkjet Inks – Wider Usage”
December 8, 2020

Energy Curable Inkjet Inks – Wider Usage

Mark Bale discusses key development in energy curable inks for industrial applications including UV, e-beam and thermal curing.
Featured image for “Inkjet Solutions from Collaboration”
October 14, 2020

Inkjet Solutions from Collaboration

In this post, we discuss the importance of collaboration when it comes to industrial inkjet development.
Featured image for “Inkjet Labels Come of Age”
September 29, 2020

Inkjet Labels Come of Age

Building on our previous ink-focused posts, Mark Bale of DoDxAct, who gave his first technical talk on label printing in 2007, looks back at the inkjet journey and what it means for the future of labels & packaging.
Featured image for “Single Pass Inkjet – The Tension Between Jetting and Wetting”
May 7, 2020

Single Pass Inkjet – The Tension Between Jetting and Wetting

Surface tension of an ink is the second most important property you’ll see on ink specs, but there’s a solid reason for that when it comes to printing single-pass. It comes
Featured image for “Single Pass – Going with the Inkjet Flow”
April 23, 2020

Single Pass – Going with the Inkjet Flow

When it comes to print heads, the viscosity influence can be critical to the reliability of operation. To understand this, Mark Bale demonstrates in part two of his single pass series.
Featured image for “Single Pass Inkjet – More than a One-Hit Wonder”
March 11, 2020

Single Pass Inkjet – More than a One-Hit Wonder

The uses of inkjet have grown steadily over the last two decades, taking in 2D, 2.5D and 3D applications. The improvement in productivity throughout has been made possible by increasing levels of technical wizardry. Nowhere is this demonstrated better than for our well-known production printers, which are very, very clever boxes of tricks
October 31, 2018

The Value in OEM Inkjet Inks

Have you ever wondered why it is difficult to find 3rd party ink suppliers for production inkjet devices? Mark Bale discusses the pros and cons of OEM supplied inkjet inks versus 3rd party and the key questions to ask if considering working with 3rd-party ink developers.
October 19, 2018

Inkjet Ink and its Important Additives

Mark Bale provides an overview of the important differences in inkjet ink characteristics that come from various components such as resins, solvents, humectants and surfactants. With an understanding of these components and how OEMs use them to differentiate their inks, you’ll be better informed next time you have a conversation with your supplier.
Featured image for “Inkjet ink – Carrier Matters”
October 2, 2018

Inkjet ink – Carrier Matters

Mark Bale provides a deep dive into the differences in the approach to colorant carrier in the main categories of inkjet ink: aqueous, oil, hot-melt and UV curable. Ink chemistry matters and different approaches are better suited to specific applications.
September 24, 2018

Inkjet ink – Chemistry Matters

First in a new series by Mark Bale discussing the topic of inks. This post explains the chemistry and colorant options available in the production print market. Our aim is to give a non-exhaustive insight in to material differences and how they impact print quality and color.

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