04 Oct New members boost for International Hologram Manufacturers Association

The trade body representing the global hologram industry has secured five new members as it further strengthens its role as a leading global authority on commercial authentication, ID security and packaging augmentation technologies.

The move sees Egypt’s security printers NASPS (National Company for Advanced Industries and Integrated Strategic Printing Solutions) join the International Hologram Manufacturers Association (IHMA) alongside US-based NanoGrafix, to utilise their digital technology which enables the online production of variable holograms and other optical structures on any type of printing press.

New members also include India-based brand and anti-counterfeiting security labels producer, Holosafe Security Labels; Canada’s Nanotech, part of Meta Materials, which specialises in the design and production of nanotechnology-based films to protect ID documents and banknotes; and Mexico’s commercial security printer Hologramas de Mexico.

Founded in 1993, the IHMA includes leading producers and converters of holograms for banknote security, anti-counterfeiting, brand protection, packaging, graphics and other commercial applications around the world. The Association, which now numbers over 80 members, highlights the global role and impact of holographic technology used in ID, document and banknote protection and retail packaging authentication and decoration among other applications.

The current indications are that brand protection, track and trace and other anti-counterfeiting technologies in packaging continue to increase as economies wrestle with global challenges and the ongoing impact of the Covid pandemic.

The packaging industry is also seeing benefits from the use of anti-counterfeiting solutions, particularly as fears over shortages of medicines, pharmaceuticals and vaccines in many parts of the world drive demand for counterfeit and illicit products.

The IHMA estimates that 50% of the world’s passports and ID cards feature holograms, and one third of banknotes. Holograms are also used on around a half of the 140 billion tobacco and alcohol tax labels issued annually by provincial and international revenue agencies to provide an effective product authentication and anti-tampering solution.

Chair Dr Paul Dunn, said: “We look forward to NASPS, NanoGrafix, Holosafe Security Labels, Nanotech and Hologramas de Mexico’s involvement in helping us to promote holograms and playing a part in our ongoing mission to expand the scope of current operations, embracing the widest range of commercial holographic activity.

“We are continuing to develop our position as the definitive voice for those involved in global commercial holography and an advocate of the ISO12931 standard for authentication solutions and the ISO 14298 standard for the management of security print and foil production processes. In addition, the Hologram Image Register, the centrally held global database of secure holograms designed to prevent inadvertent or deliberate copying and the only one of its kind in the world, continues to go from strength to strength, with over 10,000 images now registered.”