Dotz Nano showcases nanotechnology for China’s tobacco industry

Technology company Dotz Nano (ASX: DTZ) has provided further proof of its ultimate nanotechnology pudding by conducting an industrial production pilot in Shenzhen, China.

The company said it had performed a successful industrial production pilot by marking special packages with its advanced marker (ValiDotz) and then confirming their unique signature.

ValiDotz are small, microscopic sized particles that have unique behavioural characteristics such as fluorescing when exposed to ultraviolet light. Otherwise known as quantum dots, ValiDotz are based on inorganics such as metals, which account for the fluorescent attributes.

News of a successful industrial trial follows on from a separate trial done earlier this year in addition to commercial traction already being realised in the form of a “firm purchase order” announced in May.

The trial effectively showed that Dotz Nano’s technology could potentially be used to prevent counterfeiting of top brands in China – with cigarette bootlegging one of the early contenders to benefit from the technology.

The illicit trade of tobacco has huge financial, social and health consequences on millions of Chinese residents each year. The problem is even more prevalent on a global basis with high government taxes pushing cigarette counterfeiting and the illicit tobacco trade to unprecedented levels.

By establishing the usefulness of its nano-markers, Dotz Nano can potentially commercialise a future-proof solution to industrial counterfeiting with other industries likely to be attracted to the applications over time. Prime candidates would include food packaging, official documentation such as passports and even legal tender.

Trial run with China’s tobacco industry leader

The industrial trial-run was performed on the most utilised printer installed with Validotz markers integrated into the customer’s ink system and then followed up with a large-scale printing run on several substrates.

Dotz Nano says its ValiDotz markers were clearly detected by covert (UV LED) and Dotz’s dedicated semi-forensic detectors (InSpec-SF).

The production trial run was carried out together with Kecai Printing Company, a subsidiary of Brilliant Circle, the company that currently provides packaging for multiple Chinese cigarette manufacturers.

As a leader in the printing and packaging industry, Brilliant Circle primarily engages in the production, and research and development of high-end cigarette packages and printed goods.

The outcome of the pilot was deemed a success thereby verifying Dotz Nano’s technology and its ability to provide secure packaging for its clients.

Nano-dot product range

Nano Dotz currently manufactures three unique products: ValiDotz, Fluorensic and InSpec.

ValiDotz are carbon-based quantum dots made from plain and simple coal for use in optical, medical imaging, bio-medical, sensing, electronic, photovoltaic and monitoring applications.

The products are capable of being applied within numerous applications such as anti-counterfeiting, brand and reputation protection as well as bearing the potential to transform entire industries.

According to Dotz Nano, in contrast to classic silicon quantum dots, the its own quantum dots are biocompatible, photostable and inherit superior thermal, electrical, and mechanical properties.

One of the most commercially sensitive applications is to engineer nano-dots to serve security and branding purposes. By adding ValiDotz markers to their products, Dotz Nano clients can “unequivocally establish a specific signature that only the manufacturer knows exists”, thereby deterring counterfeiters and safeguarding brand consistency.

According to Dotz Nano, manufacturers can obtain a counterfeit-proof, stable, long-lasting, specific spectral security tag, that protects the business from future product liability litigation – regardless of how accurate the counterfeit replica is.

“This successful industrial pilot is an important step towards proving that our innovative security marking and detecting-solution can effectively address product counterfeiting, which is one of the major threats to global markets today”, said Uzi Breier, CEO of Dotz Nano.

“I am pleased to have successfully tested this innovative technology as the first step towards a commercial cooperation with Dotz,” said Dr Peng, VP at Brilliant Circle Holding International and general manager at Kecai Printing Company.

“We take pride at always being at the technology forefront spearheading leading-edge technology to protect our brand and our customers,” he added.