Crane Currency promotes paper over polymer for notes

Crane Currency is promoting its paper substrate for currency as superior to polymer substrates offered by competitors.

Image courtesy of Crane Currency.

Crane Currency, the manufacturer of the paper for the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, recently announced that one of its micro-optic security products could be used on either paper or polymer.

The company is trying to capitalize by touting to central banks the advantages of paper substrates, in which it specializes, over polymer materials. A new section of its website delves into four reasons why, now that more money is being printed than ever before, its cotton-based paper should “the natural choice for your money.”

Among its promotional claims:
➤ Paper currency is harder to counterfeit so it is more secure. It has a unique feel that is hard to recreate; technology such as security threads with moving-images can be seamlessly woven into the note fibers; watermarks and special inks can also be used; and additional features, such as 3D technology, can be added to note’s surface.
➤ The paper used today makes notes more durable and less susceptible to rips and tears, allowing them to last longer.
➤ Because paper bank notes are made from natural materials they are more sustainable and a better choice for the environment. The website says that most cotton and linen that farmers produce is used by the textile industry, and the natural fibers used for currency are offcuts from the process of making clothes. Offcuts, too short for re-spinning into thread, are perfect for bank notes. At its end, paper currency can be recycled and composted, not thrown away.
➤ Finally, it costs less to make. Although polymer notes last longer, they cost more initially. Crane says these extra costs are rarely offset. Processing paper notes also costs less for businesses because paper notes are less likely to stick together and be inaccurately counted, or require investing in new equipment.

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