Hologram Manufacturers Association of India

Dennis Gabor : The Nobel Prize winner in Physics 1971- Invention of Hologram
Source: http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/1971/gabor-autobio.html

HOLOGRAMS TYPES, RANGE & TENCHNIQUES

TYPES OF HOLOGRAMS

• 2D/3D HOLOGRAMS are generated from conventional line artwork and give spatial effects with a vibrant colour change. 2D/3D holograms can be produced with two or three levels of depth and are ideal for corporate identity items, brand logos, slogans and symbols, and digitally-created illustrations
• 3D HOLOGRAMS: Laser-originated from models, still-life objects or living subjects, they give full-depth renderings of products, popular icons (e.g. cartoon characters and religious figures), symbols, logos, campaign mascots, rare artifacts, and small technical parts
• DOT MATRIX HOLOGRAM: The holographic image is made up of a series of dots or pixels. Each pixel or dot can diffract coloured light at a different angle. The image seems to be kinetic as it is moved and different regions of the image are illuminated. This is probably the fastest growing commercial use of holography today. The images made with this technique can be seen in any lighting conditions. Multi-layered and 3-dimensional effects are now possible.
• STEREOGRAM: Created from a film or video sequence, these animation holograms show full-colour, depth, and movement of living things, sceneries, computer-generated graphics or technical processes.

RANGE OF HOLOGRAPHIC LABELS TO SUIT ANY APPLICATION

• Tamper Evident,tamper proof & pressure-sensitive self-adhesive (or without adhesive) metalised & laminated polyester film (23-50 microns) or foil labels supplied in the form of pre cut sizes/shape in sheet or roll form. It’s a perfect marking, which self-destructs on being removed.
• Tamper Resistant Label for automatic in line application.
• Hot Stamping Foil for marking onto paper labels, board, plastic caps, documents, licenses, certificates, etc. - with different adhesives
• Induction Wads with hologram for authenticity & tamper resistance.
• Holographic Aluminum Foil: Ultimate in tamper resistance packaging for the pharma industry.
• Shrink Sleeve: Tamper resistant shrink sleeve with holographic stripe.

HOLOGRAPHIC PACKAGING (in roll/ pouch form in multi-layers)

• Holographic Film - for printing/ lamination and other flexible packaging applications - in a striking range of uniform repeating patterns in different weights & gauges
• Paper & Board - from ultra light 15gsm to 220gsm board, supplied in rolls or sheeted, with or without adhesive
• Polypropylene - in several gauges and widths, heat - seal grade, single/ sandwich layer lamination
• Polyester - from 12 micron for lamination to 50 micron for wet-glue and self-adhesive labels, twist wrap, ridged or flexible packaging, gift-wrap and display applications - pre-treated for easy handling and supplied in custom originated patterned and designs.
• Aluminum Foil.

PROMOTIONAL HOLOGRAMS ARE USED:

• for advertising & sales or brand promotion
• as give-away in trade fairs,
• on magazine/ brochure cover, and greeting cards etc.
• as mementoes/ keepsakes/ tokens,
• multi-coloured 3-dimensional images of gods/ goddesses/ deities, places of worship, monuments/ palaces/ edifices/ structures/ buildings of historical or archaeological importance

• Full-colour holograms on plate glass as exquisite exhibition pieces and presentation plaques.

  TECHNIQUES IN HOLOGRAPHY
  Dynamic holography
  The discussion above describes static holography, in which recording, developing and reconstructing occur sequentially and a permanent hologram is produced.
  There exist also holographic materials which don’t need the developing process and can record a hologram in a very short time. This allows to use holography to perform some simple operations in an all-optical way. Examples of applications of such real-time holograms include phase-conjugate mirrors (”time-reversal” of light), optical cache memories, image processing (pattern recognition of time-varying images), and optical computing.
  The amount of processed information can be very high (terabit/s), since the operation is performed in parallel on a whole image. This compensates the fact that the recording time, which is in the order of a µs, is still very long compared to the processing time of an electronic computer. The optical processing performed by a dynamic hologram is also much less flexible than electronic processing. On one side one has to perform the operation always on the whole image, and on the other side the operation a hologram can perform is basically either a multiplication or a phase conjugation. But remember that in optics, addition and Fourier transform are already easily performed in linear materials, the second simply by a lens. This enables some applications like a device that compares images in an optical way [3].
  The search for novel nonlinear optical materials for dynamic holography is an active area of research. The most common materials are photorefractive crystals, but also in semiconductors or semiconductor heterostructures (such as quantum wells), atomic vapors and gases, plasmas and even liquids it was possible to generate holograms.
  A particularly promising application is optical phase conjugation. It allows to remove the wavefront distortions a light beam receives when passing through an aberrating medium, by sending it back through the same aberrating medium with a conjugated phase. This is useful for example in free-space optical communications to compensate the atmospheric turbulence (the phenomenon that gives rise to the twinkling of starlight).

• Holographic memory
  Holography can be applied to a variety of uses other than recording images. Holographic data storage is a technique that can store information at high density inside crystals or photopolymers. As current storage techniques such as Blu-ray reach the denser limit of possible data density (due to the diffraction-limited size of the writing beams), holographic storage has the potential to become the next generation of popular storage media. The advantage of this type of data storage is that the volume of the recording media is used instead of just the surface.
  Currently available SLMs can produce about 1000 different images a second at 1024×1024-bit resolution. With the right type of media (probably polymers rather than something like LiNbO3), this would result in about 1 gigabit per second writing speed. Read speeds can surpass this and experts believe 1-terabit per second readout is possible.
  In 2005, companies such as Optware and Maxell have produced a 120mm disc that uses a holographic layer to store data to a potential 3.9 TB (terabyte), which they plan to market under the name Holographic Versatile Disc. Another company, InPhase Technologies, is developing a competing format.
• Digital holography
  Main article: digital holography
  An alternate method to record holograms is to use a digital device like a CCD camera instead of a conventional photographic film. This approach is often called digital holography. In this case, the reconstruction process can be carried out by digital processing of the recorded hologram by a standard computer. A 3D image of the object can later be visualized on the computer screen or TV set.
• Holography in art
  Salvador Dalí claimed to have been the first to employ holography artistically. He was certainly the first and most notorious surrealist to do so, but the 1972 New York exhibit of Dalí holograms had been preceded by the holographic art exhibition which was held at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan in 1968 and by the one at the Finch College gallery in New York in 1970, which attracted national media attention.
  The Dalí Holograms were mastered in St. Louis, at the McDonnell Douglas Company who had just invested in a Ruby Pulse Laser and decided to, aside from meteorological purposes, make industrially oriented projection Holograms for presentations and trade shows. In London, Dalí assembled his models by hanging objects with wires inside of wooden frames. This technique allowed for overlapping and differences in depth.
  Since then the quality of the holograms has increased dramatically, mainly due to better holographic emulsions. As of 2007 there are many artists who use holograms in their creations.
• Electron holography
  Electron holography is the application of holography techniques to electron waves rather than light waves.
  Electron holography was invented by Dennis Gabor to improve the resolution and avoid the aberrations of the transmission electron microscope. Today it is commonly used to study electric and magnetic fields in thin films, as magnetic and electric fields can shift the phase of the interfering wave passing through the sample.
  The principle of electron holography can also be applied to interference lithography.
• Holographic theories of brain function
  An analogy between the distributed information in holograms and the distributed information in brains gave rise to a speculative idea termed holonomic brain theory.

HOLOGRAMS ARE THE BEST PRODUCT SECURITY & AUTHENTICATION SEALS

* Virtually impossible to copy by any known printing technique.
o Traditional tools that counterfeiters use do not work on holograms, e.g. Camera, scanner, colour photocopier, printing (digital or analogue)
o There has been no case of a well-designed authenticated hologram being copied accurately.
o Producing an original hologram is highly technical, time consuming & expensive
o The equipment and skills necessary for origination and mass-producing holograms has been fairly difficult to obtain.
o Deters counterfeiters, and forces them to move on to easier targets.
o Counterfeiters inherently select the path of least resistance, and move to target brands & products, which are easier to copy. Can be compared to trademark & patents
- Provides an extra dimension of name/ symbol/ logo/trademark legal protection

* Pressure-sensitive self-adhesive hologram labels are easy to use and apply

* Tamper evident - instant recognition of tampering.
If anyone tries to remove the hologram from the surface of the original document or the branded product or its outer packaging, only the bare polyester will come off in his fingers, leaving the holographic impression (the image) on the surface of the original document/ product or/ packaging — thereby revealing the evidence of tamper with the hologram.
o The best fraud-preventive infallible seal of foolproof product security
Has a proven track record of being the most successful technology to combat counterfeiting/ duplication
o When used as part of packaging & labeling, holograms make it difficult to replicate or simulate packaging.

* Provides Product Authentication, Quick and Easy Optical Validation - easily recognizable by naked eye without special equipment at a sales or distribution outlet under all light conditions.
o Looks distinctively different from printed labels or hot-stamped foil sticker clones
o Works like a security & tracking system.
Sequential numbering on top of the hologram can serve a variety of purposes, such as product tracking, inventory control, and multiple uses of a single stock hologram.

* Provides potential forensic information for prosecution
o Embedded and Hidden Images in the Hologram further establish defensive evidence against possible defective product & negligence claims
o Helps to check abuse & prevents misuse of privileges by unauthorised persons holding fake/ counterfeit of the original product.

* Helps improve brand image, enhances company reputation
o Enhances Packaging Appeal — gives increased visibility, shelf-presence & added value to the product at point of sale, in advertising, marketing, promotion, gifts, publications, direct mail and trade show products etc.
o Helps in Market positioning - boost sales, increase Brand Sales/ market share and profits
o 70% of all purchase decisions are made at the store.
o Improves Consumers’ Brand Awareness — enhances faith, increases loyalty and reinforces his confidence in the genuineness of the product — in that the manufacturer has taken due care and that it virtually guarantees the authenticity & quality of the brand product.

Download advantages of hologram: hologram-advantage.pdf

COUNTERFEITING IN INDIA

Rs 60,000 Crores per year - virtually a parallel market

Trade Losses due to piracy in India

As per International Anti-counterfeiting Coalition 1999
Total Loss to the Indian Industry: Rs 1435.36 Crores

Counterfeiting Worldwide

COUNTERFEITING affects us all:

• Permeates almost all of legitimate businesses & industry
• Among the fastest growing global economic crimes — second only to drug trafficking or dealing in illicit firearms. The commercial crime is growing faster than international trade.
• Virtually a parallel market — growing 8-10% yearly - faster than int’l trade.
• Frequently plays a part in laundering of drug money.
• Has developed into a sophisticated network of organized crime & terrorism.
• Often leads to human tragedies

COUNTERFEITING RESULTS INTO A HUGE LOSS:

• Of jobs in the genuine segments
  - Auto industry could employ thousands of new workers, if the counterfeit products could be eliminated.
• Of huge Tax Revenue to Govt.
  - Rs 900 Crores in FMCG sector alone
  - Counterfeiters may charge customers excise/ sales tax, but generally retain it.
  - Counterfeiters pay only a fraction of true income tax liability, if they pay any at all.

COUNTERFEITING:

• Associates genuine producers with substandard or dangerous products
  - Manufacturer’s good name is damaged
• Demolishes the brand image - Customers shun brands being counterfeited - if there is any adverse publicity - 85% of those who stopped using a famous brand of bearings did so due to the prevalence of their counterfeits, which adversely impacts their decision to purchase even other brands now — according to the recent market survey.
• Destroys the industry on which it preys, and rips it off by a massive loss of sales to the genuine producer. - Is like cancer - slow & unnoticeable at first.

COUNTERFEITS :

• Endanger public health & safety
• May not comply with Safety Standards.
• Hurts Consumers
  - Consumers risk inferior performance, dangerous/fatal consequences - including equipment failure, shock/ fire risks

• Air crashes & Motor accidents with disastrous consequences attributed to duplicate/ spurious parts.
• Counterfeit or spurious medicine, baby foods, liquor, cosmetics, detergents, spices, tea, edible oils & other items of human consumption fatally affect people.
  – They have caused stomach ulcers, blindness, paralysis, deaths.
• Counterfeit toys have caused serious problems for children.
• Counterfeit shampoo has caused hair loss
• Counterfeit clothing is generally quite shoddy and could even be dangerous
  -”Replica” kids clothing is usually not flame retardant & can present a fire hazard.
• Counterfeit sunglasses are generally not shatterproof & often have no ultraviolet protection.
• Counterfeit household electrical appliances & parts pose greatest potential risk of fire and shock hazards. Light strings, electrical decorations & accessories, other electronic goods, fans, extension cords, lamps, light fixtures, night-lights, and computer power supplies etc.
• Issuing authorities of genuine documents often unable to honour their own valuable documents due to their counterfeiting. For example: Bills of Lading, Documentary Credits, Cheques/ Drafts or other written contracts, Certificates of Origin, Academic Degree/ Diploma/ Marks Sheets, Tax Certificates, etc.

The fast moving brand products, important trade documents, and the academic certificates are amongst the worst affected by the counterfeiting menace, which affects the society in general.

STAY AHEAD IN THE BURGEONING GLOBAL COMPETITION

Enhance your Brand Image!

YOUR BRAND VALUE IS:

• AN INTANGIBLE ASSET
  The Goodwill (A Golden Goose),
  The lifeblood of the company
  Of genuine economic value - can be many times of the balance sheet value
  Creates influence on a market - speeds up the time to peak sales
  A part of market capitalization - financial representation of ‘how a business is valued by its shareholders’
• A RELATIONSHIP - between You & the Buyer

YOUR BRAND VALUE BENEFITS:

YOUR END CONSUMERS
Guarantee of quality, way to choose, added pleasures.
YOUR RETAILERS
Store traffic & premium prices - the benchmark for private label.
YOU, THE MANUFACTURER
The means to compete, your strategic muscle, and security of earnings.
YOUR SHAREHOLDERS
Relates to share price performance, and the quality of earnings.

YOUR BRAND IS VALUABLE ONLY WHEN PROTECTED.

If you don’t take sufficient steps to protect your brand and the counterfeiters are allowed a free rein, the value of the brand will rapidly erode.
Huge sums of money may be at risk in terms of lost sales by not defending your key products.
Counterfeits of your product could damage your brand permanently
Name once damaged, is very expensive to repair, both in terms of time & money.
You may be able to put the cracks together but will never be quite sure of it.
Rebuilding cost could be 3 times or more of what it cost you earlier to establish your image.

Brand Protection, is therefore a must

Being even a legitimate producer, you could be liable for a counterfeit of your own product that may have caused harm or loss to the customer –if he establishes that you could have anticipated the counterfeiting but failed to take steps to prevent or reduce it.
Legal responsibility and obligation, therefore, rests with you, the genuine manufacturer. You must take preventive action to protect your products from being counterfeited.
If your products have been counterfeited, the Courts may ask you:-
o What are you doing to protect your product?
o Was your products’ counterfeiting and consequent injury foreseeable?
You have to establish a record of protecting your product and to reduce the risks of costly damage claims in product liability cases

Brand protection is a marketing function- not an added ‘product cost’

To be competitive, don’t reduce costs by simply cutting in many areas to save a small percentage. Don’t ignore the developing & nurturing your brand value.
It takes a very nominal investment and simple effort to protecting it.
Don’t see it as money wasted, or an advertising expenditure — a small ’saving’ may put your whole project in jeopardy, risking its very survival.

SOME have been heard saying, “I can’t keep up with demand. Duplicates only make my name more famous specially in the markets where I do not sell”. But the continuing damage to their brand image will kill their name and consequently the total sale.

Paradigm shift in thinking is required, Therefore

From cost minimization to benefit maximization
Improved management will result in better growth.

A fraud preventive security & authentication process is vital for brand owners, buyers, sellers, banks/ financial/academic institutions and Govt. Tax Collection Agencies

Full member:
Having in-house facilities for Designing/ Mastering/ Origination
and/or
Manufacturing of Holograms or Holographic Packaging Film embossing (narrow/ wide web) and all facilities for conversion of holographic material to the finishing of the product.

Associate member: No voting rights
Manufacturers of holographic machinery, raw material, chemicals & other allied requisites, and testing & security equipment
Holography R & D Centres
Finishers or converters of holograms engaged in Value-Addition ¼br> Suppliers of holographic products and related/ allied services- available on selective basis

Subsidiary member:  - No voting rights
Subsidiary of the Full or Associate Member having 50%+ of the capital.  –
The benefits of membership in the corresponding category will extend to such subsidiaries.

Full/ Associate/ Subsidiary membership entitles you to the:-
Right to use the HoMAI logo - a reassuring sign to customers & others in the hologram/ related industry.  ¼br> - It enhances your image and shows your solidarity with the only national body
Eligibility to use Hologram Roster for Customer Verification/ Artwork Clearance/ Hologram Registration – as per HR rules & prescribed fees.

Student member:  Limited to the period of their post-graduate training in holography.- No Voting Rights

Honorary member: -  - No Fee/ No Voting Rights
Holographic R & D Centres and individuals (purely into research in holography and having no commercial activity in the field of holograms manufacturing or supply), who have made outstanding contributions to the advancement of hologram manufacturing or who may have rendered or are capable of rendering an outstanding service for the promotion of the objectives of the Association.

Patron: No Fee/ No Voting Rights
A philanthropist or a renowned person who is interested in contributing to the advancement of the objectives of the Association and may contribute a substantial amount towards the achievement of the objectives.-

Please attach Balance Sheet or the Chartered Accountant’s Certificate in support of the turnover.

Initially, you will be inducted in the applicable category as a Provisional Member (with no voting right )– [Ref; AGM 10-11 Jan 2003] – subject to your:-
a.Written undertaking for compliance of HoMAI Code of Conduct (incl. respect for & No Violation of Copyrights).
b.Declaration of Manufacturing Facilities (in prescribed form), and Verification thereof by any two full members.
c.No Objection Certificate for HoMAI Anti-Piracy Committee’s appointed Copyright Investigation & Enforcement Agency to have unconditional access to your works to verify that the job in progress or already executed/supplied is/was against the genuine user’s confirmed/ authorised order and that proper security measures & controls are in place against any possibility of pilferage from disclosed or any undisclosed place.

Download HoMAI membership categories & fees chart: membership-fees-categories.pdf

Invitation to Join HoMAI

To:

• Manufacturers of Holograms or Holographic Packaging.
• Holographic Origination Labs.
• Finishers or converters of holograms engaged in Value-Addition
• Suppliers of holographic products and related/ allied services
• Manufacturers/ Suppliers of holographic machinery, raw material, chemicals allied requisites, testing & security equipment, and Holography R & D Centres

Dear Sir, I am happy to apprise you of some of our achievements since HoMAI’s inception in 1998:-

• HoMAI members have time & again shown exemplary alertness in averting/ foiling several amateurish attempts by persons trying to source new or the look-alikes of some existing well known holograms. HoMAI members refuse to take orders from unauthorised persons who do not own the ‘brand name/ logo’ or apparently want to clandestinely make similar replication of an existing hologram.
• The Hologram Roster - a specially designed confidential & secured database of copyright-holograms to meet the specific needs of its users in this sub-continent and operated by an independent agency & fully backed by HoMAI to provide evidence of first production & of actual copyrights and to protect against the inadvertent duplication of the security holograms - is fully functional and being patronised by HoMAI Members.
• The Benchmarking of the holographic industry is already in progress.
• Code of Business Practice, for our becoming a self-regulated association and to improve the customers’ faith in our members, is well established now, being followed and closely monitored.
• HoMAI has a fair competition policy within the framework of the copyright law.
• A vigorous & sustained promotion through internet presence & print/web advertising is being launched.
• Standardisation of documents for the benefit of the members: –
  ‘Appointment Letter & Agreement with Key Personnel Employed’, ‘Customer Query Forms’, ‘Quotation Letter’, ‘Standard Contract Letter with Client’ etc.

The increasingly new uses of holograms are now drastically expanding the market, which is expected to consistently grow in the coming years - by 30-50% a year (internationally). It is important to remember here that the holographic manufacturing employs a dynamic & expensive high technology, it requires a continuous R & D to stay ahead of the counterfeiters, and the obsolescence level of the machinery/ equipment and its cost is very high. Consequently, without a sufficient return on investment, we can’t keep our customers happy, it’s a vicious circle.

We want all security hologram manufacturers to join forces and enrol for HoMAI Membership so as to have a unified one voice to be heard, succeed and benefit from concerted efforts.
The annual membership fee structure & the payment plan have, therefore, been made very attractive for the new members. I request you to come and join HoMAI, which will add to your credibility.

Do please contact Mr. C S Jeena / Secretary of the Association or me for any clarification you may have to seek. And in the meantime, I shall appreciate your acknowledgement (preferably by email) of having received this letter and the accompanying documents enclosed herewith.

Thanking you and looking forward to welcome you to HoMAI

Sincerely,

G S Dhillon
President
Email: dhillon@alt.in

Download: HoMAI Membership Application form :homai-membership-application-form.pdf

HOLOGRAM MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION OF INDIA

Established in 1998 to promote the common interests of Indian hologram industry and offer one stop source of reliable producers of holograms, HoMAI is a registered*, ‘not-for-profit’ and a self-regulated national body of the carefully scrutinized and stringently chosen hologram manufacturers, who comply with certain conditions pertaining to their professional preparedness and proper manufacturing facilities and committed to the HoMAI Code for best business practice, respect for copyrights, high technical and security standards and to keep abreast of the latest technologies to stay ahead of the counterfeiters so that the hologram users could get the best anti-counterfeiting solutions and confidently rely on the HoMAI Members.

To develop new areas of application, collect statistical data and to set standards for effective use of holograms are some of the concerns of HoMAI The originators, converters, finishers and the suppliers of holograms or the holographic machinery, equipment and materials and the R and D Centres subscribe to HoMAI as Associate Members.
Subsidiary (of a Full Member), Research Students and Honorary Member categories are also there.
*under “Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860″ on 01 Dec. 1998

HoMAI’s ACHIEVEMENTS:

• Visible improvement in work ethics.
• Prospective users have already begun to realise that they could confidently rely on the HoMAI Members for their security holograms.

HOMAI’S PROFESSIONAL LINKS:

HoMAI closely co-operates and maintains liaison with the industry chambers:-

• CII [Confederation of Indian Industry]- www.ciionline.org/
• ASSOCHAM-The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India- www.assocham.org/ 
• PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry- www.phdcci.in/
• FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industries) - a/f
  ICC-India [Int’l. Chamber of Commerce]HoMAI Administrative Office and Secretariat.

21-Ground Floor, 6 Devika Tower
Nehru Place, New Delhi 110019
Mobile: +91-9818281116
Telfax: +91(11)-41617369
Email: info@homai.org
Url:  http://www.homai.orgRegistered under “Societies Registration Act XXI of 1860 on 01 Dec 1998Hologram industry calls for men of integrity and creative ability. It employs a very dynamic, complex and expensive high technology, ongoing up gradation of equipment/ machinery and continuous R & D to stay ahead of the counterfeiters.