About Optical Brightening Agents (OBAs)

No paper is pure white

Optical Brightening Agents (OBA's) are used to achieve a "bright white" appearance.

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High levels of OBA's make paper stock slightly bluish

This essentially makes paper stock a "5th color" in terms of color management.

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Bright white papers with higher OBA levels are increasing in popularity

Print designers are demanding these bright, bluish white stocks.

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UV Levels in some lighting conditions can make high OBA papers fluoresce

GRACoL 2006 (no OBA) & 2013 (some OBA) proof papers will not show this fluorescence

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Left to Right - illustration of increasingly higher OBA and UV levels:

HIGHER OBA PROOFING PAPERS WILL HELP YOU PREDICT AND MANAGE THESE EFFECTS

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Relative OBA levels can be measured in L*a*b* using an M1 spectro

The higher the b* value - the higher the OBA's

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Here are the b* values for GRACoL papers (including ours)

GRACoL 2006 = b*-2 

GRACoL 2013 = b*-4

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Here are the b* values for our higher OBA papers

High OBA = b*-8 

Max OBA = b*-10

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Our portfolio offers all four of these grades in two different weights

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We are happy to provide 24" sample rolls of these papers