Company History

of arcotest® and PILLAR Technologies / SHERMAN TREATERS Test Pens

Since 1976, arcotest GmbH has been manufacturing test inks used to determine the surface energy of solid materials such as plastics, metals, glass, and ceramics.
The wetting pattern allows users to evaluate how well a surface is suitable for printing, bonding, or coating.

Until 2007, PILLAR Technologies (USA) and Sherman Treaters (United Kingdom) were two independent companies.
From 1990 to 2007, both companies branded arcotest® test pens with their own logos.
The pens were filled with original arcotest® test ink and sold under their respective brand names.

In 2007, PILLAR Technologies acquired Sherman Treaters. Following this merger, a new test pen design was introduced and used from 2007 to 2015, featuring the settings PILLAR 38, PINK 40, PINK 42, and PINK 44.

In 2015, LOTAR Enterprises took over the distribution of PILLAR Technologies Sherman Treaters products and continues to distribute them today.

In 2020, the PINK test pen product range was expanded to include values from 22–36 and 46–60.

Since 2025, Astral Technology (Xiamen) Co., Ltd. has been the exclusive distributor of original PILLAR Technologies Sherman Treaters test pens in China.

dyne inks
Advantages of original PILLAR Technologies Sherman Treaters Test Pens:
  • Professional technical support with more than 50 years of experience
  • Consistently high quality since 1976
  • Certificate of Origin available
  • Quality Certificate available