Technology
Digital Printing
A modern type of printing using special digital inks whereby there is no plate; ink is laid down on paper through an electrostatic method much like a laser printer.
Sheet Fed (A type of Offset Printing Machine)
The main type of printing used by CPS; Paper is fed into the machine one sheet at a time.
Web Press (A type of Offset Printing Machine)
A paper roll based machine for extremely fast and cheap production; printing/folding occur in the same machine; There are Cold Set Web machines (no drying is involved) and Heat Set machines (product is printed/dried/folded together).
Offset Printing: (Lithography)
The most common type of printing, named due to the “offset” nature of the imprint process. Ink is applied to the plate by rollers. The image is then moved from the plate to a rubber based “blanket” from which it is applied to the final substrate. Offset printing is executed on Web press Machines or Sheet Fed machines.
UV Printing (A type of Offset Printing Machine)
A type of Sheet Fed Printing machine which uses special “UV inks” and UV lamps that cure each color immediately after it lays down on the paper.
Silkscreen Printing (Serigraphy)
A type of printing whereby colors are applied to a surface one color at a time, either by hand or by machine, through a mesh screen created by a stencil.
Flexographic Printing: (Flexography)
A type of roll based printing, smaller than webpress, commonly used for creation of sticker labels and such.
Rotogravure
A mechanized process related to Engraving whereby ink is applied to paper directly when roll-fed paper passes through a high speed printing cylinder; Mainly used for newspaper printing.
Letterpress
A simple and traditional type of printing where a raised block plate applies ink directly to paper.
Engraving
A specialized version of the intaglio traditional process of very finely carved images onto metal plates from which ink is applied directly to paper (unlike offset printing), resulting in a fine design with a unique raised texture; ALTERNATE: Thermography.
Thermography
A process for producing raised lettering, as on stationary or namecards, by application of a powder that is fused by heat to the fresh ink. A cheap and fast alternate to engraving.