Printing Technology

TYPES OF PRINTING
Printing is a process for reproducing text and images using a master form or template.
All printing process are concerned with two kinds of areas on the final output:
 Image Area (printing areas)
 Non-image Area (non-printing areas)
After the information has been prepared for production (the prepress step), each
printing process has definitive means of separating the image from the non-image
areas.
Conventional printing has four types of process:
 Planographics, in which the printing and non-printing areas are on the same
plane surface and the difference between them is maintained chemically or by
physical properties, the examples are: offset lithography, collotype, and
screenless printing.
 Relief, in which the printing areas are on a plane surface and the non printing
areas are below the surface, examples: flexography and letterpress.
 Intaglio, in which the non-printing areas are on a plane surface and the printing
area are etched or engraved below the surface, examples: steel die engraving,
gravure
 Porous, in which the printing areas are on fine mesh screens through which ink
can penetrate, and the non-printing areas are a stencil over the screen to block
the flow of ink in those areas, examples: screen printing, stencil duplicator.
Letterpress

Letterpress printing is a technique of relief printing. A worker composes and locks movable type
into the bed of a press, inks it, and presses paper against it to transfer the ink from the type
which creates an impression on the paper.
Letterpress printing was the normal form of printing text from its invention by Johannes
Gutenberg in the mid-15th century and remained in wide use for books and other uses until the
second half of the 20th century, when offset printing was developed. More recently, letterpress
printing has seen a revival in an artisanal form.

Offset

Offset printing is a widely used printing technique. Offset printing is where the inked image is
transferred (or "offset") from a plate to a rubber blanket. An offset transfer moves the image to
the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithographic process, a process based
on the repulsion of oil and water; the offset technique employs a flat ( planographic ) image
carrier. So, the image to be printed obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-printing area
attracts a film of water, keeping the non-printing areas ink-free.
Currently, most books and newspapers are printed using the technique of offset lithography.

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Gravure

Gravure printing is an intaglio printing technique, where the image being printed is made up of
small depressions in the surface of the printing plate. The cells are filled with ink, and the
excess is scraped off the surface with a doctor blade. Then a rubber-covered roller presses
paper onto the surface of the plate and into contact with the ink in the cells. The printing
cylinders are usually made from copper plated steel, which is subsequently chromed, and may
be produced by diamond engraving; etching, or laser ablation.
Gravure printing is used for long, high-quality print runs such as magazines, mail-order
catalogues, packaging and printing onto fabric and wallpaper. It is also used for printing postage
stamps and decorative plastic laminates, such as kitchen worktops.

The other significant printing techniques include:

 Flexography, used for packaging, labels, newspapers

 Dye-sublimation printer
 Inkjet, used typically to print a small number of books or packaging, and also to print a
variety of materials from high quality papers simulating offset printing, to floor tiles. Inkjet
is also used to apply mailing addresses to direct mail pieces
 Laser printing (toner printing) mainly used in offices and for transactional printing (bills,
bank documents). Laser printing is commonly used by direct mail companies to create
variable data letters or coupons.

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  Pad printing, popular for its unusual ability to print on complex three-dimensional
surfaces
 Relief print, mainly used for catalogues
 Screen-printing for a variety of applications ranging from T-shirts to floor tiles, and on
uneven surfaces
 Intaglio, used mainly for high value documents such as currencies.
 Thermal printing, popular in the 1990s for fax printing. Used today for printing labels
such as airline baggage tags and individual price labels in supermarket deli counters.

Flexography

Flexography (often abbreviated to flexo) is a form of printing process which utilizes a flexible
relief plate. It is essentially a modern version of letterpress which can be used for printing on
almost any type of substrate, including plastic, metallic films, cellophane, and paper. It is widely
used for printing on the non-porous substrates required for various types of food packaging (it is
also well suited for printing large areas of solid colour).
Originally, flexographic printing was rudimentary in quality. Labels requiring high quality have
generally been printed using the offset process until recently. Since 1990, great advances have
been made to the quality of flexographic printing presses, printing plates and printing inks. The
greatest advances in flexographic printing have been in the area of photopolymer printing
plates, including improvements to the plate material and the method of plate creation.
Digital direct to plate systems have been a good improvement in the industry recently.
Companies like Asahi Photoproducts, AV Flexologic, Dupont, MacDermid, Kodak and Esko
have pioneered the latest technologies, with advances in fast washout and the latest screening
technology.
Laser-etched ceramic anilox rolls also play a part in the improvement of print quality. Full-color
picture printing is now possible, and some of the finer presses available today, in combination
with a skilled operator, allow quality that rivals the lithographic process. One ongoing
improvement has been the increasing ability to reproduce highlight tonal values, thereby
providing a workaround for the very high dot gain associated with flexographic printing.

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Dye-Sublimation Printer

A dye-sublimation printer is a computer printer which uses heat to transfer dye onto materials
such as a plastic, card, paper, or fabric. The sublimation name was first applied because the
dye was considered to make the transition between the solid and gas states without going
through a liquid stage. This understanding of the process was later shown to be incorrect. There
is some liquifying of the dye. Since then, the process is sometimes known as dye-diffusion,
though this has not eliminated the original name. Many consumer and professional dye-
sublimation printers are designed and used for producing photographic prints, ID cards,
clothing, and more.
Dye-sublimation can also be used as an indirect printing process. Standard black and white
laser printers are capable of printing on plain paper using a special "transfer toner" containing
sublimation dyes which can then be permanently heat transferred to T-shirts, hats, mugs,
metals, puzzles and other surfaces.

Advantages of dye-sublimation over other methods of textile printing :

 Images are permanent and do not peel or fade.
 Dye does not build up on the fabric.
 Colors can be extraordinarily brilliant due to the bonding of the dye to the transparent
fibers of the synthetic fabric.
 Truly continuous tones can be achieved that are equivalent to photographs, without the
use special techniques such as half-screen printing.
 The image can be printed all over the entire item, with no difficulty in printing all the way
to the edges.
Disadvantages:
 The printer speed is low.
 Any creases in the apparel during printing leave blank spots behind.

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Inject Printing

Inkjet printing is a type of computer printing that recreates a digital image by propelling droplets
of ink onto paper, plastic, or other substrates. Inkjet printers are the most commonly used type
of printer, and range from small inexpensive consumer models to expensive professional
machines.
The concept of inkjet printing originated in the 20th century, and the technology was first
extensively developed in the early 1950s. Starting in the late 1970s, inkjet printers that could
reproduce digital images generated by computers were developed, mainly by Epson, Hewlett-
Packard (HP), and Canon. In the worldwide consumer market, four manufacturers account for
the majority of inkjet printer sales: Canon, HP, Epson, and Brother.

Laser Printing

Laser printing is an electrostatic digital printing process. It produces high-quality text and
graphics (and moderate-quality photographs) by repeatedly passing a laser beam back and
forth over a negatively charged cylinder called a "drum" to define a differentially charged image.
The drum then selectively collects electrically charged powdered ink (toner), and transfers the
image to paper, which is then heated in order to permanently fuse the text and or imagery. As
with digital photocopiers, laser printers employ a xerographic printing process. However, laser
printing differs from analog photocopiers in that the image is produced by the direct scanning of
the medium across the printer's photoreceptor. This enables laser printing to copy images more
quickly than most photocopiers.

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A laser beam (typically, an aluminium gallium arsenide (AlGaAs) semiconductor laser) projects
an image of the page to be printed onto an electrically charged, selenium-coated, rotating,
cylindrical drum or, more commonly in subsequent versions, a drum called an organic
photoconductor made of N-vinylcarbazole, an organic monomer). Photoconductivity allows the
charged electrons to fall away from the areas exposed to light. Powdered ink (toner) particles
are then electrostatically attracted to the charged areas of the drum that have not been laser-
beamed. The drum then transfers the image onto paper (which is passed through the machine)
by direct contact. Finally the paper is passed onto a finisher, which uses intense heat to
instantly fuse the toner or image onto the paper.

Screen Printing

Screen printing is a printing technique whereby a mesh is used to transfer ink onto a substrate,
except in areas made impermeable to the ink by a blocking stencil. A blade or squeegee is
moved across the screen to fill the open mesh apertures with ink, and a reverse stroke then
causes the screen to touch the substrate momentarily along a line of contact.
Screen printing is also a stencil method of print making in which a design is imposed on a
screen of polyester or other fine mesh, with blank areas coated with an impermeable substance.
Ink is forced into the mesh openings by the fill blade or squeegee and by wetting the substrate,
transferred onto the printing surface during the squeegee stroke. As the screen rebounds away
from the substrate the ink remains on the substrate. It is also known as silk-screen, screen,
serigraphy, and serigraph printing. One color is printed at a time, so several screens can be
used to produce a multi coloured image or design.

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Thermal Printing

Thermal printing (or direct thermal printing) is a digital printing process which produces a printed
image by selectively heating coated thermochromic paper, or thermal paper as it is commonly
known, when the paper passes over the thermal print head. The coating turns black in the areas
where it is heated, producing an image. Two color direct thermal printers can print both black
and an additional color (often red) by applying heat at two different temperatures.
Thermal transfer printing is a very different method that uses a heat-sensitive ribbon instead of
heat-sensitive paper, but uses similar thermal print heads. A thermal printer comprises these
key components:

 Thermal head generates heat; prints on paper

 Platen a rubber roller that feeds paper
 Spring applies pressure to the thermal head, causing it to contact the thermos sensitive
paper
 Controller boards for controlling the mechanism
In order to print, thermo-sensitive paper is inserted between the thermal head and the platen.
The printer sends an electric current to the heating elements of the thermal head, which
generate heat.

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Printing Company in Penang
J.P. PRINTERS SDN. BHD. (289031-x)

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https://www.jpp.com.my/

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