The Future of Offset Printing

Friday, March 20, 2009

The first printing press dates back almost 600 years. Printing has come a long way since its inception. Although digital color printing has its advantages, there is still a place for offset color printing. Most small businesses can greatly benefit by incorporating color printing into their marketing plan.

Despite what you may have read, there are still people who leave the Internet thus wandering outside. Color printing in the form of posters can be a great marketing tool catching just as many eyeballs potentially as a web site. Posters are an excellent tool when properly placed, and they can also enhance online traffic by prominently displaying your web site address.
Color printing is also beneficial when utilizing catalogs or brochures.

It is imperative to capture the attention of the recipient immediately when one engages in direct mail efforts. Content is obviously very important. However, color scheme and printing quality are also critical in order to ensure your mailer does not go directly into the circular file.

Postcard marketing is also a smart utilization of color printing. Postcards decrease associated mailing expense while retaining effectiveness if the limited "real estate" they entail if used properly. They often prove to be a great avenue for targeting a hard to reach niche audience.

Other color printing needs are seen throughout the operation. Examples include everything from signs in the office to color business cards. Training manuals, coupons, and menus can also be on the list depending upon the nature of the business.

Many assume digital printing is always the best path for their color printing needs. This is not always the case. Limited runs with very short deadlines usually are best suited to digital printing. However, for longer runs it becomes apparent that offset printing is the more economical choice. Most printing experts put the threshold at 2500 impressions for any given run. If it is projected to be over that amount, then you should seriously consider offset printing.

When it comes to personalization, digital printing is most often the best route to take. Offset printing becomes cumbersome when there exist many fields of variable data. However, for projects entailing limited variable data the combination of these two processes can be used. A joint use of high-speed inkjet printing along with offset printing can capture the cost benefits of offset color printing while retaining the ability to personalize to a limited degree.

When crafting your overall marketing strategy do not leave out proven real world methods. Properly place posters and targeted mailings are both great uses for color printing. Online is great but does not address your entire audience. Analyze the costs and benefits between offset and digital printing. Those postcards with limited variable data might be far less expensive than you imagine. Let color printing help your business prosper.

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The Advantages of Digital Printing

he digital age has officially begun. With the coming of the 21st century, many changes have occurred and improvements in technology results in helping our lives continually being more efficient and comfortable. Businesses are being more efficient than ever. Things that used to take like days and even weeks to be done can now be ready in just a few minutes or even seconds.

One of the industries that are greatly affected by the coming of the digital age is the printing industry. Digital printing uses the newest technology available in the market today and helps you in acquiring quality printing materials at very affordable prices. Not only that, digital printing reduces the time it takes for your prints to be done as well as lessens the labor needs of your company.

There are many digital printing options that you can choose from. With these options, there are so many more advantages that you can attain:

VARIABLE DATA PRINTING
Direct mail campaigns can greatly be improved with the use of variable data printing. Variable data printing allows you to mass produce your custom prints thus making it easier for you to make that personal connection with your target market.

For example, those personalized brochures or postcards that you get from your mail that advertises or markets different products and services – they are probably created from digital methods. Upon inspection of the prints you would notice that your letter includes your name, location and other personal information. When you go to your neighbor, you will see the same thing. Direct mail letters have their personal information printed also.

Variable printing is responsible for this. Through variable printing, you can state which elements of your design remain static and which elements you want varied from print to print. As such, the design of your prints as well as the over all layout of your materials remain the same while the name, address and other information about the customer is variable.

In the past this type of printing is hard to do since offset printing does not alow for short run prints and in more geared towards producing large amounts of copies of a single print. However, through today’s technology variable printing has become a viable option.

EASY WORKFLOW

The workflow of digital printers is also so much easier as compared to the workflow of offset printers. When printing your materials through the digital process, you will not need to go through the different mechanical procedures such as film stripping and color separation. Also, plate production is no longer an issue since the digital process uses direct to printer technology that allows you readily print your materials once they are uploaded to your printer’s computer.

PRINT ON DEMAND

The most useful feature of printing through the digital process is that you can print your materials on demand. You can specify how your prints will be done and when you want them finished. You can also specify the number of copies that you want and are no longer limited to ordering bulk orders in order to be cost effective.

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CNC And CAD - Computer Aided Design

Monday, March 9, 2009

CAD stands for Computer Aided Design

or Computer Aided Drafting. CAD was developed in the early 60s. Today it is the premier way to design, develop and optimized products. People use CAD every day to design virtually every product you see. Generally, designers use CAD to design a product, and then produce prints to manufacture that product. A print is a picture of a part or assembly that is very exact. It includes the dimensions and a parts list used to manufacture a product.

CAD is the use of computer based software packages that assist engineers, architects and other design professionals in their designs. CAD is the part of the main designing process and involves both software and sometimes hardware. Current software packages range from 2D vector based drafting systems to 3D solid and surface modelers.

Computer Aided Drafting software packages can generally be broken into two groups. The groups are 2-D drafting packages or 3-D drafting packages. Most all software packages are moving to 3-D design. 3-D design is really the next generation of CAD. Utilizing 3-D design, engineers can make a model of their product. They can then look over this model for any apparent defects before it is ever made.

CAD is used to design, develop and optimize products. CAD is mainly used for the engineering of models and/or drawings of components. It is also used throughout the engineering process from concept to design of products. These products can be used by end consumers or used in other products. For example, you can design a bolt in CAD, and then use it in a Sub-Assembly in a planetary, which is a part of an earth-moving machine. CAD is also used in the design of tools and machinery. Finally, it is used in the design of all types of buildings from sheds to shopping malls.

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Rules of Color in Print Design

Color can make or break an advertisement, whether in a newspaper ad, postcard, or other form of printed marketing tools. However, too much color tends to overwhelm your message, while too little will not be able to capture enough attention. Choosing the wrong color scheme can hide or disrupt the flow of your message and style. Another thing that must be remembered is that a certain color on a computer screen may appear differently than if it is printed on a commercial printer.

You can avoid these common color flaws by following the rules below.

The Right Amount
Many designs have two or four color schemes. Smaller layouts such as for business card or postcard printing need to use only two colors while larger designs such as brochures can allow for four colors. Make sure to use white space so as not to overdo your color scheme. In addition, you have to organize the shades. For instance, use a white background, black fonts, a red header box background, and a blue tips box background.

The Right Shade
having to choose between two or four colors and deciding what color combination to use can be quite challenging. The perfect combination of colors should help you to guide your readers to the most important aspects of your layout first. Among all the other colors, black and red capture the most attention, effortlessly. On the other hand, blue and yellow are more subtle colors. Each of these colors may produce different results when combined with other shades.

Play around with the palette of your project until the most important information stands out the most. Additionally, keep in mind that your message and style needs to be coordinated with the right colors. Use the following right colors - orange for fun, green for growth, and yellow for happiness. Make sure that you take consideration of these things. Remember that every color has a meaning in psychological terms. Know what kind of impact each color brings to the people. Know which color would draw more attention according to your target market's point of view.

The Right Appearance
The default color scheme on a computer is RGB because these colors (red, green, and blue) are the primary colours of light. Since a computer screen operates with light, colors appear more vivid on the monitor with RGB. The problem occurs in the printing – the transfer of it from computer screen to paper, which is why color printing companies tend to use CMYK rather than RGB scheme. Cyan, magenta, and yellow (with black thrown in for a darker black) are the primary colors of ink; therefore, printed images appear more vivid and smooth. Your design program should have the option to choose colors from the CMYK scheme. Just remember that your proof printed on paper will appear differently than on the screen.

So with these tips in mind, you can get to work and create that perfect print out and use color to make your print design stand out from the rest and capture the most attention from your target markets.

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Alternatives for Doing Your Own Printing in Color

The first option for printing in color from home is to use a color printer that connects to your desktop or laptop computer. You first need a computer or access to one. The computer needs to have printer software. There are numerous applications on the market that provide templates to help you with printing in color. These applications are generally inexpensive. You will also need paper that is designed for printing in color. If you will be doing a variety of printing in color, a good choice is a pack of paper that includes various sizes and styles. For example, paper that works best for color photographs is generally glossy. On the other hand, if you are planning to create a brochure, invitations, or business cards, paper that has a matte finish is probably a better choice.

Finally, you will of course need a printer. The type of printer you need depends on the type of printing in color you will be performing. Color laser printers offer the best quality, but this type of printer is only an absolute necessity when you need the best quality such as when printing full-color catalogs. For basic color needs an inkjet printer will do the trick. Be careful, not all ink jet printers that offer printing in color are the same. Your best bet is an inkjet printer with 4800 x 1200-dpi. This will enable you to print the best quality. Even if you don't think you will need such high-quality color printing, you may need to do so later in the future.

Your second option for doing your own printing in color is to purchase a commercial printing press. A printing press is the best option when you want to print large quantities of a project in color. You may not have considered buying your own printing press because they are generally very expensive. Brand new printing presses can be very expensive. The inexpensive option is to purchase a used printing press. There are a number of ways that you can find used printing presses. The Internet is a popular choice because you can conveniently and quickly search for what you want. You may want to search Ebay, one of the top shopping resources on the Internet. Other options such as your local newspaper or auctions are great resources, but you will need to do a little legwork.

Like using a home printer, you will need a computer to produce the layout of the document that you want to print in color. When you are ready to print the document you just need to create your plates that will act as your printing template. Once you create your plate you can print as many copies as you need. The only disadvantage of buying a printing press is that if the machine malfunctions it may cost you some money to have it repaired.

Regardless of the option you choose, you can accomplish your personal color printing needs and do so without spending a lot of money.

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3d Printing Technology and Product Testing

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

3D printing technology saves design teams a considerable amount to time and energy to produce prototypes and the application of design changes.




  • 3D Printer Prototypes

  • 3D Printer Prototype Testing


3D Printer Prototypes

With 3D printing technology come many advantages for the production of prototypes. From the conceptual to testing stage the technology has improve production speed, cost, and simplicity. A 3D printing system using rapid prototype technology enhances the design process by producing a 3 dimensional model. The 3D printing system produces an actual model that can be seen and manipulated by designers during various stages of the development process which helps engineers to facilitate prototype corrections and enhancements. Compared to a 3D printer, usual methods of producing prototypes is time consuming, costly and has to be repeated even if the smallest change is made to the design. Using a 3D printing system to enhance product designs is more efficient and cuts a great deal of time off the various stages of product development.

A 3D printer helps to reduce the bottom line cost of research and development by facilitating the prototyping process. Product development is a costly and prototype design and production can add considerable expense to a project. Multiple design changes, failure to meet deadlines and retooling only add to the bottom line expense of the production process. Utilizing a 3D printer will enhance the design process and cut costs where design changes have to be made by eliminating many of the costs associated with prototype production. With a 3D printing system no additional retooling or reengineering is necessary, because changes only have to be made in the computer assisted design software program. The whole process of creating, changing and constructing prototypes is enhanced through the use of 3D printing technology.

3D Printer Prototype Testing

3D printing technology assists in the prototype testing phase by producing prototypes in a more efficient and time sensitive manner. Where redesigning, retooling and recreating prototypes took a considerable amount of time, the 3D printing system can have a redesigned prototype ready for the next phase of testing in a much shorter period of time then conventional methods. Testing often requires product redesign and retesting, by having a swift technology like a 3D printer, testing can continue according to schedule without any undue delays and expense. It is not very often that a product is able to survive the testing phase of product development without some kind of design change. The 3D printer allows designers and engineers to utilize the advanced technology to their advantage and create better products.

Product testing is an important stage of new product development and a 3D printing system can enhance the testing phase and make the results more effective. Because a 3D printer reduces testing costs the process can be that much more effective. No one wants to be the one who tests a product after they have spent a substantial amount of money on it. As 3D printing technology continues to advance the product testing and development phase everyone will benefit from the technology. When a company can reduce research and development costs by using 3D printing technology, every one will benefit from the savings. The costs or savings for the testing, designing and producing of new products is always passed on to the purchaser of those products.

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Offset Printing - Digital Printing and Copiers

The strengths of offset printing are image resolution, reproduction speed, paper selection and the declining cost per image as the print run lengthens. In general, we will recommend offset printing when your project is 5000 pieces or more; when the image contains fine lines, photographs, screens or tints; and when you want to use a thick or coated stock.

The strengths of digital printing are that once the image is at the printer, nothing more is required to produce the first print; the sheets can be handled, folded, cut or padded immediately after being printed; and an RGB color image can be printed. In general, we will recommend digital printing when you need your project quickly, especially if bindery operations (such as folding, cutting or padding) are required immediately; and if you need only a few copies.

The effect of document file preparation
Depending on how you prepare the document for your printing project, you may unintentionally prevent us from being able to use the best technology for the specific job. Remember that the image carrier for offset printing is a printing plate. Each color in the job requires a different plate. Therefore, the program used to create the file must support color separation.

Page layout programs that support color separation include Adobe PageMaker and InDesign; Quark XPress; and Microsoft Publisher. Programs that do not support color separations include Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Excel. If you create a document in any of these programs and want it to print in more than one color, or if you include Microsoft Metafiles as graphics, we will not be able to make press plates from the file. In addition, since these programs are not for page layout, we are likely to encounter other problems even if the job is printing in only one color.

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Computer printer technology

A computer printer is a device that produces human readable text or graphics in electronic form.

The following printer technologies are found in modern printers

• Toner based printers:
Toner based printers are very similar to photocopiers. They refer to the method used to adhere to the media. They are known for high quality prints, high print speed and low cost per copy. The most common example of toner based printers is laser printers. Their cost effective benefit has made them dominant for home and office applications. Another fine example of toner based printer would be LED printer which uses an array of LED's instead of a laser to cause toner adhesion.


• Inkjet Printers:
Inkjet printers are cheaper than laser printers but they are expensive to run as their cartridges need to be frequently replaced. Inkjet printers are widely used at homes and by small business users. They have an excellent all round printing capabilities from black and white to color prints. Inkjet printers ensure high resolution photo prints offering high quality photographs. Inkjet printers are comparatively much slower than laser printers. Another disadvantage of inkjet printer is that the pages take a long time to dry before they can be actually handled.


• Impact Printers:
Impact printers rely on a forcible ink to transfer ink to the media. They are similar to typewriters and have a limited capacity for reproducing text. A daisy wheel printer is a specific type of printer where the type is molded around the edge of a wheel. Impact printers are basically of two types' letter quality printers and dot matrix printers.


• Line Printers:
Line printers print an entire line of text at a time. These printers were the fastest in impact printers and were used for bulk printing in large computer centers. They were never used with personal computers due to their operating system. They have now been replaced by high speed laser printers.

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