Common Industry Terms
Here are some of the more commonly used terms that apply to our industry. A better knowledge of these terms and processes will help you to understand your requirements and order more effectively.
Bitmap files: images are exactly what their name says they are: a collection of bits that form an image. The image consists of a matrix of individual dots (or pixels).
Bleeds: printers cannot print right to the edge of a paper sheet. To create that effect, the printer must use a sheet, which is larger than the document size. Then the printer prints beyond the edge of the document size (usually a few mm), then cuts the paper down to the document size.
Camera-ready: artwork that is black and white and has very clean, crisp lines that make it easy to scan and suitable for photographic reproduction.
Colour Fill: colours used to fill stamped patterns in metal badges or key-rings. These colours are applied by hand in a very tedious process using a needle
Die-casting: injecting molten material into the cavity of a carved die (a mold)
Embossing: pressing an image into a product to produce an impression of the design. Eg: Leather compendiums.
Embroidery: stitching a design into fabric through the use of high-speed, computer-controlled sewing machines. Artwork must first be "digitized," which is the specialized process of converting two-dimensional artwork into stitches or thread. A particular format of art such as a jpeg, tif, eps, or bmp, cannot be converted into an embroidery tape. The digitizer must actually re-create the artwork using stitches. Then it programs the sewing machine to sew a specific design, in a specific colour, with a specific type of stitch. This is the process known as digitizing.
EPS (encapsulated postscript) file: an alternative picture file format that allows PostScript data to be stored and edited and is easy to transfer between Macintosh, MSDOS and other systems.
Etching: using a process in which an image is first covered with a protective coating that resists acid, then exposed, leaving bare metal and protected metal. The acid attacks only the exposed metal, leaving the image etched onto the surface. Eg: Aluminium coasters.
Foil Stamp: applying metallic or coloured foil imprints to vinyl, leather or paper surfaces
4-color Process: a system where a colour image is separated into 4 different colour values by the use of filters and screens (usually done digitally). The result is a colour separation of 4 images, that when transferred to printing plates and printed on a printing press with the coloured inks, {CYMK - Cyan (blue), Yellow, Magenta (red) and K (black)}, reproduces the original colour image. These four colours can be combined to create thousands of colours.
Imprint Area: the area on a product, with specific dimensions, in which the imprint is placed.
Laser Engraving: cutting an image into metal, wood or glass using a computerised laser engraver such as a YAG machine.
Less than Minimum: the fee charged by a supplier for ordering fewer items than the quantity they are prepared to sell as a base quantity.
Overruns/Underruns: the number of pieces that were printed, in excess of the quantity specified for the production run, or fewer pieces than the amount specified. The industry standard on most products is +/- 5%. Suppliers invoice on the actual quantity produced.
Pad Printing: a recessed surface is covered with ink. The plate is wiped clean, leaving ink in the recessed areas. A silicone pad is then pressed against the plate, pulling the ink out of the recesses, and pressing it directly onto the product.
Personalization: imprinting an item with a person's name using one of several methods such as mechanical engraving, laser engraving, hot stamping, embossing, sublimation, or screen printing.
(PMS Colours) Pantone Matching System: a book of standardized colours in used to identify, match and communicate colours in order to produce accurate colour matches in printing. Each colour has a coded number indicating instructions for mixing inks to achieve that colour. This system is predominately used for printing on paper but the colours are used as a guide for most printing and embroidery jobs.
(PDF) Portable Document Format files: preserve the visually rich content of original files, and are easier to read and transfer across the email systems. Adobe PDF files print cleanly and quickly, and anyone can share Adobe PDF files, regardless of their platform or software application. However PDF files are not suitable as artwork for printing - they are most commonly used to generate proofs for approval.
Pre-production Proof: an actual physical sample of the product itself produced and sent for approval before an order goes into production.
Production Time: the amount of time needed to produce and ship an order, once an order has been received and approved. Stock products printed locally are usually shipped within about 3 weeks. Custom made products produced and decorated off-shore requires longer production time and this can vary depending on the product, but 8-12 weeks is common.
Proof: Impression of the artwork so the correctness of the image to be printed can be checked. This image can be faxed, emailed or presented on paper.
Repeat Order: this is where an order is an exact rerun of a previous order with the same supplier. The set up fee for repeat orders can be ½ price, or no charge depending on the job.
Screen Printing: an image is transferred to the printed surface by ink, which is pressed through a screen and treated with a light-sensitive emulsion. Film positives are put in contact with the screens and exposed to light, hardening the emulsion not covered by film and leaving a soft area on the screen for the squeegee to press ink through. (Also called silk screening)
Set-up Charge: a fee charged on printing jobs to cover the time taken to set up the equipment to print. This can also include the cost of screens and plates used in the printing process. Set up fees are usually charged per colour and per position.
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) file: a file format for exchanging bitmapped images (usually scans) between applications.
Vector files: sometimes called a geometric file, most images created with graphics programs such as Adobe Illustrator and CorelDraw are in the form of vector image files. These files are often referred to as original artwork and are required for most printing jobs. |
