Summary of current industrial product label printing technologies

1. Offset printing technique

Offset printing is the most popular form of industrial printing today. Offset printing is the process of transferring information from the printing mold onto the surface of the printed material with single-color or multi-color ink under pressure on a device called a printer.

Basic features of Offset technology

• Offset printing is a printing method according to the principle of flat printing, that is, on an image printing mold

• Letters and non-printing areas are all the same height

Working principle 

On the printing plate (zinc) the printing elements catch ink, do not print before the print is transferred to the printing rubber sheet, when pressed to print on the surface of the printed material, it will produce the image to be printed.

Know the method

Offset printing technique produces high quality products with sharp images, so it is very suitable for the production of products printed on paper such as:

• Books and magazines
• Catalogue
• Marketing brochures
• Essential publications for businesses…

Offset printers are usually imported from Germany, the US, Japan... such as: Komori, Heidelberg, Roland...

2. Flexo Printing Technique

Concept

Flexo printing is a high-end, direct printing method (the print mold receives ink from the anilox batch and directly transfers the ink onto the printing material)

Specification

Flexo printing is an embossed printing technique, with information, images, etc., on the printing plate located higher than the non-printed elements.

The images used are: reverse image, then printed on the material to be printed, then the image will be true to the design.

Know the method

Flexo printing technology for print quality is not as high as Offset and Gravure printing technologies if printing in the form of images requires high resolution. Normally, flexographic printing with anilox rollers leads the ink, so it has the advantage that the product quality is uniform when printed and has a bold color because T'ram 150DPI is used.

Flexo printing technology is being widely used and has a lot of potential for development thanks to the advantage of meeting a large production schedule, being able to print on roll materials for automatic gluing machines.

Especially Flexo Technology has an automatic die-off system right after the printing process. If the printing material is decals, the excess parts of the product are also peeled off from the adhesive base. Flexo printing method is a suitable choice for printing labels, stickers, stamps, labels, labels, packages, cartons and can be printed on many special materials...

3. Gravure Printing

Concept

Gravure printing is a direct printing method, indenting the printed element located lower and uneven compared to the non-printed element, that is, on the printing plate, image or writing (called the printed element). ) is etched into the metal surface.

Progress

When printing, there will be 2 processes: Ink (liquid form) is supplied to the surface of the printing die, the ink will also overflow into the depressions of the printing element, then a device called a Doctor blade will wipe the ink. excess from the surface of the printing plate, and when pressed, the ink in the depressions under the printing pressure will transfer to the surface of the material.

Application

Direct ink transfer to the media, the simplest configuration of printing units, reproduction of images with depth and fidelity, high die strength.

Gravure printing has higher accuracy and quality image restoration than Flexo printing, and the durability of the large print platen offset can be used for reprint printing. Gravure printing is applicable on many different materials such as paper, flexible plastic film, thin metal, PE, OPP, PET...

Gravure printing is widely used in the packaging industry: Detergents, confectionery, coffee, food, etc.

Disadvantages of the method

Gravure ink based on solvent ink is toxic to the environment and human, the high initial cost requires a large order volume.

4. Digital Printing

Concept 

Digital printing is a method of printing directly from digital images to diverse media. Digital printing is often used in professional printing techniques for fast printing needs of small and medium volumes. Laser printers and inkjet printers are two of the many types of machines used in digital printing.

Advantages and applications of Digital Printing

Short preparation time, easy to correct if there are design errors or non-standard colors. Precise control of the number of prints to be printed, avoiding unnecessary printing waste.

Digital printing helps to fulfill orders for a variety of customers, from large companies, foreign enterprises to small business households, individuals, for events, etc.

Customizable printing data, jump numbers, variable data, easy to change and can use different data files without slowing down the printing process such as offset printing, Flexo, Gravure…. Therefore, with the advent of digital printing technology, the instant printing service is constantly developing…

5. Screen Printing (Silk Screen Printing)

Concept

This printing method is one of the oldest printing techniques. Screen printing is a form of printing technique based on the principle that ink permeates through the mesh the image will be printed on the surface of the material because some of the printed meshes have been sealed with chemicals before.

Procedure

The screen printing process uses a wooden frame and then stretches a thin silk screen like an embroidery frame. So before this printing method was also known as screen printing and later there were a number of other materials that could be substituted such as cotton fabric, fabric, metal mesh, so it is generally called mesh printing technique.

In addition to the screen frame, an indispensable tool when performing this printing technique is an ink-resistant sheet material used to draw silk called a "knife". The sizing knife is a tool used to push the color ink so that the ink penetrates through the printing mesh, transferring the ink onto the product to be printed.

The printing process can be done by hand or by machine, but whichever method is used, the most important requirements for the printing table are flat, firm and certain elasticity so that the printing plate can evenly contact the surface. printed products.

Application of the grid printing method

Although the screen printing method has a slow speed, its advantage is that it can print on all materials and even on uneven printing surfaces. The application of the screen printing method is very common in life such as: scratch printing, cup printing, writing printing, .. and it is also possible to use different types of printing ink, or special materials to create special products. Various effects…