Articles

More than three decades have passed since Apple introduced the “desktop Publishing System,” kicking off a revolution that put computers in the hands of creative designers instead of the specialised compositors, scanner operators and retouchers that had previously done the production side of origination for print. Over the years since then, a great number of design and production programs have been introduced, flourished and either survive to this day or died off along the way. Each would have its own native file format, with a unique file name extension such as AI, INDD, PSD, QXP. There have also been non-proprietary file formats intended to allow easy interchange between different programs and different production sites – PDF, JPEG and TIFF are the most common.
Keeping up with which format does what, when to use it and how to open it and print it if someone else sends it to you, can be confusing. “Legacy” files in obsolete formats sometimes turn up too, typically from a customer wanting to reprint a book written a couple of decades ago, where the only digital copy is in something obscure.
To help cut the confusion, FESPA has produced this extensive three-part guide to the most common file formats used in design and pre-press for print. It includes all the popular formats throughout the last three decades, many of which are still current. We’ve ignored files that are exclusively used for non-print media, such as web, video, mobile, 3D and virtual reality.
If you’re presented with an unknown file type, read off its file name extension, see if it’s on our chart immediately below this section, and use that to identify the creator program. You can click on the URLs to take you to the description of the creator programs or generic file names, which are listed alphabetically in parts 1, 2 and 3 of this story.

By Simon Eccles

Decisive for the efficiency of modern machine concepts in label and narrow web packaging printing are flexibility in configuration options, as well as the ability to change printing processes and jobs quickly. This is underscored by a look at the trend landscape within label and packaging printing. How does the Gallus Labelmaster assert itself as the most recent product development of the traditional Swiss manufacturer in a market that is increasingly demanding more flexibility? An occasion to take a closer look at the market trends and compare them with the features of the machine concept.

By Dieter Finna

Polish version of this article was published in June issue of "Świat DRUKU" (The World of Printing).

In the world of label printing presses, the word “hybrid” has taken on a life of its own. The term itself has been greatly overhyped and its meaning has been obscured by conveying different things to different folks. In fact, in some cases, it has been hijacked by certain equipment vendors to imply that they were the originators of the concept and essentially invented hybrid printing. This article will aim to inject a little bit of reality into “hybrid-mania” and help converters to better understand what it means, what it doesn’t mean and what they should do about it when making a printing system selection.

By Sean Skelly

How much ink you lay down on your screen prints will depend on your individual print job and your substrate. Too much ink on your substrate can lead to prints that bleed beyond the stencil edge, soak through the substrate or fail to cure completely. Too little ink can make the print too light, affect color matching or lead to problems with fibrillation. Knowing how to troubleshoot problems with ink deposits that are too heavy or too light can help you lay down the right amount of ink every time. When it comes to screen printing, there are a few elements that affect how heavy or light your ink deposit is.

Mastering screen printing doesn’t mean turning out perfect screen prints every time. It does mean knowing what to do when prints don’t turn out quite the way you want them to. One common problem to troubleshoot is an uneven ink edge. When something is off in your screen printing process, the edges of your ink might be blurred or wavy, or show the squared segments of your screen mesh. There are several elements to examine when your prints aren’t coming out with crisp, clear edges.

As the weather gets colder, the demand for sweaters heats up! Here’s a primer on the world of fleece. Fleece garments may be a mainstay for screen printers and garment decorators, but “fleece” can refer to a wide variety of fabrics. Here, we’re breaking down the different types of fleece fabric so you have a better idea of which fleeces are best suited to your projects.

Screens are the lifeblood of a screen printing operation, so your profitability can depend on how well you maintain imaging performance while minimising cleaning time and material costs.

Sustainable printing, where the consumption of printing ink and solvents can be reduced while maintaining or even improving quality, is no fiction: n-propanol, n-propyl acetate mixtures or pure n-propyl acetate (known as ‘Propyls’) can replace conventional ethanol, ethyl acetate mixtures or pure ethyl acetate (known as ‘Ethyls’) in flexible printing without any modification of existing press processes. While offering at least the same – and frequently even better – print quality, Propyls are on average 30% more economical in terms of solvent consumption while reducing ink usage by an average of 20%. Retardants such as Ethoxy propanol are not required for Propyls formulations. This offers considerable advantages when printing food product packaging. Improved process stability significantly reduces scrap percentages. Findings from industrial studies with Flexo and Rotogravure printers conducted worldwide by chemical company Oxea have been confirmed by a recent research paper compiled by the HdM University of Media Studies in Stuttgart.

The market of textiles dedicated to an interior design is demanding. Fashion changes swiftly, short series of products are increasingly popular, interesting design, great print quality and fast realization are more and more appreciated. To meet these demands, you should choose proven partners working on reliable equipment. Such are Colourama, a printing house from Łódź, and Mimaki, the Japanese large format printer manufacturer.