Web Offset Web offset is a form of offset printing in which a continuous roll of paper is fed through the printing

press. Pages are separated and cut to size after they have been printed. Web offset printing is used for high-volume publications such as mass-market books, magazines, newspapers, catalogs and brochures. There are two methods of web offset printing, known as heatset and coldset (or nonheatset). Heatset web offset printing is a printing process in which ink is dried rapidly by forced-air heating. In the alternative method, coldset Web offset printing or (also known as non-heatset), the ink dries more slowly by ordinary evaporation and absorption. Web offset printing is a printing process in which a continuous roll of paper is fed through a printing press. Coldset Web offset printing. Coldset Web offset printing (also known as non-heatset) is a web offset printing process in which ink is allowed to dry naturally through evaporation and absorption. In the alternative method, heatset Web offset printing , ink is dried rapidly by forced-air heating. Web offset printing is a printing process in which a continuous roll of paper is fed through a printing press. Infeed Paper is delivered to the press by the infeed section. The infeed section typically contains a roll stand to hold the paper rolls; a splicer which automatically splices the end of one web to the beginning of another (except on small business forms presses), a web-steering device which controls the sidelay (side-to-side position) of the infeeding web; and a tensioner that maintains the proper tension on the web as it enters the press. Printing Units Web presses are made up of several printing units usually numbering from 3 up to or more than 9. Like sheetfed, each printing unit contains an inking system, a dampening system, a plate cylinder, a blanket cylinder, and an impression cylinder. Delivery The delivery section can consist of a variety of devices, from a simple sheeter, which cuts the moving web into sheets of the required size, to a combination sheeter and folder, which can both fold the web into final signatures (group of pages) and trim the signatures to size. Small business forms presses can print from a roll into another roll for future processing. TOP Sheet-fed Offset Sheet-fed offset printing is a method in which individual pages of paper are fed into the machine. The sheet-fed press prints on individual sheets of paper, as opposed to continuous rolls of paper used on web presses. Sheet-fed presses come in different sizes. Quick printers often use the small presses which print on letter size pages. The larger commercial sheet-fed presses handle much larger sheets of paper. Sheet-fed presses can also print on cardstock, plastics, metal, and other substrates. A sheet-fed

press may consist of multiple print units that each print a different color of ink. Printing Units The printing unit places a water solution (fountain) and ink on the offset plate, transfers the image to the blanket cylinder, then to the paper. It then delivers the paper to the delivery unit. The printing unit must be adjusted so that the proper amount of ink and fountain solution are deposited on the printing plate so that the image is transferred accurately, evenly, and consistently to the printing paper. Every offset printing unit is made up of the following three parts:

The cylinder system (plate, blanket and impression) The dampening system The inking system
Delivery The delivery unit takes the paper from the printing unit and places it on the delivery pile. There are two common designs for sheetfed press delivery units: gravity and chain gripper systems. The gravity system is the simpler of the two but less dependable and functional. As the printed sheet leaves the printing unit, it is dropped into the delivery pile by gravity. The basic limitation is that the paper cannot be delivered faster than gravity can pull it into place. With light weight papers this can pose problems. Today this type of delivery system is found mostly on small inexpensive offset duplicators. Most modern sheetfed presses today utilize the chain gripper system. With this type of system, the paper can be either pulled through the printing and delivery units by the same chain system or transferred from the paper grippers on the impression cylinder in the printing unit to a different set of grippers on the delivery chain. TOP Rotary Offset A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the impressions are curved around a wheel so that the printing can be done on long continuous rolls of paper, cardboard, plasti, or a large number of other substrates. Printing process that makes use of the immiscibility of grease and water. Aloys Senefelder of Prague (17711834) exploited the properties of a stone with a calcium carbonate base and a fine, porous surface, and perfected his printing process in 1798. In Senefelder's process, the stone, with a design drawn on it with crayon or greasy ink, was wetted with water; after various etching and protecting steps, it was brushed with oily ink; it retained the ink only on the design. This inked surface was then printedeither directly on paper, by a special press (as in most fine-art printmaking ), or onto a rubber cylinder and thence onto paper (as in commercial printing). The method of preparing stones for hand printing, still the lithographic method preferred by artists, has hardly changed. Commercial lithographic printing on a modern rotary offset printing press can produce high-quality, finely detailed impressions at high

speed, reproducing any material that can be photographed in the platemaking process. It now accounts for more than 40% of all printing, packaging, and publishing, more than twice the percentage produced by any other single printing process.

Quick Set Offset A Quick Set Overnight Offset Ink is suitable for printing on coated paper and for printing high quality pictorials, trademarks, instruction books and beautifully packaged decorations. Suitable for high speed offset four color printing, it possesses the properties of quick setting, fast drying (paper) and slow drying (printing machinery). Product in the ink fountain of machines will not skin within 48 hours. After stopping the machine for 9 hours, machines can be restarted without ink having dried on the rollers. CT High Gloss Quick Set Offset Printing Ink is suitable for printing on high quality art paper and cast-coated paper. It is mostly used to print high quality pictorials, trademarks, instruction books and for packaging decorations. Available for speeds of 10,000 prints per hour, it has an excellent rub-resistance, is fast setting and has good transferability. Gloss Quick Set Offset Printing Ink is suitable for on art paper, white paper board and offset paper using single-color and multi-color offset presses. Available for speeds of 6,000-10,000 prints per hour, it has the properties of fast drying, high gloss, brilliant color, sharp dot and wide adaptability.

A1. First Step Offset printing is a widely used printing technique where the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a plate first to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithographic process, which is based on the repulsion of oil and water, the offset technique employs a flat (planographic) image carrier on which the image to be printed obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-printing area attracts a film of water, keeping the nonprinting areas ink-free.

A2. Second Step A printing technique whereby ink is spread on a metal plate with etched images, then transferred to an intermediary surface such as a rubber blanket, and finally applied to paper by pressing the paper against the intermediary surface. Most print shops use offset printing to produce large volumes of high-quality documents . Although the equipment and set-up costs are relatively high, the actual printing process is relatively inexpensive.

A3. Third Step An offset lithography (also known as plantographic) printing, plates carry both the image and non-image areas on the same level (unlike letterpress where areas are raised to catch ink). The transfer of ink is controlled by an unlikely principle. The principle that oil and water don't mix. Image areas are photographically transferred to thin metal plates which are treated chemically to accept oil-based ink but repel water on the image areas. Conversely, non-image areas accept water but repel the oil-based ink. A plate first contacts rollers of a clean solution or water and then is inked by other rollers. The oil-based ink "sticks" to the image area. The inked image is then transferred from the plate to a rubber blanket. The rubber blanket then transfers the image onto the paper's surface. Because of the resilience of the rubber blanket, it's possible to use offset lithography printing on a wide variety of surfaces and for large quantities. Both spot colors and CMYK colors can be used with this process.

A4. Forth Step Offset printing, also referred to as offset lithography, is a type of printing process used by virtually all large commercial printers. It is called offset , because the ink is not directly pressed onto the paper, but is distributed from a metal plate to a rubber mat where it is then set onto the paper. Offset printing can be done on a web printing press, one that use huge rolls of continuously fed paper, or a sheet fed press that, as you would expect, uses sheets of paper. Both types of presses produce printed materials that can be cut to size after printing. Offset printing uses all of the latest technology in printing, including computers that aid in design. Computers are also used to generate instructions for

the mixture of ink colors as well as their distribution to the paper. Offset printing works because water and the inks used in the printing process do not mix. The images to be printed are created on the computer and then "burned" onto metal plates using a chemical developing process similar to photography. The metal plates are dampened with water which adheres to the areas without images. The ink is added next, one color at a time, where it sticks to the areas with images. The most modern systems use a direct-to-plate system in which the images are burned directly to the metal plates; the omission of a secondary step saves time and money. The colors used in offset printing are usually Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black, represented with the letter K (CMYK). Note that K is used to represent black to ensure that there isn't any confusion with blue. Different percentages of each of these four colors create virtually every color used in offset printing. There are color matching systems, such as the PANTONE system, that allows print buyers to see the color. The code for that color can be entered into the offset printer's computer and it will calculate the percentages of each color to be used. The technology behind offset printing allows large volumes of printing to be completed quickly and without any variations in ink distribution. The final printed materials produced through offset lithography also dry quickly, keeping the production process moving smoothly from the printing to the finish work of cutting and binding materials

A5. Fifth Step Offset printing, also called offset lithography, is a method of mass-production printing in which the images on metal plates are transferred (offset) to rubber blankets or rollers and then to the print media. The print media, usually paper, does not come into direct contact with the metal plates. This prolongs the life of the plates. In addition, the flexible rubber conforms readily to the print media surface, allowing the process to be used effectively on rough-surfaced media such as canvas, cloth or wood. The main advantage of offset printing is its high and consistent image quality. The process can be used for small, medium or high-volume jobs. There are two types of offset printing machines in common use for publication today. In sheet-fed offset printing, individual pages of paper are fed into the machine. The pages can be pre-cut to the final publication size or trimmed after printing. In web offset printing , larger, higher-speed machines are used. These are fed with large rolls of paper and the individual pages are separated and trimmed afterwards. Sheet-fed offset printing is popular for small and medium-sized fixed jobs such as limited-edition books. Web offset printing is more costeffective for high-volume publications whose content changes often, such as metropolitan newspap

Digital printing is best for on-demand printing, small quantities, short-run book printing and variable data printing. Digital printing outputs each page with the ink or toner cured and ready for finishing. Offset printing uses wet inks and the printed sheets typically have to dry for a certain time period or the ink will smudge or "offset" when cutting, folding, booklet making, etc. So for your on-demand printing needs of rush orders, the best choice would be to use a digital printing company. Offset printing is used primarily for larger quantities on printing jobs with more of a flexible timeline. This is generally a less expensive printing option because the larger the quantity, the cheaper the price. The majority of the cost involved with offset printing is the setup of the press. Once the press is set, the job can print away at 10,000 to 30,000 pages per hour. Smaller quantities are best printed on a digital press because large printing orders typically cost less when printed offset with traditional lithographic printing equipment. A digital printing company pays the press manufacturer per click, impression or per sheet for supplies and service regardless if the press is on a lease or paid in full. So the cost for one sheet or a million is the same per piece. But on an offset press, the majority of the cost is setup time and then paper cost. Since offset printing is 5 to 10 times faster than digital printing, once the press is set for a particular job, the actual printing is completed quickly. For example, a 100,000 quantity flyer order may take 1 hour on a printing press (setup and printing) that fits 16 pages on a single large press sheet. On the other hand, it may take two days to complete such a large job on a digital press that only fits 2 pages on its much smaller press sheet. But for small orders, there is no paper waste for setup of digital printing equipment, and within seconds quality printed sheets are ready for finishing. Short-run book printing is good for digital printing equipment because your files can print collated and be ready for finishing; where in the offset printing process only the front and back of a single sheet can be output per setup. Also, much more bindery and finishing is involved when printing multi-page publications on offset equipment. But there is a cross-over point in quantity when it is more cost effective to go offset vs. digital. This cross-over point involves both page count and quantity of finished books. Typically digital printing is more cost effective for quantities up to 1500. Then from 1500 to 5000 books is a limbo quantity where only specialized equipment can produce books at a decent price. Then from 5000 to millions, large web-presses (offset printing, but uses rolls of paper instead of converted sheets of paper) are best. And the higher the page count, the more setup and finishing is involved for offset printing, but stays the same for digital printing. Finally, Variable Data Printing (VDP) is possible only on digital printing equipment. VDP takes your direct mail to a one-to-one approach and individualizes each marketing piece such as direct mail postcards, newsletters flyers, etc. Now you can personalize your digital printing with variable data images and text tailored to your customers needs, preferences or lifestyle. With VDP you will increase direct mail response rates, average order size, revenue and ROI. Response rates may soar to 36% from traditionally static printing response rates of 1-3%.

In summary, digital printing is the way of the future for the printing industry, but it has its limitations and uses. So now, with a bit more information of when to use a digital printing company and when to go offset, you can produce your marketing or business printing efficiently and on schedule while optimizing your return on investment (ROI).

MAN Roland press

Part of the series on the

History of printing
Woodblock printing Movable type Intaglio Printing press Lithography Chromolithography Rotary press Flexography Mimeograph Hot metal typesetting Offset press Screen-printing Dye-sublimation Phototypesetting Photocopier Pad printing Laser printer Dot matrix printer Thermal printer Inkjet printer 3D printing Stereolithography Digital press Frescography
vde

200 1040 1430s 1454 1796 1837 1843 1873 1876 1886 1903 1907 1957 1960s 1960s 1960s 1969 1970 1970s 1976 1986 1986 1993 1998

Offset printing is a commonly used printing technique where the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a plate to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithographic process, which is based on the repulsion of oil and water, the offset technique employs a flat (planographic) image carrier on which the image to be printed obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-printing area attracts a water-based film (called "fountain solution"), keeping the non-printing areas ink-free. Ira Washington Rubel invented the first offset printing press in 1903.[1]

Contents
[hide]

1 History 2 Present day o 2.1 Advantages o 2.2 Disadvantages 3 Types o 3.1 Photo offset o 3.2 Types of paper feed 3.2.1 Sheet-fed litho 3.2.2 Web-fed litho o 3.3 Types of chemicals used 3.3.1 Paste inks for offset litho 3.3.2 Fountain solution 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links

History
Using an offset printing press to print on paper was probably done first by Ira Washington Rubel, an American, in 1903. The inspiration was an accident. While operating his lithographic press he noticed that if he failed to insert paper the stone plate would transfer its image onto the rubber impression cylinder. When he then placed paper into the machine it would have the image on two sides, one from the stone plate and one from the rubber impression cylinder. To Rubels amazement, the image from the rubber impression cylinder was much clearer; the soft rubber was able to give a sharper look than the hard stone litho plate. Soon he created a machine that repeated this original error. This process was also noted by two brothers, Charles and Albert Harris, at about the same time. They produced an offset press for the Harris Automatic Press Company not long after Rubel created his press. The machine created by the Harris Automatic Press Company was based on a rotary letterpress machine. A cylinder (see figure below) was wrapped with a metal plate that was pressed against ink and water rollers. Just below the metal plate cylinder was a blanket cylinder. Below that was an impression cylinder which fed the paper against the blanket cylinder so that the image could be transferred. While the basic process in offset printing has remained the same, some modern innovations include two sided printing and using large rolls of paper fed into the machines. Offset printing became the most dominant form of commercial printing in the 1950s. This was in part due to industry improvements in paper, inks, and plates. These improvements

allowed for greater speed and plate durability. The majority of modern day printing is still done using the offset printing process. Even the high volume newspaper industry uses offset printing. Although offset printing does the lions share of todays business printing, some very limited editions of fine quality books are still produced using the letterpress, often in combination with offset methods. Some people still prefer the slightly embossed look that is only achieved with the direct contact of the plates with the printing medium. These specialty books are sometimes printed using individually set type pieces.

Present day
Offset printing is the most common form of high-volume commercial printing, due to advantages in quality and efficiency in high-volume jobs. The more you print, the less you pay per page, because most of the price goes into the preparation undergone before the first sheet of paper is printed and ready for distribution. Any additional paper print will only cost the client paper price (and ink), which is very minimal. While modern digital presses (Xerox iGen3 Digital Production Press or the family of HP Indigo solutions or Kodak Nexpress solutions, for example) are getting closer to the cost/benefit of offset for high-quality work, they have not yet been able to compete with the sheer volume of product that an offset press can produce. Furthermore, many modern offset presses are using computer to plate systems as opposed to the older computer to film workflows, which further increases their quality. In the last two decades, flexography has become the dominant form of printing in packaging due to lower quality expectations and the significantly lower costs in comparison to other forms of printing.

Advantages
Advantages of offset printing compared to other printing methods include:

Consistent high image quality. Offset printing produces sharp and clean images and type more easily than letterpress printing because the rubber blanket conforms to the texture of the printing surface. Quick and easy production of printing plates. Longer printing plate life than on direct litho presses because there is no direct contact between the plate and the printing surface. Properly developed plates running in conjunction with optimized inks and fountain solution may exceed run lengths of a million impressions. Cost. Offset printing is the cheapest method to produce high quality printing in commercial printing quantities.

Disadvantages
Disadvantages of offset printing compared to other printing methods include:

Slightly inferior image quality compared to rotogravure or photogravure printing. Propensity for anodized aluminum printing plates to become sensitive (due to chemical oxidation) and print in non-image/background areas when developed plates are not cared for properly. Time and cost associated with producing plates and printing press setup. As a result, very small quantity printing jobs are now moving to digital offset machines.

Types
Photo offset

Side view of the offset printing process The most common kind of offset printing is derived from the photo offset process, which involves using light-sensitive chemicals and photographic techniques to transfer images and type from original materials to printing plates. In current use, original materials may be an actual photographic print and typeset text. However, it is more common with the prevalence of computers and digital images that the source material exists only as data in a digital publishing system. Offset litho printing on to a web (reel) of paper is commonly used for printing of newspapers and magazines for high speed production.

Types of paper feed

Sheet-fed litho "Sheet-fed" refers to individual sheets of paper or paperboard being fed into a press. A lithographic ("litho" for short) press uses principles of lithography to apply ink to a printing plate, as explained previously. Sheet-fed litho is commonly used for printing of short-run magazines, brochures, letter headings, and general commercial (jobbing) printing.

Web-fed litho "Web-fed" refers to the use of rolls (or "webs") of paper supplied to the printing press. Offset web printing is generally used for runs in excess of 10 or 20 thousand impressions. Typical examples of web printing include newspapers, newspaper inserts/ads, magazines, catalogs, and books. Web-fed presses are divided into two general classes: "Cold" or "Non-Heatset," and "Heatset" offset web presses, the difference being how the inks that are used dry. Cold web offset printing is air dried, while heatset utilizes drying lamps or heaters to cure or "set" the inks. Heatset presses can print on both coated (slick) and uncoated papers, while coldset presses are restricted to uncoated paper stock, such as newsprint. Some coldset web presses can be fitted with heat dryers, or ultraviolet lamps (for use with uv-curing inks). There is also another possibility of adding a drier in a coldset press and making it as a semi-commercial press. It is a concept where, a newspaper can print colour pages in heatset and BW pages in coldset

Types of chemicals used

Paste inks for offset litho There are many types of paste inks available for employment in offset lithographic printing and each have their own advantages and disadvantages. These include heat-set, cold-set, and energy-curable (or EC), such as ultraviolet- (or UV-) curable, and electron beam- (or EB-) curable. Heat-set inks are the most common variety and are "set" by applying heat and then rapid cooling to catalyze the curing process. They are used in magazines, catalogs, and inserts. Cold-set inks are set simply by absorption into noncoated stocks and are generally used for newspapers and books but are also found in insert printing and are the most cost-conscious option. Energy-curable inks are the highest-quality offset litho inks and are set by application of light energy. They require specialized equipment and are usually the most expensive type of offset litho ink. Fountain solution Fountain solution is the water-based (or "aqueous") component in the lithographic process that cleans the background area of the plate in order to keep ink from depositing (and thus printing) in the non-image (or "white") areas of the paper. Historically, fountain solutions were acid-based and comprised of gum arabic, chromates and/or phosphates, and magnesium nitrate. While the acid fountain solution has come a long way in the last several decades, neutral and alkaline fountain solutions have also been developed. Both of these chemistries rely heavily on surfactants/emulsifiers and phosphates and/or silicates to provide adequate cleaning and desensitizing, respectively. Since about 2000, alkaline-based fountain solutions have started becoming less common due to the inherent health hazards of high pH and the objectionable odor of the necessary microbiogical additives.

Acid-based fountain solutions are still the most common variety and yield the best quality results by means of superior protection of the printing plate, lower dot gains, and longer plate life. Acids are also the most versatile, capable of running with all types of offset litho inks. However, because these products require more active ingredients to run well than do neutrals and alkalines, they are also the most expensive to produce. That said, neutrals and, to a lesser degree, alkalines are still an industry staple and will continue to be used for most newspapers and many lower-quality inserts. In recent years alternatives have been developed which do not use fountain solutions at all (waterless printing).