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Gravure Printing

Cale Polkinghorne

Historical Background

Italian Renaissance 1300s. Engravings and etching into soft copper. A channel or sunken area is left, this holds the ink. Intaglio is the term used to describe gravure printing (Italian for printing in a sunken surface)

Roto Gravure

Roto means Round. Term used for Industrial Intaglio. Roto Gravure is printing from a cylinder. Web Fed Slitter ( devise used to cut sheets at the end of of the press)

Gravure Industry

Simplest of all printing systems. Fastest press start up. Very little paper waste (half the paper waste of lithography). Speed is extremely high. 45,000 copies an hour.

Gravure Industry (continued)

Some run 20 million copies without cylinder wearing out. Highest quality image.

Industry Organization

3 types of printing

Packing Printing Publication Printing Specialty Printing

Packaging Printing

This includes producing and folding.

Cartons Boxes Bags Gift wrappers Labels

Publication Printing

This includes Printing

Newspaper Supplements Magazines Catalogs Mass Mailing Advertisements

Specialty Printing

Used to Print such materials as

Wallpaper Vinyl Floor covering Textiles (decoration and clothing)

Methods of Cylinder Prep

Diffusion etch Direct Transfer Electromechanical Process Laser cutting

Diffusion-Etch Process

Image exposed much like developing a plate for regular offset printing except negative in transferred. Acid Bath Copper cylinder Cylinder then chromed (prolong life)

Direct-Transfer

Light Sensitive Mask Acid Bath Chrome plating

Electromechanical Process

Replaced chemical engraving Basically Done by a computerized mill that etches a digitally scanned image.

Laser-cutting Process

Chemically etched holes are made. Plastic is used to cover holes. Same process as electromechanical is used except a laser does the cutting instead of a tool bit.

Well Formation

Gravure Transfers from small wells that are etched or cut in the cylinder Cylinder rotates through a fountain of ink Excess ink is wiped off by a doctor blade

Gravure Well Variables

Depth Bottom Opening Bridge

Depth

Bottom of the well to the top surface of the cylinder

Bottom
Obviously the bottom of the well

Opening

Distance across the well

Bridge

Surface of the cylinder between wells

Well Design

Conventional

Wells have exactly the same opening size Amount of ink is controlled only by the depth of the well

Well Design (continued)

Lateral hard-dot

Can create half tone images Well opening sized differ Well depth stays the same

Cylinder Construction

Most cylinder cores are made of steel Some companies prefer aluminum

Lighter Less expensive Easier to ship

Cylinder Design

Axis (center line of shaft) Shaft (what the cylinder spins on) Diameter Circumference (one impression) Face Length (printing width)

Two forms of Cylinders

Mandrel (removable shaft) Integral (shaft mounted permanently) $$$$

General Info

An impression roller presses paper to Cylinder

Gravure printing allows high-quality images on low-grade papers.

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