The question often arises when asking for a quote whether digital solution should be used. Based on our experience, we usually advise our customers to consider the following, since three things determine the answer: the available for completion, the timenumber of copies needed and the costs.
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What's unique about digital printing process?
- Shorter printing period which is due to the technology itself;
- Favourable prices in case of small number of copies, because due to the technology used preparation costs (plates) do not exist, and the cost of aligning also disappears;
- Digital technology is applicable to both black and white and colour prints.
- It offers the possibility of customisation and personalisation. Digital printing even ensures that variable information can appear in each manufactured parts of the document. The variable data can consist of not only names or textual information but graphic elements or illustrations as well.
- With regards to binding solutions, everything is possible in principle. All kinds of surface treatment (foil, UV lacquer, foil stamping, embossing) is physically feasible.
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Technical limitations?!
- With respect to the costs of punching, foil stamping or embossing, one should consider the fact that these operations represent a significant cost element, especially when ordering only a small number of copies.
- Throughout digital procedures we must reckon the elongation of the printed sheets, so in the case of digital prints, particular attention should be paid to special surface treatments such as UV lacquering, foil stamping or embossing.
- In respect of colour gradients, the prints may occur to be graded or striped, depending on the graphics.
- In the process of digital technology there are no direct colours – therefore special care is needed for colour separation.
- Considering the usable raw materials with digital technology, the upper bound of paper thickness is 300 g in the case of coated paper and approximately 280 g when using creative papers. It should be noted that attention must be paid to the direction of fibres of offset and creative papers as well. The size limit for sheet size is SRA3 (330 x 480 mm). The printing of larger sizes is only feasible with another type of digital printing equipment and rolled raw materials.
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Where should the customer make a compromise?
Not in the quality, practically – because the Konica-Minolta technology we're using produces digital prints of offset quality. Using digital printing means that the printing cost per print is independent of the number of the copies.
The customer only have to make a compromise when considering the circumstances of the use of the prints:
- What quantity will be used within a given time – with regard to the contents of the print – considering the time-barring of the certain product, service or content?
- What budget is available?
- How much time is available for the production?
- How unique or personalised is the material?
The customer's choice should be made along these three + 1 factors.
The most common digital products are (but not limited to): business cards, letterheads, flyers, booklets, posters, personalized DM letters, individual calendars, boxes, invitations, custom labels, adhesive labels, menus, gift and seating cards, passes, models and proofs.
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