01 - GDPT - Student Text

Vocational Higher Secondary
Education (VHSE)
Second Year
Graphic Design &

Printing Technology
Reference Book
Government of Kerala
Department of Education
State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT),

KERALA
2016
List of Contributors
Participants
1. Benno Joseph
Vocational Teacher in Graphic Design & Printing Technology
Govt. Vocational Higher Secondary School, Mangayil, Maradu
Ernakulam
2. Lathish Babu R Nath
Govt. Vocational Higher Secondary School (Boys),
Kunnamkulam, Thrissur.
3. Dr. Mohammed Sudhir
Govt. Vocational Higher Secondary School, Puramattom
Pathanamthitta.
4. S. Venugopal
Govt. Vocational Higher Secondary School, Muttara
Kollam.
5. Premjith. V. C
Vocational Instructor in Graphic Design & Printing Technology
Govt. Vocational Higher Secondary School for the Deaf, Jagathy
Thiruvananthapuram.
Experts
1. Deepu P
Asst. Professor
Department of Printing Technology
Institute of Engineering & Technology
Calicut University
Academic Co-ordinator
Dr.Gopalakrishnan N
Research Officer, SCERT
Prepared by :
State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT)
Poojappura, Thiruvananthapuram 695012, Kerala
Website : www.scertkerala.gov.in e-mail : [email protected]
Phone : 0471 - 2341883, Fax : 0471 - 2341869
Typesetting and Layout : SCERT
© Department of Education, Government of Kerala
Foreword
Dear Learners,
This book is intended to serve as a ready reference for learners of
vocational higher secondary schools. It offers suggested guidelines for
the transaction of the concepts highlighted in the course content. It is
expected that the learners achieve significant learning outcomes at the
end of the course as envisaged in the curriculum if it is followed properly.
In the context of the Right- based approach, quality education has to
be ensured for all learners. The learner community of Vocational Higher
Secondary Education in Kerala should be empowered by providing
them with the best education that strengthens their competences to
become innovative entrepreneurs who contribute to the knowledge
society. The change of course names, modular approach adopted for
the organisation of course content, work-based pedagogy and the
outcome focused assessment approach paved the way for achieving
the vision of Vocational Higher Secondary Education in Kerala. The
revised curriculum helps to equip the learners with multiple skills
matching technological advancements and to produce skilled workforce
for meeting the demands of the emerging industries and service sectors
with national and global orientation. The revised curriculum attempts
to enhance knowledge, skills and attitudes by giving higher priority and
space for the learners to make discussions in small groups, and activities
requiring hands-on experience.
The SCERT appreciates the hard work and sincere co-operation of the
contributors of this book that includes subject experts, industrialists
and the teachers of Vocational Higher Secondary Schools. The
development of this reference book has been a joint venture of the
State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT) and the
Directorate of Vocational Higher Secondary Education.
The SCERT welcomes constructive criticism and creative suggestions
for the improvement of the book.
With regards,
Dr. P. A. Fathima
Director
SCERT, Kerala
CONTENTS
About the Course ............................................................................. 5

Syllabus ........................................................................................... 8
Module 3 - Offset and Modern Printing Techniques
Printing Materials ......................................................................... 17
Sheetfed Offset Press ..................................................................... 35
Offset Press Operations ................................................................. 52
Web Offset Press ........................................................................... 63
Press maintenance and Troubleshooting ....................................... 69
Flexo and Gravure ......................................................................... 80
Screen Printing ............................................................................. 91
Module 4 - Binding and Packaging
Safety, Health and Green printing ................................................ 97
Conventional Binding ................................................................. 105
Modern Finishing Operations ..................................................... 115
Packaging .................................................................................... 125
Basic Engineering ........................................................................ 133
Engineering Graphics .................................................................. 141
Bibliography ................................................................................ 160
ABOUT THE COURSE
Printing is indispensable for the modern man as every product he comes across
in his day-to-day life is directly related to it. We can see printing on a tooth
paste tube or tooth brush that he uses immediately after waking up. From that
moment, almost everything he uses for any purpose bears a printed impression.
This course provides in-depth coverage of electronic text generation, desktop
publishing, computer-to-plate operations, computer-controlled inking and
printing, digital image generation and electronic prepress. Printing has
undergone a complete transformation with the application of electronics,
computers and microprocessors and advanced science and technology. This
technology has developed by incorporating the advancements from other
disciplines and adopting the latest technical information from commercial art,
photography, applied science, computer, mechanical and electronic engineering,
nano technology etc.
The importance of Printing Technology is fast increasing in today's commercial
world. It has wide usage and applications. The range of products vary from
newspapers, books, labels, business cards, stationery, inserts, catalogues,
pamphlets, advertisements, carton & foil printing etc. The related activities
associated with printing technology are data imaging, book binding, plate
making, prepress services etc.
Firms are finding it time saving and economical to print their own newsletters
and reports. Hence on completion of this course, there is a wide scope of wage
and self employment.
The information revolution and consumerism create an ever increasing demand
for printed materials in every field. Printed material is the main medium of
communication and dissemination of knowledge. But more than this, the
medium of print is improving its position in today's multimedia society. Day
by day, people are becoming more and more quality conscious and this in turn
increases the demand for quality printed products. The methods of print
production are also changing; in the direction of environment-friendly, highly
automated and easily operated printing systems integrated in a digital data
environment.
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Packaging is an integral part of printing Industry. The printing and packaging

industries in India have assumed growing significance during the last decade.
This has become a dynamic and key area for manufactures and trading
companies all over the country with the element of aesthetics, hygienic and
cost effectiveness receiving increasing importance in commercial operations.
The exterior looks and present ability of marketable goods leave a lasting
impression on the minds of consumers and in this context packaging occupies
the centre stage.
Since there is increasing demand for printed products there is always scope for
those who are skilled in the operation of printing machines either as workers
or entrepreneurs.
The course is designed in four modules of six month each as detailed below.
1. Graphic Designing and DTP
2. Digital Pre-press and Printing
3. Offset and Modern Printing Techniques
4. Binding and Packaging
On completion of every module the student will get a certificate for the skill
he acquired. On successful completion of the course two certificates will be
issued - a regular higher secondary certificate and a Skill certificate in the
level 3 & 4. The students who pass the exams can apply for any engineering,
degree or diploma course just like any another student who passed higher
secondary exam with the mathematics group.
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Graphic Design & Printing Technology
MAJOR SKILLS
Identification of different types of paper
Paper calculation
Identification of different types of inks used in the printing industry
Identification of different chemicals used in printing industry
To operate single colour & multi colour offset machine
Work estimation
To operate a web offset press
Identify different problems during printing process
To handle different quality control devices used in printing industry
To prepare a flexographic printing plate
To operate flexo printing machine
To identify different security printing methods
To prepare a stencil for screen printing
To screen print images on various substrates
The use of safety equipments in printing press
Different type of binding, sewing, and covering operations
To operate a Cutting machine
To handle different modern post press machines
Identify different packaging materials
To design and prepare a package for different products
To prepare different carton styles and dies for packaging
To identify Mechanical, Electrical & Pneumatic parts of an offset machine
To get the basic concepts of Engineering drawing
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SYLLABUS
Module 3 - Offset and Modern Printing Techniques
Unit 1 - Printing Materials (Periods 65)
3.1 Printing Materials
3.1.1 Paper - Brief history of Paper
Origin of paper from papyrus
Handmade paper
Machine made paper
3.1.1 Paper making process
Raw materials for paper making
Pulping, Treating the pulp, Manufacturing paper using Fordrinier Pa-
per Machine
3.1.2 Physical properties of paper
Grain, Dimensional stability, fiber strength, finishing, pick resistance,
whiteness and brightness, substance weight, flatness, squareness, ink
drying, moisture absorbancy, opacity
3.1.3 Paper classification, paper sizes & paper weight
Coated paper, Card, board
Business paper (Bond paper, carbon paper)
Book paper (offset paper - uncoated, coated, text paper)
Cover paper, Bristol paper
Utility paper (Newsprint, label paper, synthetic paper, mineral paper)
Paper size- ISO/International sizes, Conventional paper sizes
Paper Weight- GSM, Basis weight, M-weight, Conversion of GSM to
basis weight
3.1.4 Estimating Paper Quantity
Cancellation method for calculating the greatest no. of sheets that can
be cut from a single, full size sheet
Paper Calculation
3.1.5 Storage of paper / warehousing
Web offset roll storage
3.1.6 Ink - Ingredients, Properties and Manufacturing
Pigment, Vehicle, Additives
Ink body, viscosity, length, tack, opacity, colour strength, ink stability,
drying time, abrasion resistance
Mixing, milling
3.1.7 Ink drying methods
Oxidation, evaporation, precipitation, penetration, polymerisation, ra-
diation curing
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3.1.8 Types of Ink

Sheetfed ink, rubberbased ink, web offset heatset inks, weboffset coldset
inks, news inks, non-porous inks, uv inks, magnetic inks, invisible
inks, soy inks, opaque inks, waterless inks, flourescent inks, metalic
inks, overprint varnishes, toner ink, optically variable inks
3.1.9 Chemicals used in Printing
Dampening solution
Water, Acid (measuring pH, conductivity), Gum arabic, Wetting agents,
Corrosion inhibitors, Anti foaming agents, Fungicides and drying stimu-
lators, Alcohol dampening solution
Other press room chemicals
Unit 2 - Sheetfed Offset Press (Periods 40)
3.2. Sheetfed Offset Press
3.2.1 Press classification
Duplicators and Presses
Sheetfed Presses
Webfed Presses
Mulit colour Presses
Perfecting Presses
Waterless offset Presses
Digital Offset Presses
3.2.2 Working Principle and Operating Units of an Offset machine
Feeder Unit
Successive sheet feeding, Continuous feeding, stream feeding
Parts of feeding unit
(Pile feeder, pile board, pile height governor, blower, sucker, sheet sepa-
rator)
Registration Unit
Functions of registration unit
Parts
(Double sheet detector, front lay, side lay, conveyor tape, running in
wheels, two point guide system, three point guide system, transfer cyl-
inder system)
Printing Unit
Cylinder structure - undercut, bearer, gutter, cylinder body, drive gears,
cylinder gap
Cylinders - The plate cylinder - function
Blanket cylinder - function
Impression cylinder - function
Grippers
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Inking system
Parts - Ink fountain, fountain tray, fountain roller, fountain blade, form
roller, ink agitator, distributing roller, oscillating roller, ink feed con-
trol, remote ink control
Dampening system
Parts of dampening unit
Conventinal dampening system, continuous dampening system, alco-
hol dampening system (advantages), roller covers
Waterless offset, Advantages of waterless offset
Delivery Unit
Gravity delivery
Chain delivery
Parts of delivery unit
(Delivery pile, delivery chains, skeleton wheels, joggers, ancillary units
- anti set off spray etc.)
Ancilliary units
3.2.3 Offset Blanket
Structure of an offset blanket
Convetional blankets
Compressible blankets
Under blankets
Hardness of blanket (shore hardness, shoredurometer)
Types of blanket
a) based on hardness (hard, soft, medium, sandwich, special)
b) 1 Ply, 2 Ply, 3 Ply, 4 Ply blankets
Properties of a blanket
Storage of blanket
Unit 3 - Offset Press Operations (Periods 45)
3.3. Offset Press Operations
3.3.1 Pre-make ready and Make ready Procedure
Preparing the inking unit
Preparing the dampening unit
Attaching the plate
Semi auto plate loading
Auto plate loading
Preparing the feeding unit and registration unit
(Feeding steps)
Setting the delivery unit
Feeding the test sheets
Checking the test sheets
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3.3.2 Cylinder and roller pressure

3.3.3 Multi colour printing
3.3.4 Sequence of printing
3.3.5 Leading Offset machine manufacturers
International
Heidelberg, Komori, Mitsubish, Ryobi, Fuji, AB Dick
Indian
HMT, Manugraph, Orient, Optima, Autoprint
3.3.6 Automation in print production
Automatic wash-up, auto plate loading
3.3.7 Estimation procedure in offset printing
Calculating Production cost
Quotations
Job ticket / work order
Unit 4 - Web Offset Press (Periods 30)
3.4. Web Offset Press
3.4.1 Types of web offset press designs
Perfecting / blanket to blanket
Inline presses
Stack / Tower Presses
Common impression cylinder presses (Satellite units)
3.4.2 Web operations
Roll stand, Splicer, Festoon, Tension control, Web guide, Dryer, Chill
roller, Flying paster, Zero speed paster, Web break detectors, Image
alignment and register, Printing unit, Adjustment, Ink drying systems,
Filtration system, Dampening system
3.4.3 Inline finishing
Combination folding, inline stitching, single knife rotary die cutter,
three knife trimmer, numbering tower, pattern perforators, pattern gluer
3.4.4 Web offset printing papers
3.4.5 Press console
Unit 5 Press maintenance and Troubleshooting (Periods 60)
3.5 Press maintenance and Troubleshooting
3.5.1 Paper problems
Electrostatic charge on paper, Crease formation, Picking
3.5.2 Ink problems
Emulsification, Slow ink drying, chalking, Hickies, Piling
3.5.3 Printing problems
Blinding,Ghosting, Mis-registration, Mottling, Plate ware, Scum, Sett-
off, Sluring, Tinting
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3.5.4 Problems due to blanket and rollers

Glazing, Swelling, Paper sticking,
3.5.6 Preventive maintenance
3.5.7 Cleaning and caring the press
3.5.8 Quality Control in offset
Remote control press console, Plate image scanners, Magnifying glass,
Colour viewer, Densitometer, Spectrophotometer, Colourimeter, Colour
bar, Dot gain scale, Slur guage, Register marks, Star Target, Gray bal-
ance patch
Unit 6 Flexo and Gravure (Periods 40)
3.6 Flexo and Gravure
3.6.1 Flexography - Introduction
3.6.2 Advantages
Cylinder make ready, packaging application
3.6.3 Basic units
Infeed unit and unwinding unit
Printing unit
Components : Plate, fountain roller, anilox roller, printing and impres-
sion cylinder, reverse angle doctor blade, two roller and three roller
inking system
Outfeed unit and rewinding unit
3.6.4 Flexographic plates
Rubber stereo plates
Photopolymer plates (sheet, liquid)
3.6.5 Plate making process
Laser plates
3.6.6 Press types
Stack press
Central impression cylinder
Inline press
3.6.7 Flexographic ink & substrates
3.6.8 Gravure Printing - Introduction
3.6.9 Advantages and disadvantages
3.6.10 Gravure printing units
Gravure printing cylinder
Impression cylinder
Ink duct
Doctor blade
Electrostatic assist
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3.6.11 Cylinder preparation methods

Chemical engraving method
Electromechanical method
Laser beam engraving
3.6.12 Ink and substrates
3.6.13 Security Printing
Introduction to security printing -
definition, goal of security printing, various printing methods used for
security printing
Security features
Watermark, security thread, latent image, micro lettering, see through
register
Security ink, Numbering with MICR ink, Security paper
Currency printing, Cheque printing
Holograms
Hologram types
Holographic pattered foils
Three dimensional holograms
Multiple plane holograms
Stereograms
Bar codes, QR codes
Unit 7 Screen Printing (Periods 60)
3.7 Screen Printing
3.7.1 Applications of Screen Printing
3.7.2 Screen Printing Process
Squeegee, screen printing inks, solvents, drying system
3.7.3 Screen frames and Fabrics
Frame materials, print size
Fabric strength, mesh count, types of fabrics
3.7.4 Stencil preparation
Hand cut stencils, Tusche and glue stencils, photographic stencils
3.7.5 Substrates for screen printing
3.7.6 Automation in screen printing
Lever action hand operated presses
Semi automatic presses
Fully automatic presses
3.7.7 Special screen printing applications
Cylindrical screens
Screen printing on cylindrical surfaces
Carousal units
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Module 4 - Binding and Packaging

Unit 1 - Safety, Health and Green printing (Periods 40)
4.1 Safety and Health
4.1.1 Safety regulations
Mechanical hazards
Chemical hazards
Noise hazards
Fire hazards
Light hazards
4.1.2 Safety guards in an offset machine
Mechanisms that cause serious physical injury in a printing machine
(spinning rollers, rotary chains and sprockets, turning gear, running
belt)
Emergency stop buttons, feeder guards, registration board guard, cyl-
inder guards, delivery guards
4.1.3 Safety measures for operating a cutting machine
4.1.4 Personal protective devices
Ear protection devices, eye protection devices, respiratory protection
devices, skin protective devices
4.1.5 Fire classifications & Fire extinguishers
Class A, Class B, Class C, Class D
4.1.6 Green printing
Eco-friendly paper
Recycled paper (Steps in recycled paper production)
Logos of recyclable and recycled paper
Paper made with alternative chemicals (Acid free paper, Alkaline pa-
per, ECF bleaching, TCF bleaching, Oxygen delignification)
Wood free paper
Bio degradable substrates
Low VOC inks - Vegetable inks (soy ink)
Re-manufactured cartridges
Soft proofs
Use of renewable energy resources in printing
Unit 2 - Conventional Binding (Periods 100)
4.2 Conventional binding
4.2.1 Introduction & Definition
4.2.2 Classification of binding
Letterpress binding
Publishers, Library, Miscellaneous binding, Extra letterpress binding
Stationery binding
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Office stationery, Manifold, Account book binding, Exercise note book

binding
4.2.3 Styles of binding
Paper board, Cut flesh, Quarter cloth turned in, Half cloth, Full cloth,
Quarter leather, Half leather, Full leather
4.2.4 Materials for Book binding
Board, Adhesives
4.2.5 Steps inBinding
Warehousing
Counting, Jogging, Pressing, Folding (signature), Smashing and Bun-
dling, Gathering, Collating, Stitching, Sewing (types of sewing - Ordi-
nary, Flexible sewing, Machine sewing, Hand sewing, Double flexible
sewing- kettle stitch, tape sewing, sawn in sewing) Overcasting
Forwarding
End papers, Glueing, Edge cutting, Rounding, Backing, Edge decora-
tion, Head banding and lining the back.
4.2.6 Covering and finishing
Paring leather, Pasting the cover, Drawing on, Turning in, Setting the
joints, Setting the caps, Nipping up, Tying up, Opening up, Filling in,
Siding, Pasting down open, Library
Unit 3 - Modern Finishing Operations (Periods 45)
4.3 Modern Finishing Operations
4.3.1 Cutting (paper cutting machine)
Guillotine cutter, Three knife cutter
4.3.2 Folding operations
Types of foldres
4.3.3 Other finishing operations
Perforation, Slitting, Creasing and scoring, Die cutting, Embossing,
Stamping, Numbering, Punching and drilling, Varnishing, Lamination,
Foil stamping, Thermography
4.3.4 Binding
Pamphlet binding, Edition binding, Perfect binding, Mechanical bind-
ing, Plastic comb binding, Spiral Binding.
Unit 4 - Packaging (Periods 70)
4.4 Packaging
4.4.1 Defenition and functions of packaging
Packaging for communication
Objectives of packaging
4.4.2 Design fundamentals of Packaging
Packaging design principles
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Typography and packaging design

Packaging design and colour
Images for packaging
4.4.3 Materials for packaging
Metal- Aluminium, Tin
Paper- Paper board, Corrugated paper board, Set up box
Plastic- Low density poly ethylene (LDPE), High density poly ethyl-
ene (HDPE), Poly ethylene terephthalate (PET), Poly propylene, Poly
styrene (PS), Blister packs, Glass, Metal, Cans, Tubes, Flexible pack-
ing, Labels, Closures, Stock packaging
Glass
Special Packages- Blister packs, Bubble wrap, Shrink wrap,
4.4.4 Carton styles and Packaging Die
Four pannel style box, Folding cartons, Straight tuck end , Reverse
tuck end, Full seal end, Automatic lock bottom, Snap lock bottom,
Tray style boxes, Seal end, Set-up boxes Die making process
4.4.4 Packaging Die
Unit 5 - Basic Engineering (Periods 25)
4.5 Basic Engineering
4.5.1 Direct current and Alternating current
4.5.2 Motors and Transformers
4.5.3 Basic Electronic Circuit
4.5.4 Mechanical components
4.5.5 Hydraulics and Pneumatics
4.5.6 Mechanical, Electrical, Electronic and Pneumatic parts of a printing
machine
Unit 6 - Engineering Graphics (Periods 60)
4.6 Engineering Graphics
4.6.1 Drawing instruments and uses
4.6.2 Lines - Different types and its applications
4.6.3 Lettering and numbering
4.6.4 Dimensioning
4.6.5 Construction of basic shapes - polygon, conic section, spiral curve
4.6.6 Introduction of projection of points, lines, planes
4.6.7 Quadrants and objects in different quadrants
4.6.8 Basic section views
4.6.9 Auxilliary views
4.6.10 Isometric views
4.6.11 Introduction to machine drawing
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MODULE 3
OFFSET AND MODERN PRINTING TECHNIQUES
Overview of Module - 3
Printing industry has seen immense technological growth and changes in the
past 20 years. Electronics and computers have completely changed the the
complexion of the industry. Most manual process has been eleminated in the
printing process. . The smallest offset duplicators to the largest web offset use
computer technology to run, monitor, and adjust everything from ink density
to web tension. The advances and improvements, along with the conventional
methods, have made offset lithography a mature combination of process and
techniques.
There are many career and business oppurtunities for those who have necessary
skills and educational background. This module has been designed and
organized to teach you about offset printing materials, offset printing methods
and other modern printing methods such as flexography, gravure and security
printing. The practical activities of this module integrates the academic concepts
with technical applications and work place approach.
Unit - 1
PRINTING MATERIALS
Introduction
Paper, ink, and various chemicals are the major consumables used in the printing
industry. In this unit a detailed study on paper manufacture, physical properties
of paper, its classification and uses, ink manufacture, ingredients of ink, ink
properties, ink drying methods and properties of various chemicals especially
dampening solution are discussed.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• summarises various steps involved in Paper making process.
• identifies the Physical properties of paper.
• classifies Paper according to its types, sizes & paper weight.
• estimates the quantity of Paper required for printing a work.
• understands Storage of paper / warehousing.
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• lists the Ingredients of ink, its Properties and the steps in manufacturing
of ink.
• categorises the methods of Ink drying.
• categorises different types of Ink.
• identifies the chemicals used in Printing.
Paper - Brief History of Paper
Origin of paper
Paper is a flat material produced from plant fibers that are mechanically or
chemically treated or thermo-mechanically treated with chemicals. Of all the
writing materials mankind has employed down through the ages, pape has
become the most widely used around the world. The word paper is derived
from papyrus, a plant which grows in Africa. Thin strips cut out of the inside
of the plant were laid down next to each other, pressed, beaten, and smoothed
out. Paper, as we know, traces its roots back to China at the beginning of the
first millennium AD. Originally intended purely for writing and printing
purposes, a dazzling array of paper products are available to today’s consumer
from papyrus.
China: birthplace of paper AD 105
The actual invention of paper produced from plant fibers such as bamboo fibers
dates back to AD 105. Tsai Lun from China invented a paper making process
which primarily used rags (textile waste) as the raw material.
Papermaking spreads across Asia, Middle East and Europe- AD 610
Chinese papermaking techniques reached Korea at an early date and were
introduced to Japan in the year 610. In these two countries paper is still made
by hand on a large scale in the old tradition
Very soon, knowledge of papermaking spread to Central Asia and Tibet and
then on to India. As the Arab world expanded eastwards it too became
acquainted with the production of paper and paper mills were set up in Baghdad,
Damascus and Cairo, and later in Morocco, Spain and Sicily.
European papermakers continue the innovation- 14th Century
The export of the technique of papermaking to Europe, especially to Italy, has
been well documented. The first documented papermaking on German soil
was in 1390 when the Nuremberg councillor Ulmann Stromer commissioned
a paper mill.
The advantages of mill-based papermaking spread throughout Europe in the
15th and 16th centuries. In Germany, by the end of the 16th century there were
190 mills.
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Emergence of wood based paper and increased mechanisation- 19 th

Century
The systematic search for substitute raw materials with which to produce paper
in Europe proved difficult. In the early 18th century straw was used as a raw
material but it failed to make headway due to quality concerns.
Full-scale industrialisation - innovation and specification lead to new paper
grades and paper uses.
19th & 20th Century
The paper production process became fully automated: from the preparatory
and pulp production stages to the papermaking, use of fillers and finishing
(including the headbox, wire section, pressing, drying, reeling, smoothing and
packaging).
The paper industry developed appropriate industrial plants (groundwood and
chemical pulp mills) in order to produce wood based paper on an industrial
scale and to meet the demand for this increasingly valued substitute for rags
which was set to become the dominant raw material for papermaking.
In the past 50 years the rate of innovation in papermaking has increased rapidly.
New materials have been developed (using thermo-mechanical pulps, recovered
paper and new fillers). New sheet forming options and neutral sizing have
been accompanied by a greater awareness and focus on environmental impacts.
Innovation has also led to greater specialisation by paper makers, for example
in the development of new paper grades such as LWC - Light Weight Coated
paper (mainly used in magazines, flyers and inserts such as coupons); and
some paper groups have acquired their own raw material supply and trading
organisations.
Paper making process
Raw materials for paper making
The main raw materials for papermaking in the past were cotton and linen
fibers obtained from rags. Cellulose is the raw material used to make most
paper today. It is obtained mainly from bamboo, eucalyptus, jute, buggase,
pine, oak, accasia and other light woods. The length of the tree fiber determines
various characteristics including strength of the paper. Now-a-days, waste
paper is the major raw material used for papermaking, especially for recycled
paper.
Papermaking is a complex manufacturing process. It uses both chemical and
mechanical means to reduce wood fibers to pulp, which is the material used to
produce paper in sheet form.
Chipping:- Logs are cut to uniform length, debarked and sent to a chipper or
grinder. The chipper cuts the logs into chips. The chips are sized so the digester
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is able to separate the cellulose fibers. After the chips are screened for size,
they are put in a huge cooking kettle called digester.
Pulping:- There are two types of pulping methods namely chemical pulping
and mechanical pulping. Pulp made by chemical pulping is again divided into
two - sulphate pulp (using alkali) and sulphite pulp (using acid).
In the chemical pulping process, chemicals in the sealed, pressurised digester
break down in the lignin present in the cellulose fibers. The cellulose fibers
become pulp, a mass of soft, spongy matter. The pulp is blown into a pit
where the chemicals are washed away.
The mechanical pulpmaking process uses grinding wheels to reduce the logs
to fiber. Pulp with high opacity but relatively low strength is produced.
Treating the pulp :- Sizing chemicals are added to the pulp slurry to make the
paper more resistant to moisture. Resin and alum are added during this process.
Fillers like clay and titanium dioxide are added to improve a paper’s opacity,
brightness, softness and ink receptivity.
Dyes and pigments are added to produce coloured paper; bleaching makes the
pulp white.
20
The fibers are refined by a jordan machine which eliminates 99% water from
the pulp. The solution is pumped into a head box of the paper making machine.
Manufacturing paper using Fordrinier Paper Machine:- The pulp is evenly
dispersed on the fourdrinier wire mesh. The mesh vibrates as it travels along
an endless belt, aligning the fibers in the direction of travel. The alignment of
the fibers decides the grain direction of the paper. A continuous web of paper
is formed in this process. Gravity and suction remove about 35% of the water.
Watermarks can be given to paper at this stage with the help of dandy rollers.
Watermarks are transluscent identifying designs of symbols or images
impressed in the paper by rearranging the fibers.
Drying:- The web enters the press section as it leaves the wiremesh for removal
of more water. Then it passes through the dryer section consisting of
temperature controlled rollers thereby removing more moisture. Coatings are
applied to the paper at this stage.
Calendering is the process of flattening and smoothing the paper surface by
passing it between a series of rollers. Super calendering uses heated steel
rollers and pressure to form a very smooth, high gloss finish.
Rolling:- The untrimmed paper is wound into rolls. Some rolls are rewound,
slit and cut into lengths to make flat packages of paper.
Physical properties of paper
Grain direction:- The direction in which most of the cellulose fibers are aligned.
Paper that is cut into sheets with the fibers aligned parallel to the sheet’s longer
dimension is long grain. Paper with fibers that are aligned parallel to the
sheet’s shorter dimension is called short grain.
Dimensional stability:- Ability of the paper to retain its original length and
width when exposed to moisture.
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Fiber strength:- Paper with longer fiber length has better resistance to tearing.
A sheet’s tear strength is proportional to the length of its fiber.
Finish:- It is the degree of smoothness of a paper’s surface. Example of different
finishes are antique finish, eggshell finish, vellum finish, machine finish,
embossed finish, matt finish, dull finish and gloss finish.
Pick resistance:- It is the ability of a paper to resist surface rupturing during
printing.
Whiteness and brightness:- Whiteness refers to the extent to which it reflects
nearly equal amount of RGB light from its surface. Brightness can be defined
as the percentage of striking light a surface reflects.
Substance weight:- The weight of a paper is measured by its substance weight
or basis weight. The substance weight is the weight of a ream of paper in a
specified size.
Flatness:- It is a measurement of how much the paper curls or become wavy.
Squareness:- A sheet’s squareness describes the sheet being exactly 90 o at all
four corners. Squareness is important for sheets that will be printed with a
work and turn or work and tumble imposition.
Ink drying:- Variations in paper quality can result in slow ink drying.
Moisture absorbancy:- Paper is hygroscopic in nature. Paper absorbs moisture
from its sorroundings. It causes the cellulose fibers to expand in the direction
of its width and this results in change of dimension of paper.
Opacity:- Refers to the ability of paper to hide or mask a colour or object on
the back of the sheet. Poor opaciy causes show-through in which the image on
one side of a sheet of paper is seen on the other side.
Paper classification, paper sizes & paper weight
Classification of paper based on grammage and structure
Paper is a tubular structure generated by natural agglutination and felting of
fibers and having a grammage of 7g/m 2 to 150 g/m2. On the basis of the
composition of the pulp or raw material paper is divided into woodfree paper,
paper containing wood, paper containing waste paper and paper containing
rag.
Wood free paper is mainly produced from chemical pulp fibers and must contain
a maximum of 5% of ground wood pulp. Lot of printing and writing paper, as
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well as uncoated and finished paper with coated surface are wood free paper.
Paper containing wood is produced by using high proportion of ground wood
pulp and lignin so that it yellows quickly. Newsprint and magazine paper are
examples.
Paper containing waste paper (recycled paper) are those with 100% recycled
and secondary fibers. They are used to make paper for simple boards, folding
box card, newsprint etc.
Paper containg rag (textiles, linen, hemp fibers etc.) is used for manufacturing
security materials like banknote paper, document paper etc.
Coated paper are papers coated on both side which are suitable for best quality
web-offset, sheet-fed and gravure printing. Examples are Light Weight Coated
paper(LWC)- (paper with gramage upto 72g/m2), Medium Weight Coated paper
(MWC)- Paper with grammage ranging from 80-130g/m2), original coated art
paper, cast-coated paper (paper with mirror or glossy finish surface with
grammage ranging from 70-400g/m2)
Card (cardboard) is a tubular material consisting of plant fibers.The grammage
of cards vary between 150g/m2 to 600g/m2
Boards are products of simple raw material such as ground wood pulp and
secondary fibers and has a grammage over 600g/m2. Straw board and Mill
board are examples.
Paper classifications are used to identify and categorise different types of paper.
The five classifications of paper are business paper, book paper, cover paper,
bristol paper, utility paper.
Business paper
It includes sheets commonly found in business world. The basic size of all
business papers is 17” X 22”. Most common categories of business papers are
bond paper, carbonless bond paper, envelope paper and safety paper.
Bond paper:- papers which are used for letter heads, stationery, business forms,
writing, typing and photocopying.
Carbonless bond paper:- papers coated with microcapsules that, under pressure,
transfer an image to a sheet or sheets underneath it. They are used to transfer
and copy written, printed or typed images between sheets. There are three
types of carbonless paper - coated back, coated front and back, coated front.
Envelope paper:- papers used to manufacture envelopes. They have enhanced
burst, fold strength, opacity and ability to be gummed and moistened with a
minimum of curl.
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Reference Book
Safety paper:- commonly used to add security to certificates of title and bank
cheques. This paper carries a printed image to thwart alteration by erasure and
carries an image in invisible ink that becomes visible if bleach is used to
chemically alter an image.
Book paper
Book papers are papers having high opacity so that it can carry print on both
sides. Used to print various products such as annual reports, pamphlets,
magazines, text books, posters, newsletters, journals, brochures, menus etc.
Different types of book papers are offset paper and text paper.
Offset paper:- used for offset printing. They have good opacity and ink
absorption. There are two types of offsest papers- uncoated paper and coated
paper (coated on one or both sides).
Text paper:- grade of paper made from either wood or cotton fibers.
Cover paper
It is a thick or heavy paper, typically used for the covers of books, catalogues,
brochures, manuals and similar publications.
Bristol paper
Heavy papers with at least 0.006” thick are termed bristols. Different types of
bristol papers are index bristol, post card bristol, tag board bristol, paper board,
blank and railroad board.
Utility paper
Papers that do not belong to these first four classifications are termed as utility
paper. Newsprint, label paper, synthetic paper, mineral paper are examples for
utility paper.
Newsprint is one of the lowest grades of printing paper. It is made by the
mechanical method of papermaking. Newsprint has very short fibers which
enables the paper to be folded easily in any direction. When new, it has a
grayish-white colour but it turns yellow and becomes brittle with age. Since
newsprint absorbs ink readily, a drying system on the press is not needed.
Label paper are paper coated with adhesive material. They must be able to
accept ink on one side and gumming on the other side without curling. Gum
will be covered by a wax coated releasing sheet.
Synthetic paper is a thin sheet of plastic with a clay coating on both sides that
accepts the ink. They are resistant to stains and tearing.
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Mineral paper is made from pulverised limestone particles held by a binding

agent. This paper has no grain direction, is water proof and resist tearing
because it is not made from cellulose fibers.
Recycled paper:- Recycled paper is produced from pulp from recovered paper
and paper products, manufacturing wastes, non paper material and wood
residues.
Paper sizes and weight
Paper sizes are broadly classified into two: ISO or International size and
Conventional size.
ISO/International size
It is the internationally accepted size. It falls into 3 divisions namely A,B & C
series and the size is denoted in millimeters.
A Series:- In the A Series, A0 has an area of 1 m2. The sheet is not a true square
but has a prorportion of 5:7. Used for printing books, notice, posters etc.
A0 size is 841 mm X 1189 mm
B Series:- B series paper used for printing maps, charts, large size posters etc.
B0 size is 1000 mm X 1414 mm
C Series:- C series is used for office stationery. C0 size is 917 mm X 1297 mm
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Conventional paper sizes

Conventional paper size is also known as Indian paper size. Commonly used
Indian paper sizes are :
Foolscap 13.5” X 17”

Crown 15” X 20”
Demy 17.5” X 22.5”
Medium 18” X 23”
Royal 20” X 25”
Imperial 22” X 30”
Elephant 23” X 28”
GSM:- Basic weight system of paper is expressed in Grams per Square Meter.
It is the weight in grams of a paper with one square meter size.
GSM below 150 - Paper

GSM between 150 & 600 - Card
GSM above 600 - Board
Ream:- 500 sheets of paper of same size and weight is termed as Ream.
Basis weight:- Weight of 500 sheets of paper of standard sheet size.
For example, the basis weight of 70 GSM paper with basic size as double
demy is 18.6 kg.
M-weight:- Weight of 1000 sheets of paper of standard sheet size.
For example, the M weight of 70 GSM paper with basic size as double demy is
37.2 kg.
Conversion of GSM to basis weight
Length in meter breadth in meter x GSM

No. of sheets(500)
1000
Estimating Paper Quantity

Cancellation method for calculating the greatest no. of sheets that can be cut
from a single, full size sheet.
Eg: Sheet size - 11  17
Required card size - 5 X 8
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Cancellation method
2 2 1 3
11  17 11  17
=22=4 =13=3
5  8 8  5
Divide the sheet size with the required card size in two possible ways. In the
first method, we get 4 cards in landscape position from a sheet. In the second
method, we get 3 cards if we cut the sheet in portrait style. We get more
number of cards if we cut the sheet as in the first method and the wastage is
less compared to the second method.
Paper Calculation
The quantity of paper required for any job can be calculated by using the
following formula:
Quantity of Paper Requied
In order to calculate the quantity of paper required for the production of a
complete job in a particular size. The following formula may be used.
No. of pages in a copy × No. of copies to be printed
Paper required in reams =
Section × 500
Where section = No. of pages obtained from one sheet of the required size of
paper.
For example : To find out the total quantity of paper required in 61 cm x 88 cm
size for the printing of 20,000 booklets in 210mm X 297mm size assuming
that each booklet contains 24 pages?
Since 16 pages of size 210 x 297 mm are obtained from one sheet of 61 cm x
88 cm size, the value of a section shall be 16.
24  20000
Therefore paper required = 16  500  60 Reams without wastage
Storage of paper / Warehousing

Web offset roll storage:- Do not store rolls on sides. Largest diameter roll
should always be at bottom. Do not store rolls on bare floors, they could
become dirty or wet. Use scrap paper as dividers when stacking unwrapped
rolls.
Use roll clamp truck and minimum pressure to lift rolls.
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Ink - Ingredients, Properties and Manufacturing

Ink is a coloured coating used to place a printed image on a substrate. Ink has
several properties that can affect print quality. Ink is formed by a mixture of
three ingredients- pigment, vehicle and additives.
Ingredients in Ink
Pigment:- It provides the colour of an ink. Pigments are of 4 types - Black
pigment, white pigment, organic colour pigment, inorganic colour pigment.
Black pigments are produced by burning natural gas and oil on to a collecting
device. The by-products from the burning process are called thermal black and
furnace black.
White pigments are sub divided into two groups - opaque and transparent
pigments. White ink containing ‘opaque pigments’ (through which light can
not pass) is used when transferring an image to cover a substrate or when
overprinting another colour. Opaque whites are also used for mixing with
other inks to lighten the colour or hue.
‘Transparent’ white pigments (through which light can pass) are used to allow
the background material or ink to be seen.
Organic pigments are derived from living organisms. All organic pigments
contain carbon and hydrogen, and most are made from petroleum; however,
coal, wood, animal fats and vegetable oils are also used in organic pigment
manufacture. The major advantages of organic pigments over inorganic
pigments are that organic pigments provide a wider selection of colours, tend
to be richer in colour, brighter, more transparent and purer than inorganic
pigments. These qualities are important for four-colour printing.
Inorganic pigments are made from minerals and are classified according to
their chemical make up - chromes, cadmiums, irons and earth colours.
Vehicle:- Vehicle is a binding agent that holds the ink together. It also carries
the pigment. Vehicle is often a solvent resin or oil resin combination. Now-a-
days soya based paste inks are widely used.
Additives:- Ingredients such as drier, lubricant, wax or starch are added to the
ink to impart special charactristics such as tack, workablility and drying time.
Properties of Ink
Viscosity:- is the resistance to flow under applied force. Lithographic and
letterpress inks have high viscosity because they are paste like. Flexo and
gravure inks are less viscous. Viscometers are used to measure the viscosity
of liquids.
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Tack:- Tack or stickiness is a property of ink that must be controlled in order

to transfer images and deliver the sheets through the press. Tack can cause
paper (especially coated paper) to adhere or stick to the blanket of an offset
press. Ink that is excessively tacky may also pick the surface of the paper and
cause misfeeding. Tack increases as one colour is printed over another. An
inkometer is used to measure the tack of ink.
Opacity:- Opacity refers to the covering ability of an ink. High opacity means
very little light is transmitted. Most lithographic inks are transparent, so two
colours can be over printed to create a third colour. Process colour printing is
dependent on light passing through all the layers of ink. Screen printing inks
are highly opaque.
Ink stability:- Ink stability or thixotropy is the tendency of an ink to flow
more freely after being agitated by the ink rollers.
Drying time:- There are two stages in the ink drying process; first the ink
should instantly set or stick to the paper. The second stage in the drying process
is hardening. When ink has hardened the vehicle has completely solidified on
the paper surface. The time it takes for liquid ink to harden to a solid state is
called the drying time.
Manufacture of Lithographic Ink
Lithographic ink is manufactured by mixing vehicles, pigments and additives,
There are two stages in ink manufacture- mixing and milling
Mixing:- The pigment is introduced into and distributed throughout the vehicle
and the mixing process is performed as blades slowly rotate to steer ink inside
a metal container.
Milling:- It is a process used to crush and further blend the ink pigment into
the vehicle.
Ink drying methods
There are several methods for getting the inks to dry. Drying occurs when a
liquid becomes solid through one or more chemical methods. The most common
ink drying methods are oxidation, polymerisation, evaporation, penetration
(absorption), precipitation, radiation curing, etc.
Oxidation:- Oxidation drying ink dries by absorbing oxygen from the
surrounding air. By combining the ink’s drying oil, the oxygen of the air changes
the vehicles of the ink from a liquid to a solid. Letter press and offset printing
use oxidation drying inks.
Polymerization:- Polymerization drying inks dry by a chemical reaction that
causes molecules in the ink to combine. Oxygen thickens to a gel-like material
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allowing the printed product to be handled without spreading before it is fully

dried. This type of drying inks can be used to print on metals.
Evaporation:- Evaporation drying ink dries as the solvent is evaporated into
the surrounding air, leaving a solid film of resin on the paper. It is the passage
of the liquid to a gaseous state. This type of drying ink are used in flexography,
gravure, web offset and other processes where fast drying time is important.
Penetration (absorption):- It is a physical drying process. When ink dries by
penetration most of the vehicle is absorbed into the substrate.
Precipitation:- Precipitation drying inks also called moisture set ink, dry by
reacting with water. Steam or water is sprayed on to the ink after printing
causing the ink to set quickly.
Radiation curing:- Radiation curing causes a wet ink to become solid in about
a second. There are two types of radiation curing - ultraviolet (UV) and electron
beam (EB).
Ultraviolet (UV)-cured inks:- After being applied to the paper UV ink pass
under a strong source of UV light while still on the press. The UV light activates
special molecules in the ink and causes the inks individual molecules to lock
together and solidifies immediately. They are used both in sheet-fed and web
offset presses.
Electron Beam (EB):- EB curing is similar to UV curing except it radiates
electrons directly on to the fresh ink. EB curing inks cure more thoroughly
than UV curing inks do because electron beams are able to penetrate and activate
the entire ink film.
Types of Ink
Special formulae are used to produce inks that are compatible with certain
printing processes. The characteristics of ink formulation are determined by
the plates, press units, type of substrates and the basic printing processes. The
common type of inks are Sheet-fed ink, rubber based ink, web offset heatset
ink, web offset coldset ink, news ink, magnetic ink, invisible ink, opaque
ink, waterless offset ink, fluorescent ink, metallic ink, overprint varnishes,
soy ink,etc.
Sheet-fed ink:- Sheet-fed inks dry by oxidative polymerization. They are highly
tacky ink which is required for sharp image defenition. They avoid filling in
of halftone dots and set-off.
Rubber Based ink:- The vehicle in rubber based inks contain cyclized rubber
that allows these inks to remain on the ink train of the press for several hours
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without drying. These inks dry quickly on paper and are commonly used in
small sheet-fed presses.
Web-offset heat-set ink:- Web-offset heatset ink requires the application of
high temperature immediately after the ink film reaches the substrate. Heat-set
inks are inks that dry when hot air accelerates the evaporation of solvents.
Web-offset cold-set ink:- They are inks that are used to print on absorbent paper
inorder to dry properly.
News ink:- They are generally thin and fluid ink made of mineral oil and carbon
black which dry by absorption.
Magnetic ink:- Magnetic inks are designed primarily for printing products such
as cheques, bank notes and business forms that are sorted and read electronically.
Invisible ink:- It is a security type of ink which print clear, but they show up as
fluorescent blue or yellow when placed under back light.
Opaque inks:- These inks are required for printing on dark coloured papers, to
hide the colour of the underlying substrate and to prevent the colour of the
substrate from influencing the ink colour.
Waterless offset inks:- They are formulated for offset presses that do not use
dampening solutions.
Fluorescent ink:- These inks are made with fluorescent pigments that transfom
UV light into visible light.
Metallic ink:- They are made with small metal flakes or particles (Aluminium
for silver and Bronze or Brass for gold).
Over print varnishes:- They are transparent coating applied over ink. They
are used to protect the printed surface from moisture, abrasion or other potential
sources of damage. They are also applied to create gloss, matt or satin finish.
Soy ink:- Soy ink use oil extracted from soyabean as part of vehicle. They are
bio-degradable inks which replace petroleum used oils with vegetables oils
and clearly volatile organic levels in the press room.
Chemicals used in Printing
Dampening solution
Dampening solutions are mixtures of water and other chemicals distributed by
the dampening system of offset press. Most dampening solutions are made up
with basic ingredients such as water, acid, gum arabic, wetting agents, corrosion
inhibitors, anti foaming agents, fungicides and drying stimulators.
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Water:- The quality of the water used in dampening solution greatly affect the
performance of dampening solution and ink. Distilled water that is colourless,
tasteless and odourless and having a pH of 7 is used for preparing dampening
solution.
Acid:- The acid used in dampening solution varies according to the desired
pH. The pH of a dampening solution is the measure of how acidic or alkaline
the solution is. The pH scale begins at 0 (very strong acid) and ends at 14 (very
strong base). The half point 7 represents a neutral solution. For offset printing
a pH value of 4.5 to 5.5 is found good. Ideal value is 5.5. Change in pH value
of dampening solution can greatly influence ink drying time and cause a variety
of printing problems.
In addition to pH level, dampening solution should be consistant in its
conductivity- the amount of electricity the solution will carry. Conductivity is
a more accurate means for measuring concentration than pH. Dampening
solution’s conductivity is related to maintaining the solution’s pH level.
Gum arabic:- It is a gummy, water-soluable substance obtained from certain
types of trees. Gum arabic serves to protect the plate from scratches and prevents
it from oxidising, while in storage. It desensitises the non image area of printing
plate and prevent them from accepting ink. When a job is over, the plate is
cleaned and gummed evenly to preserve for future use. This solution of gum
arabic is strained through a cotton cloth before using, small particles of dirt
may cause serious troubles on the printing plate.
Wetting agents:- These are substances such as iso propyl alcohol, glycerin and
glycol added to dampening solution to lower its surface tension. It allows
water to spread over non image area of a plate more quickly and maintain the
water’s wetting ability and allow the operator to run less water.
Corrosion inhibitors:- These are compounds used in dampening solution to
prevent or minimise damage to the printing plate through oxidation or other
chemical reaction. They increase print quality and extend the life of plates.
Magnesium nitrate is commonly used for this purpose.
Anti-foaming agents:- These are typically silicone based fluids or emulsions
added to dampening solution to reduce the tendency of the solution to foam or
bubble and it reduces distribution problems on the press.
Fungicides and drying stimulators:- Fungicides help to kill any organic growth
in the fountain or in the dampening system. Drying stimulators enhance the
effectiveness of the drier in the ink.
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Alcohol dampening solution:- Iso Propyl Alcohol (IPA) is added to conventional

dampening solution at 10 to 15%. IPA reduces the surface tension of water
and thus considerably increases the wetting power. IPA makes dampening film
more uniform and allows a thinner application.
Other press room chemicals
Other chemicals used in a press room are plate developers, gumming and
preserving chemicals, image removers, blanket lift, plate cleaners (special
cleaners for conventional plates and thermal plates), deposits remover, wash
up solution.
Practical Activity
Paper
1. Collect different kinds of paper.
2. Find out the GSM of a given paper sample.
3. Collect different size of paper (Conventional and International paper sizes).
4. Collect different types of cover paper.
5. Identify various kinds of paper and boards used for different printing jobs
such as notice, cover printing, visiting card, envelope and packaging
industry
6. Paper calculation method for sheets, boards and reel.
7. Different paper testing methods
• Curl test
• Grain direction test
• GSM test
• Moisture content test of paper
• Paper smoothness test
• Roughness test
• Gloss test
8. List out the paper warehousing methods.
2. Ink
1. Use of various types of inks on different types of paper.
2. Ink mixing processes.
3. Ink calculation method.
4. Ink testing methods.
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3. Chemicals in Printing
1. Prepare an ideal dampening solution.
2. Measure the pH and conductivity of dampening solution.
3. Use of image removers on a printing plate.
4. Use of blanket lift in press room.
Seminar
1. Student should make a presentation about different press room chemicals
and its contents.
Field visit
1. Student should visit paper manufacturing company and understand paper
making process.
Additional Activity
1. Prepare a chart showing the list of major paper mills in India and abroad
along with the names of their popular bands.
TE Questions
1. Explain the paper making process using the Fourdrinier machine?
2. What are the different physical properties of paper?
3. Watermarks can be given to paper with the help of ___________ rollers.
4. Briefly explain the five different classification of paper.
5. What is GSM?
6. Explain the A, B, and C series of paper sizes?
7. List out the different ink drying methods you have studied?
8. Ink which print clear, but show up as fluorescent blue or yellow when
placed under black light are ____________ inks.
9. What are the major ingredients of dampening solution?
10. Ideal pH of dampening solution is _______________
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Unit - 2
SHEETFED OFFSET PRESS
Introduction
A printing press is a machine that transfers an image from some sort of plate or
image carrier to a substrate such as paper. Basically the presses are classified
as sheet-fed and Web-fed presses. Four units make a printing press. They are
feeding unit, registration unit, printing unit, and delivery unit. To print an
acceptable finished product, all of the units must be properly adjusted. In this
unit we will discuss in detail about different units of sheet-fed offset press and
its working.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• classifies presses based on various aspects.
• understands working principle of an offset press.
• operates different units of an offset machine.
• understands the structure and properties of offset blankets.
Press classification
Offset presses are categorised according to different criteria- maximum sheet
size the press can handle, number of colours that can be applied in a single
pass, whether one or both sides of the paper can be printed in a single pass,
how the paper feeds into the press etc.
Duplicators and Presses:- Small sheet-fed offset presses printing upto a
maximum sheet size of about 11” X 17” are classifed as offset duplicators and
those printing on sheets larger than 11” X 17” are called offset presses. Offset
presses are larger and more sophisticated and capable than duplicators.
Sheet-fed Presses:- Offset presses and duplicators designed to print a single
sheet of paper at a time are referred to as sheet-fed presses. These presses
pickup individual sheets of paper from a feed table. Sheets are delivered one
at a time to the printing unit.
Web-fed Presses:- Presses that feed from a roll of paper is classified as web
offset. These presses are used for work requiring long runs such as magazines,
newspaper and other similar publications.
Multi colour Presses:- Presses that can print more than one colour during a
single pass are referred to as multi colour presses. These presses consist of a
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series of single printing units connected in tandem to form one press. The
paper can be fed in either sheets or rolls.
Perfecting Presses:- Presses that print on both sides of paper at the same time
are known as perfecting presses or perfectors. Both sheet-fed and web-fed
presses can be perfecting.
Waterless offset Presses:- Waterless offset presses do not use dampening
solution to keep the plate’s non-image area free of ink. These presses function
because the plate’s non-image area consists of a layer of silicon that repels ink.
Direct imaging (digital) offset presses are waterless, with no dampening system.
Digital Offset Presses:- Conventional offset presses are not linked directly to
the prepress function. Plates are imaged away from the press and then carried
to it. But digital offset presses use direct imaging (digital) in which blank
plates are mounted on to the press and then imaged by digital-driven lasers.
Working principle of an offset press
Offset printing is a planographic printing process in which the image area and
the non image area are on a same plane in the image carrier. This process
works under the principle oil and water repels each other. It was invented by a
German named Alois Senefelder in 1798. In 1903 Ira Washington Rubel from
New Jersey developed an offset press design. On Rubel’s new press design,
the inked plate transferred the image to a rubber covered cylinder, called the
blanket cylinder, which then trasferred the image to the paper.
Operating Units of an Offset machine
All presses are composed of four basic units - feeder unit, registration unit,
printing unit and delivery unit.
Feeder Unit
The feeding system is the mechanism that sends the substrate into the press.
The feeder unit of a sheet-fed offset must separate the top sheet of paper from
the infeed pile, pick it up and deliver it to the registration unit. Only one sheet
can be fed at a time and each must reach the registration unit at a precise
movement to be registered and sent to the printing unit.
Types of feeding systems
There are two types of feeding systems: successive or single sheet feeding
system and continuous or stream feeding system.
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Successive or single sheet feeding:-

The most common type of
mechanical feeding is successive
sheet feeding system. In this system
the feeder unit picks up one sheet
each time the printing units prints
one sheet.
Continuous feeding or stream feeding:- In
stream feeder the sheets overlap on the
registration board and the rate of sheet
movement is significantly slower.
Registration is more accurate in stream
feeding.
Parts of feeding unit
Parts of feeding unit are pile feeder, pile board, pile height governor, sucker,
sheet separator fingers, sheet separation blower.
Pile feeder :- is a mechanism
used to lift individual sheets
from the pile and feed them
into the press.
Pile board :- It is a platform
in the feeder of a sheet fed
press on which the pile of
paper sits.
Pile height governor :- the
device used to control the
speed of elevation of the pile
table.
Sucker foot:- It is the element used in the feeding unit to pick up individual
sheets and place them into the registration unit. They are of two types- lifting
suckers and forwarding suckers.
Sheet separator fingers :- They are springy steel fingers extending over the
lead edge of the pile of paper in the feeder. Sheet seperators hold down the
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side edge of the top sheet, as the front blowers separate the sheet from the
stack.
Sheet separation Blowers :- They are air
producing device that separates the top most
sheet from the rest of the pile in the feeding
system.
In the feeding unit paper is stacked on the
pile board. The pile must be positioned in
correct relationship with the settings of the
register and insertion device. An air blast is used to seperate the top most
press sheet from the rest of the pile. The blast can be adjusted for papers of
different weight. Heavy and coated papers require stronger air blast than light
and uncoated papers. The air blast must be strong enough to float the topmost
piece of paper above the pile at a specified height below the sucker feet. The
pile table automatically raises and maintain the correct feeding height as sheets
are removed from the top. The sucker feet grab the floating top sheet and send
it down the registration board where the registration unit takes over.
Registration Unit
Functions of Registration unit
Registration is the process of controlling and directing the sheets as it enters
the printing unit. The goal of registration is to ensure absolute consistancy of
image positions on every sheet printed.
Parts of Registration unit
Double sheet detector, Registration board, front lay, side lay, conveyor tape,
running in wheels, two point guide system, three point guide system, transfer
cylinder system.
Double sheet detector :- It is a control device that prevents more than one
sheet of paper from entering the press. Double sheet detectors sense the paper
thickness. When the sensor detects excess thickness, indicating multiple sheets,
the feeding of paper automatically stops.
Registration board :- It is a platform that accepts a sheet from the feeder unit
and inserts it in register, ready for print.
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Front lay:- It is a metal tab or plate attached to the front end of the feedboard
on a sheet-fed printing press that stops the sheet of paper and holds it on the
feedboard while the side lay moves the sheet into position.
Side lay:- It is a device attached to the feedboard that aids in the lateral
positioning of a sheet of paper before a sheet is transferred into the printing
unit. Side lays are of two types- push type & pull type. Pull type side lays are
more accurate than push types.
Conveyor belts:- Endless belts which carry the paper to the front lay (headstop).
Running in wheels :- The sheets picked up by the suckers are forwarded to the
registration unit by the running in wheels.
Press register methods
The registration table carries each sheet using the conveyor belts to the front
stop where paper is aligned square with the printing system with the help of
side lay, ready to be captured by the grippers of the impression cylinders.
There are three press register methods- the three point guide system, the swing
feed system and the feed-roll system.
Three point guide system :- In the three point guide system the sheet is forwarded
to the front guides which may be two or four in number. While the sheet is
held against the front guides a side guiding mechanism pushes or pulls the
sheet into proper side alignment until the impression cylinder grippers take
hold of it. At this time the front guides are lifted out of the sheets path of travel.
As soon as the entire sheet clears the feedboard the guides drop back into
position to align the next sheet.
Swing feed system :- In this system the sheet is moved forward down the
feedboard and got to rest against front guides. The side guides then aligns the
sheet. After being properly guided the sheet is picked up by a set of grippers
usually mounted over the feedboard. The front guide moves out of the way
and the arm swings forward carrying the sheets into the gripper on the
impression cylinder.
Feed-roll system:- In this system the sheet is moved down the feedboard,
positioned against stops and side guides. While the sheet is at rest, it is firmly
gripped in its position by being pinched between upper and lower feed rolls or
cams. At a precise movement the front guides move out of the way, and the
feed rolls start rotating to drive the sheet forward and into the grippers on the
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Printing Unit
The printing unit places a water solution and ink on the plate, transfers the
image on to the paper and delivers the paper to the delivery unit. The printing
plate must be adjusted so that the proper amount of ink and water solution is
deposited on the printing plate so that the image is transferred accurately, evenly
and consistantly to the printing paper. The printing unit of an offset press
consists of cylinder system, the dampening system and the inking system.
Cylinder system:- The lithographic press consists of a group of cylinders that
transfer images from the printing plate to the substrate. The components of a
cylinder system are the plate cylinder, the blanket cylinder and the impression
cylinder.
Cylinder structure:- The components of a cylinder includes the body, bearers,
bearings, clamps and a gear that drives the cylinder.
Cylinder body:- is made up of steel or cast iron. Normally it is coated with
chromium to prevent rusting. It should have perfectly even surface. Body of
a press cylinder has two parts namely cylinder gap and cylinder bearer. The
cylinders have some gap on its surface where the clamping mechanism is
attached. It is called the cylinder gap or depression gap. The narrow metal
band at both ends of press cylinder used to allow packing and easy alignment
is called the bearer. The height of the bearer is always higher than the cylinder
body to accommodate plate. The difference between the radius of the cylinders
bearers and the radius of the cylinders themselves is called undercut. The
cylinders have a series of clamps in the depression gap to hold the plate or
blanket.
Gutter:- is the small gap between the bearer and the cylinder body. It prevents
foreign bodies like grease and other lubricants coming into contact with plate
and blanket surface.
Drive gears:- are gears that make the cylinders rotate.
Cylinders
Plate cylinder: It holds the printing plate on the press, receives water on the
non image area from the dampening system and ink on the image area from
the inking system and transfers the image to the intermediate blanket on the
blanket cylinder. This cylinder brings the inked plate image into contact with
the blanket cylinder.
Blanket cylinder:- It is located between the plate and the impression cylinders.
This cylinder holds the rubber blanket, a synthetic rubber mat that accepts the
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image from the plate cylinder

and transfers or offsets it to the
substrate with the help of the
Impression cylinder:- The
impression cylinder carries the
paper through the printing unit,
and presses it against the inked
blanket where the image is
transferred to the paper. This
cylinder uses a set of grippers
to grab the lead edge of the
press sheet when the sheet
reaches the end of the feed
board. The paper is drawn
around the impression cylinder and forced against the blanket to make the
impression. The grippers then open to release the press sheet to the delivery
unit or to the next printing unit.
Grippers are the row of mechanical fingers attached to the impression cylinder
that grabs the sheet of paper and feed it to the printing press.
Inking system
The goal of an inking system is to place a uniform layer of ink across every
dimension of the printing plate. All lithographic inking system are made up of
three main sections. Ink fountain and fountain rollers, ink distribution rollers
and inkform rollers.
Ink fountain stores ink in a reservior and fills small quantity of ink to the rest
of inking system from the fountain roller. The ink distribution rollers receives
ink and work it into a semi liquid state that is uniformly delivered to the ink
form rollers. A thin layer of ink is then transferred to the image portion of the
lithographic plate by the ink form rollers.
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The ink fountain holds a pool of ink and controls the amount of ink that enters
the inking system. The most common type of fountain consists of a metal
blade that is held in place near the
fountain roller. The gap between
the blade and the fountain roller
can be controlled by adjusting
screw keys to vary the amount of
ink on the fountain roller. Printers
adjust the keys in or out as the
fountain roller turns to obtain the
desired quantity of ink.
Ink agitator :- Ink is supplied to
the system by an ink fountain. On
large presses and ink agitator may
be used to help maintain a constant
ink flow. An agitator is a revolving
device that moves along the
fountain and stirs the ink to keep it at the same flow level.
Ductor roller :- The ductor roller is the intermediate roller between the fountain
roller and the distribution roller. Ductor roller is a movable roller that flops
back and forth between the ink fountain roller and an ink distribution roller.
As the ductor roller contacts the fountain roller, both turn and the ductor is
inked. The ductor then swings forward to contact a distribution roller and
transfers ink to it. The rate of rotation of the ink fountain rollers and the gap
between the fountain blade and the fountain roller controls the amount of ink
added to the distributing system.
Form rollers:- The rollers that are actually in contact with plate are called
form rollers. They ink the plate.
Distribution rollers:- Distribution rollers spread the ink out to a uniform layer
before it is placed on the plate. The greater the number of distribution rollers
the more accurate the control of ink uniformity. There are generally two types
of distribution rollers. Rotating distribution roller and oscillating distribution
roller. Rotating distribution rollers rotates in one direction. Oscillating
distribution rollers rotates and also move from side to side.
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Fountain roller:- Fountain roller is the roller that is placed inside the ink
fountain. It transfers ink from the fountain to the ductor roller.
Dampening system
A layer of moisture must be placed over the non image area before the plate is
inked. The dampening system accomplishes this by moistening the plate
consistantly through out the press run. The fountain roller rotates in a pan
containing the fountain solution. It transfers a thin film of fountain solution
either to the ductor roller or directly to the form rollers.
Offset press dampening systems are classified into three types - Intermittent,
Continuous and Integrated.
Intermittent system (Conventional dampening system) :- It is similar in design
to the inking system on an offset press. The system uses oscillator rollers,
form rollers, a ductor roller and a fountain roller. The dampening system uses
fewer rollers than the inking system does because fountain solution is more
fluid than the ink and does not need to be worked to the same degree.
A common problem with an intermittent system is their inability to quickly
adjust the level of solution on the plate.
Continuous dampening system:- They do not use ductor roller to transfer
fountain solution from the pan. This system use a metering roller to move the
solution to a transfer roller. The metering roller is usually made of or covered
with rubber and serves the same purpose as the fountain roller in an intermittent
system. The transfer roller is a hard chrome covered roller. The biggest
advantage of using continuous system is that it allows the operator to quickly
make adjustments and see immediate results. Continuous dampening system
are often referred to as alcohol dampening system because alcohol was
commonly used in the fountain solution.
Integrated dampening system:- This type, of dampening system link the
dampening rollers and the inking rollers to the ink fountain. The fountain
solution and the ink are fed to the plate from the same set of form rollers. The
fountain solution is distributed, not only to the rollers in the dampening system
but also to sum of the ink rollers. Since the fountain solution repels the ink it
can ride on the ink to the plate. This type of system is also referred to as
combined dampening system or combination dampening system. Improper
formulation of fountain solution in the system may cause emusification
problems.
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Alcohol dampening system:- Alcohol dampening system recirculate the

fountain solution there by making it possible to maintain pH consistancy in
the fountain solution. This system also assist the press operator in maintaining
proper fountain solution level in the fountain pan. The entire fountain system
generally runs more cleanly than a conventional dampening unit does.
Advantages of alcohol dampening
Using alcohol eliminates the problem of too warm a solution during hot weather.
Alcohol lowers the surface tension of water, allowing to be fed to the plate.
Use of alcohol causes faster evaporation of moisture from the offset plate and
ink rollers resulting in less ink emulsification and faster drying of printed sheets.
Roller and roller covers
The dampening covers are either solid metal, rubber or cloth-covered rubber.
Fountain roller are usually solid metal, while ductor and dampener form rollers
are usually cloth covered. The dampener form and ductor rollers are covered
with a cloth called Molleton cloth. Molleton covers are available ready cutting
tubular or wrap around strip form as well as in continuous tubular form.
Cover installation steps
1) Remove the old cover carefully so that rollers are not damaged
2) Clean the rollers with soap and water. Use solvents to remove ink built up.
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3) Slide the new cover over the roller.

4) Tie both ends of the sleeve.
5) Wet the entire molleton in a sink.
6) Install the roller in the press.
7) Run the press to let the rollers run in and smooth the surface.
Roller pressure settings

New damper covers must be set for proper pressure after they are installed.
The following procedure can be used to check the dampener roller pressure
setting.
1) Prepare the dampening system for operation. Check the dampness of the
form roller. Let the dampener form roller run against the plate on the plate
cylinder for a few minutes. Lift the form roller and stop the press.
2) When the press is stopped, place two 1” X 8” strips of 0.005” thick acetate
sheet between the form rollers and the plate. Place one strip each at both
the ends.
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Reference Book
3) Drop the form rollers to the on position.

4) With one hand holding each strip, pull towards you with a slow uniform
tension. There should be a slight even drag on both strips. If one strip
pulls easier than the other or if there is too much or too little drag on both,
adjust the roller on one end or both as a test procedure.
5) After pressure seems satisfactory, drop the form rollers to the plate and
lift it up again. You should see a faint damp line across the entire width of
the plate.
Waterless Presses:- A waterless press is an offset lithographic press system
that does not use a dampening system during the printing process. The surface
of a waterless plate is a layer of silicone rubber that repels ink and keeps the
non-image area separate from the image area. The image area is recessed. It
lies just below the plate surface and has an ink receptive photopolymer coating.
The silicone plate surface serve the same function as the fountain solution in a
dampening system. Waterless plates are designed from conventional
lithographic presses. Plate exposure is done using vacuum frame and light
sources and is developed with a water based solution
than with a solvent based solution which are more
safe to dispose.
Waterless plates require special inks which are
thicker than conventional lithographic inks. The
inking system used by waterless presses is
temperature controlled. As ink is applied to the plate,
the surface is designed to repel certain thickness of
ink. The system must regulate the temperature of
the ink to maintain correct thickness. Several rollers
in the system contain hollow tubes that are filled
with water to remove excess heat. Water circulate
through the rollers and cools the ink as it is
transferred to the plate.
Advantages of waterless presses
Waterless plates provide great image quality by producing a higher density of
ink when they are offset. The procedure involved in formulating dampening
solution and maintaining a dampening system are eliminated saving set up
time. Waterless printing changes the image transfer system from a chemical/
physical process to a mechanical process. Waterless printing system is more
eco-friendly compared to the conventional offset printing method.
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Delivery Unit
Delivery unit removes the printed substrate from the printing system of the
press and prepares it for finishing operations. Delivery systems on sheetfed
presses are designed differently from those used on web-fed presses. On a
sheet-fed press, the delivery system removes sheets of paper and places them
into a stack called the delivery pile. On a webfed press, the delivery system
conducts a number of additional operations.
There are two common designs for sheetfed press delivery units: Gravity
delivery and Chain gripper delivery.
Gravity delivery is the simpler and less dependable of the two. As the sheet
leaves the printing unit, it is dropped into a delivery pile. The basic limitation
is that paper cannot be delivered faster than gravity can pull it into place.
Gravity delivery is usually found only on smaller presses.
Chain gripper delivery:-Most presses are equipped with delivery grippers
consisting of a series of small metal fingers attached to a bar extended between
two continuous delivery chains. The delivery chains are belts or chains used
to transfer the printed sheet from the impression cylinder to the delivery pile.
A pair of sprockets guides and drives
the delivery chains. The grippers are
spaced at regular intervals along the
chains so one set of grippers is
receiving a sheet while another set is
delivering the preceding sheet.
Spring pressure usually holds the
grippers closed. As the chains carry
the grippers towards the impression
cylinder, they pass over a cam that
forces the grippers open long enough to receive the sheet. The grippers then
carry the sheet to the end of the press, where a trip cam forces the grippers to
open and release the sheet to the delivery platform. The sheet comes to the
delivery pile faceup, with the gripper edge towards the front of the press.
Parts of delivery unit
The delivery unit of an offset press consists of delivery chain, delivery table,
delivery grippers, delivery cylinder, skeleton wheel, joggers and may contain
some ancillary units like anti-set off spray.
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Delivery chain:- is a belt or chain the delivery system of a press uses to transfer
the printed sheet from the impression cylinder to the delivery pile.
Delivery grippers:- These are small metal fingers attached to a bar extended
between two continuous delivery chains.
Delivery table:- is a platform or tray on which the printed sheets are stacked.
Delivery cylinder:- It is a cylinder in the delivery unit of a press that transfers
the printed sheet from impression cylinder to the delivery pile. This cylinder
is usually covered with skeleton wheels.
Skeleton wheels:- It is an adjustable disc on the delivery cylinder that holds the
sheet as it travels.
Joggers:- Jogging side and back guides are used to control the outfeed pile.
Two stationary guides can be adjusted to the paper extremes. The jogging
guides are adjusted to touch the remaining two paper sides on their innermost
stroke. The delivery pile is continually touched by all four guides. This keeps
the stack straight.
Four units of an Offset Machine

Ancilliary units
Anti-setoff spray:The printed sheets in the delivery unit are sprayed with anti-
setoff powder to avoid setoff. This powder layer is distributed by compressed
air, thereby preventing the ink of the freshly printed sheets from getting too
close to the reverse side of the top sheet. Anti-setoff powder are colourless
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powder grain that serve as spacers ensuring oxidative drying by the inclusion
of air between the sheets. The grain laying between the sheet provide air cush-
ion between the induvidual sheets.
Offset Blanket
Offset blankets are formed from vulcanised rubber bonded on a fiber base.
Blankets should have the ability to accept ink from the plate and to transfer it
to the paper with satisfactory ink density.
Structure of a blanket
The bottom layer or the back side of the blanket
is formed from rubber or synthetic materials
which are specially woven to maintain the
quality and strength of the blanket. They are
called carcass. The backing on a blanket
includes atleast one layer of soft resilient
material, such as form, rubber, cork, or loose
fabric fibres that gives blanket its compressible
character. To make the blanket compressible a
thin layer of air cells is layered between the fabric
and rubber face.
Depending on the number of fabric layers on a
blanket it may be classified as single ply, 2 ply, 3 ply, 4 ply, etc. The number of
fabric layers equals the number of plys. Thus a 4 ply blanket would contain
four fabric layers.
Two basic types of offset blankets are conventional and compressible blankets.
Conventional blankets tend to bulge at the impact point. They are made without
a layer of form.
Compressible blankets are designed to compress and instantly rebound to its
original shape and thickness. They are the most widely used blankets because
they prevent minor blanket smashes from effecting the print quality.
Under blankets:- They are underlay blankets, made of form rubber, cork or
loose fabric that can be used under the blanket to improve its performance.
Benefits of using underblankets are reduced downtime, sharper definition of
fine images, and reduced roller and cylinder pressure that lead to reduced plate
wear.
Hardness of blanket is measured in terms of shore hardness. (eg. 80oA or
80 shore A) The device used for measuring the shore hardness of a rubber
blanket is shoredurometer.
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Types of blanket
Blankets may be classified into the following according to their resilience:
Hard blanket, Soft blanket, Medium blanket, Sandwich blanket and Special
blankets.
Hard blanket:- They are having 80° A to 85°A hardness. They are used to
print on matt, rough surfaced, thick coated card and other heavy coated papers.
Soft blanket:- Blankets having 60° A to 65°A are called as soft blankets. Low
grade uncoated papers, polythene sheets and coated papers may be printed
using soft blankets.
Medium blanket:- They are blankets made of 65° A to 70°A hardness. These
blankets are used to print on super calendered or thin coated and glazed papers,
maplitho, thick and thin white paper.
Sandwich blanket:- They are blankets having hardness within 70° A to 80°A.
They are used for printing heavy solid jobs, blankets of 60° to 70° shore hardness
should be used. Fine halftone images need 70° to 80° shore hardness because
they have a better ability to transfer fine screen dots.
Special blankets:- They are special solvent resistant blankets. Vehicles and
solvents of heat-set and quick-set printing inks are not suitable for ordinary
blankets. They require special solvent resistant blankets.
Properties of a blanket
The face of the blanket should have no adhesive properties. The surface should
be sufficiently resilient for better transferance of image on the printing material.
Blankets should have good receptivity to all types of lithographic inks. Blankets
should not become glazed or tacky when its surface comes in contact with
solvents. Blankets should have less affinity for ink than paper so that it may
readily release ink on to the paper surface.
Care and Storage of blanket
• Blankets should be wrapped round the blanket cylinder properly stretched.
• Thickness of the blanket should be decided in consideration of the bearer
or the pitch circumference.
• Blankets should be used with the consideration of the paper surface.
• The unrolled blankets should be laid on plain surface.
• More than one blanket may be placed face to face or back to back.
• Blanket should be prevented from exposure to sunlight, high temperature
and fluorescent light sources.
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• Printing blankets should not be stored near ozone sources such as electric
motors, copy machines, etc.
• Blankets stored in their packing tubes should be placed in horizontal state.
Practical Activities
1. Functioning of different units of a sheet-fed offset press.
2. Identify different parts of sheet-fed offset printing machine.
3. Dampening cover fixing.
4. Identify different types of blanket.
5. Blanket fixing
Assessment Activity
1. Make a drawing of plate, blanket and impression cylinders as well as
form rollers ink and dampening system in the practical record. Label
these components and add arrows showing the direction of rotation.
2. Draw a schematic diagram of the inking unit of an offset press and label
the different rollers in the practical record.
3. Draw a schematic diagram of Conventional dampening unit and mark its
parts in the practical record.
TE Questions
1. Explain the working principle of offset.
2. What are the four units of an offset press.
3. Describe the basic features of sheet-fed offset printing machine.
3. List out different parts of a feeding unit and explain its function.
4. Small offset presses upto 11” x 17” are usually referred as ____________
5. Offset presses that can print more than one colour at the same time are
called _________ presses.
6. Draw the cylinder configuration of offset perfecting press.
7. Identify the functioning of waterless offset press.
8. Compare conventional and alcohol dampening system.
9. Briefly explain about the type of blankets used in an offset printing press.
10. Write your ideas about storage of blanket.
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Unit - 3
OFFSET PRESS OPERATIONS
Introduction
The purpose of this unit is to deal with fundamental understandings that will
enable the students to run any offset duplicator or sheet-fed press after a review
of manufactures operating manual. The operating procedure for running a press
include mounting the plate, achieving smooth paper feeding and delivery,
controlling ink and dampening solution, adjusting the image as needed, and
cleaning the press at the end of the run. This unit also provides information
about leading press manufacturers. The last section of this unit deals with the
factors affecting the cost of a printing job and estimation procedure.
Learning outcomes
The learner:
• understands the make ready Procedure.
• understands the working of a multi-colour sheet fed offset machine.
• understands about sequence of colours in multicolour printing.
• lists the leading manufacturers of offset machines.
• estimates the cost of production of a printing job in offset printing.
Pre-make ready checks
Before operating a press, the following activities should be done to check
whether the press is made ready for printing.
1) Oil the press according to manufacturer’s recommendation.
2) Clean the press of dirt, dried ink, grease and excess oil.
3) Check the pressure settings of all rollers and cylinders.
4) Examine the blankets for defects.
5) Examine the inking rollers for glaze.
6) Examine the dampener roller covers and change them if required.
7) Check the pH of the fountain solution.
8) Mix or otherwise prepare the ink for the job.
9) Examine the image and non image areas of the plate to be printed.
Before starting a printing job, we should check the information given in the
job ticket. The information include the following:
1) The correct ink and colour.
2) Adequate fountain solution.
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3) Correct paper stock, plus make ready and waste sheets.

4) Printing plates on hand.
5) Wash up solvents and blanket wash.
6) Special instructions, if any.
7) Finishing operations
Make ready
Make ready refers to the procedures preparing the press to print a particular
job. The term make ready covers all the activities the press operator performs
between beginning the job and actually running the job.
Press lubrication :- Correct press lubrication reduces wear on all moving
parts and lengthens press life. Lack of lubrication, use of inferior lubricants or
carelessness in the use of lubricants shortens the productive life of press.
Lubricate the feeder and delivery drive chains once a week. Use gear greese
compund on all gears. Use penetrating oils whereever applicable. Motors
should be oiled during the weekly lubrication. Those with greese fitting require
greese atleast twice a year.
Paper and Ink:- Verify the paper size supplied for the job. Make sure the
grade size and quantity are correct. Make sure the press sheet grain direction
is appropriate to the job. Obtain the required ink for the job.
Starting procedure
The following is the general sequence of step in setting up and running a job in
an offset press.
Preparing the inking unit:- Ink rollers should be cleaned of all lint and dust
before filling the ink fountain. Clean the rollers with blanket and roller wash.
Remove the fountain and clean it thoroughly using roller wash.
Fill the ink fountain by applying small amounts of ink with an ink knife against
the fountain roller. The fountain is equipped with a number of adjusting keys
or screws. Turning these keys clockwise decrease the flow of ink and turning
the key counter increase the flow of ink.
Preparing the dampening unit :- The dampening fountain and the fountain
roller should be clean and free of dirt. Fill the fountain bottle with proper
mixture of fountain solution. The dampener form rollers should remain off
and should not contact the plate.
Start the press, allowing the rollers to pick up moisture. Operate the fountain
roller by hand to help the moisture along. If necessary you can use sponge to
drip a little fountain solution on the oscillating roller and dampener ductor
roller. Stop the press turn the hand wheel to bring the water ductor roller into
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Reference Book
contact with the fountain roller. Turn the fountain roller knob by hand to
transfer fountain roller solution from the water fountain roller to the ductor
roller. When the form rollers are sufficiently damped stop the press, check the
dampeners on the form roller by touching it with your hands. Be sure the
ductor control lever is on. The dampening unit is now ready for use.
Attaching the plate
Always be sure the plate cylinder is clean and dry before attaching the plate.
Attach the gripper edge of the plate to the plate clamp. Hold the tail of the
plate square and tight with your right hand. Turn the handwheel clockwise
until the tail clamp is in position for attaching the plate. Hold the plate with
your left hand and bring the tail clamp upto position with your right hand.
Attach the plate to plate clamp. Tighten the plate clamp by turning the plate
clamp tightening dial clockwise.
Semi-auto plate loading:- In semi-auto plate loading the operator have to lift
the guard and put the lead edge of the plate into the clamp, then hit a button
and it does the rest.
Auto plate loading:- In autoplate loading, automatic plate changing can be
done, enabling the plate for the next product to be loaded while the press is
running. The full sequence of old plate removal and new plate loading requires
less than 30 seconds. This technology has a dramatic impact on labour
requirements, make ready waste
and press uptime.
Feeding the paper
Fanning the press sheets - Begin
the paper feeding process by
fanning the pile to remove any
statistic electricity that might be
holding individual sheets
together.
Adding paper to the feeder
section:- Place the pile in the
feeding section of the press slightly of center. Push the pile forward so that it
is squarely seated against the front plate of the feeder.
Using wedges to level the paper:- The top of the paper pile must be perfectly
level and parallel to the registration board. If the stock stacks insert wedges at
several points into the pile to make the top surface level.
Adjusting the pile height:- Adjust the pile height below the feeding mechanishm
(Sucker Feet). Feeding problems will result if pile height is not properly set.
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Adjusting the air blast:- The purpose of air blast is to float the top most sheet
above the rest of the pile on a blanket of air. The amount of airblast needed
will warry depending on the weight and size of the paper sheet.
Adjusting the registration system
Positioning the pull in rollers and double sheet detector:- Before allowing the
feeder mechanism to sent a sheet to the registration units, the pull in wheels
(running wheels) and the double sheet detector must be set. Adjust the pull-in-
wheels to a uniform pressure so that each sheet is pulled squarely from the
feeder on to the registration board. Double sheet detectors cause the press to
stop when a double is detected. Set the device to pass the thickness of one
sheet and trip the press if more that one sheet is fed.
Setting the register board and sheet control:- Next allow the press to feed a
sheet into the registration unit and to stop if in contact with the head stop.
Line up the conveyor belts, straps or skid rollers to the sheet size. Adjust the
pull guide to push or pull the sheet. Inch the sheet into the grippers that pull it
beween the impression cylinder and the blanket cylinder and allow it to transfer
to the delivery system.
Positioning the image on the paper:- The image must be positioned squarely
on the paper by adjusting the control knob of the stop bar. This stop bar can be
tilted in either direction. Moving the stop bar eliminates the need of adjusting
the plate on the plate cylinder.
Setting the gripper bite control:- Small vertical movement of image can be
made by moving the paper stop bar foward or backward allowing a larger or
smaller gripper bite. Large vertical movements of the image on the paper are
made by moving the plate cylinder.
Adjusting the delivery unit:- Move the sheets to delivery units and adjust the
delivery side table guides before the sheet is released from the chain grippers.
Allow the sheets to drop on to the delivery table and position the table and
joggers.
Checking the entire system:- In order to check the entire system start the
machine and allow paper to pass from feeder to delivery. The sheet should be
smoothly and consistantly fed on the registration board. Each sheet should be
uniformly registered and transferred to the printing unit. The delivery system
should remove each sheet and stack a perfect pile on the outfeed table.
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Feeding the test sheet:- A small quantity of make ready sheet must be placed
on top of the press sheet pile. Make ready sheets are sheets of same weight
and surface finish as the final sheets that are used for initial press setup. These
make ready sheets should be run through the press to detemine if any
adjustments are required. The following steps should be considered while
feeding the test sheets.
1. Moisten the plate with fountain solution using a cotton pad.
2. Start the press.
3. Lower the dampening form roller to the plate.
4. Allow the press to run for some time while checking the plate for dampness.
5. Lower the ink form rollers to the plate cylinder.
6. Start the vacuum and blower motor.
7. Set the press on impression and run a sheet of paper.
8. Turn off the impression and raise the ink form rollers.
9. Stop the machine.
10. Check the image position and make necessary adjustments to achieve
position, ink water balance and desired ink coverage.
Checking the test sheets:- Inspect the test sheet carefully. The image on the
paper should be clear, well inked and free from background tone. Check for
scum which indicates an excessive amount of ink or insufficient amount of
dampening solution. The ideal ink-water balance occurs when each printed
sheet takes exactly the same amount of ink and water while being metered to
the plate.
Check the position of the image:- These check should include lateral (left to
right) and vertical (up and down) position.
Cylinder and roller pressure
There are several pressure checks that must be made to cylinders and rollers
on a daily basis. These checks should also be made whenever rollers, roller
coverings, blankets, plate thicknesses, and paper thicknesses are changed. The
sequence of pressure checks is given below:
1) Check dampener form roller-to-plate pressure.
2) Check ink form roller-to-plate pressure.
3) Check plate cylinder-to-blanket cylinder pressure.
4) Check impression adjustment (squeeze).
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Make sure you have properly

installed and gummed the plate
on the press. Place the
dampener form rollers in the off
position. Place the ink form
rollers in the on position and
allow the gummed plate to ink
up over the entire surface. Stop
the press and place the ink roller
in off position. Allow the plate
cylinder to come into contact
with the blanket cylinder. Take
the plate cylinder out of contact.
Do this in several different
locations on the blanket. You
should have a uniform ink-band
line 3.2 mm to 4.8 mm wide. If
an adjustment is required
correct the parallel first and then
the overall press adjustments.
Multi colour printing
Most offset lithographic presses can be used to produce quality process colour
work, if good separations, plates, paper, ink and skilled operators are available.
Multicolour sheetfed presses operate in the same manner as single colour
sheetfed presses. But they are equipped with two or more colour printing
units arranged in-line (one following the other). Each printing unit is capable
of delivering a single colour of ink to the press sheet. Most multicolour presses
are designed with two, four, or six printing units. Two colour presses are ideal
for jobs that require spot colour such as a page of text in which the text is
printed in one colour and the display type or graphic elements (rules, boxes,
decorative borders, or illustrations) are printed in another colour. Four colour
presses are designed especially for four-colour process printing. A five- or
six-colour presses increase printing possibilities even further by allowing a
sheet to be printed with four process colours, followed by a flat or match colour,
or a varnish.
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The primary advantage of a multi colour press is that more than one colour can
be printed in a single pass through the press. Without a multi colour press, the
press sheet would have to be printed with one colour, then replaced on the
infeed table and run through the press again for each additional colour required.
Not only is this a time-consuming operation, but it can lead to mis-register
problems. Paper is not diamensionally stable. When passed through the press,
each piece of paper is subjected to both ink and water. Moisture from the
dampening system tends to make the paper stretch, then shrink as it dries.
When a single-colour press is used for a multi-colour job, some time will
elapse before the paper is put through the press for the next colour. During
this time, the paper may shrink, stretch, or warp slightly owing to humidity
and other environmental conditions in the printing plant. The overall effect is
that on the second pass through the press, the paper is not exactly the same
size as it was on the first pass through the press. This makes critical registration
more difficult and sometimes impossible. A multi-colour press can reduce
this problem.
One additional advantage of a multi-colour press is that the press operator can
judge the quality of the printed sheet immediately as it comes off the press,
and he can make press adjustments based on this evaluation. When printing
process colour, all four colours must be printed with the correct press settings
if the colours on the final job are to be correct. When a single-colour press is
used to print process colour, improper press adjustments during the printing of
the first colour may only be discovered as the fourth colour is being printed.
By this time, all of the sheets have been printed with three colours and it is too
late to make any corrections. The whole job will have to be scrapped and
reprinted.
Sequence of colours
Process colour involves overprinting of four seperate images. During printing
the sequence of colours can vary depending on the type of ink, paper, or press
or on the preference of the operator. There are several common sequences.
The sequence of cyan, then magenta, yellow and finally black is often used.
Yellow, magenta, cyan and black is another frequent colour order. If cyan is
first printed on the sheet, details will usually be carried across the sheet
whereever the final image appear and it is relatively easy to fit all colours after
cyan into their proper position. One disadvantage of using cyan as first colour
is with the quality of ink laid down on the first pass through the press. All
following colours will tend to dry slowly because the paper has already absorbed
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ink over much of its area. The paper become more ink saturated with each
added colour, adhesion can build up between the sheet and blanket.
The ink printed last has some extra effect on the image. Hence for a sunset
scene magenta ink must printed last. In the same way for a sea scape, the cyan
may be printed last. The modern process inks print transparent ink film and
hence may be printed in any order. If opaque inks are used it must be printed
first.
Leading Offset machine manufacturers
International Indian
Heidelberg (Germany) HMT
Komori (Japan)
Manugraph
Mitsubishi (Japan)
Ryobi (Japan) Orient
Fuji (Japan) Optima
AB Dick (US) Autoprint
Automation in Print Production
The make ready operations in offset printing include ink changing, cleaning,
sheet size and sheet travel changes, plate change, ink feed pre-setting, colour
register and ink feed setting. A pure manually operated machine needs 60 to
90 minutes of make ready for a four
colour job. An offset machine
assisted by automation has reduced
this time to about 15 to 20 minutes.
Automation has also lead to drastic
reduction in waste sheets. Here we
will discuss a few automated
operations developed by
manufacturers of offset machines.
Automatic Wash-up Procedures :-
In press with automated wash-up
device the blanket cylinder, the
impression cylinder and the inking
unit can be washed automatically
with a single wash-up device
installed. The cleaning device is
Automated washing equipment with cleaning brush roll
covered with a reel washing cloth a. Printing unit with washing equipment for blanket cylinder (1),
and liquid for cleaning operation. impression cylinder (2) and inking unit (3)
b. Blanket wash-up device
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Reference Book
The device can be positioned to the blanket or impression cylinder. The cloth
width will be equal to the width of the printing unit. The cleaning liquid is
supplied in accordance with the degree of soiling and is sprayed on to surface
by a row of nozzles. The cloth will squeeze through the cylinder and clean it.
Ink cleaning unit is also equipped with a special spraying device. Located
opposite to the spraying device there is an ink trough which is used to squeeze
off the ink on the roller.
Automatic Plate changing: When mounting a set of plate for multicolor jobs,
it is essential that the printing plates should be clamped in accurate position on
the plate cylinder. This is
achieved by means of
punching register holes on
the printing plates and
suitable guide system. This
is done with the help of a
plate punching device in
the press room. In
automated plate changing
system the plate is placed
ready for mounting on the
plate cyliner. The plates of
the earlier job will be
ejected automatically which is followed by the automatic feeding clamping
process of the plate for the new job.
Major advantages of automated plate changing system are that
- no manual clamping of the plate is required,
- no operator related error will occur and
- plates change over can take place on all printing unit at the same time.
Estimation procedure in offset printing
Estimation is a complex process of predicting the cost of a job based on client
submitted specification which includes the desired quantity, dimension, type
of paper, the number of ink colours, along with many other factors pretaining
to the job.
For example, estimation factors for the production of 500 business cards are
the time spend in pre-press for preparing the digital file and the plate, time
spend in the press for printing, for cutting the individual card and the time
spend for packing the finished card in addition to the material cost, labour and
energy cost.
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Specification (Spec) :- A typical spec includes the quantity to be printed, the

dimension of the job, the type of paper or other substrates to be printed, the
number of inks and their colour, the number of folds, the method of binding,
the method of packing and other factors that influence the cost which are
explained below.
Business cost can be grouped into three categories- the material cost, the labour
cost and the fixed costs.
The material cost is the price paid for items that are consumed for a job to be
printed such as paper, ink and packaging materials. The labour cost is the
‘people costs’ involved in operating a business which includes hourly wages,
salaries and benefits for employees. The fixed cost is the business expenses
that remain consistant regardless of the volume of work in the shop which
includes rent, electricity charges, telephone charges, cost of advertisements,
office supplies, and the cost of the machineries and equipment needed to run
the press.
Calculating production cost
Printing estimate or quotation is an offer to print a particular job for a specified
price. If the customer accepts the estimate it becomes a contract that it binding
for both printer and the customer. Accurate printing estimate depends upon
precise costing informations which include the hourly running of the firm. It
is a combination of labour costs and overheads. Printing cost is calculated on
the basis of the time required to perform a particular operation or the amount
of output that can be expected. It includes the time to prepare the press, time
for running 1000 press sheets and the time to wash up the ink and gum the
plate.
Thus for example, if a machine requires 15 minutes to print 1000 press sheets,
30 minutes of make ready time and 30 minutes of wash up time equals
1¼ hours of total press time. If hourly charge of the cost center is Rs.100/-,
then the production cost of the above center will be 100 X 1.25 = Rs. 125/-
Pre-press cost:- It is the time for preparing a digital output file for each plate.
Paper cost:- The quantity of paper required for completing a particular job
and its cost.
Plate cost:- It depends on the number of colours and number of pages of a job
Binding and finishing:- It includes the cost for operating the bindery machines
and the materials for it.
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Job ticket / work order

A job ticket is an electronic form or a paper form used to track costs for labor,
material and press time of a given job. It includes the spec, details of the
production plan, needed materials, notes to the production employees and a
section where production time are recorded. This ticket moves with the job
through production and communicates the client’s spec to production person.
The job ticket can be a sheet of paper or an envelope or can be a part of an
electronic file that can be accessed by the computer throughout the production
plant.
1. Perform paper feeding steps
2. Control the registration
3. Plate loading
4. Setting of Inking and dampening units
5. Setting of delivery unit
6. Estimation for a printing job.
Assessment Activity
Calculation
1. Calculate the press cost to print 18000 posters of 11’x17” size printed in
two colours on one side on 100 GSM art paper which costs Rs. 2500 per
ream of 23” x 18” basic sheet size. The print area of the machine is 24” x
18.5”. (Assume cost for one exposed plate is Rs 350 and Printing cost for
1000 impressions for one colour is Rs. 250).
TE Questions
1. Discuss the steps and procedures for setting up the paper feed on an offset
press.
2. Explain how printing unit is prepared, including adjustments for ink and
water for both direct and indirect dampening systems.
3. The part of the ink fountain that can be adjusted to allow more or less ink
flow are ___________
4. True or false? A register unit is a mechanism that aligns the paper for
printing.
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Unit - 4
WEB OFFSET PRESS
Introduction
Web offset presses feed from roll or web of paper instead of individual sheet.
The term web-fed is commonly used to distinguish these presses from sheet
fed presses. They are extremely fast. For this reason they are typically used
for long run works. Large daily newpapers are printed on web press. An
advantage of web press is that finishing operations can be performed inline. A
variety of finishing operations like folding can be incorporated into the press
run. Web presses produce medium run newpapers, magazines, business forms,
mail order catalogues, gift wrappings, books, inserts, and all type of commercial
printing.
Learning outcomes
The learner:
• categorises web offset presses based on its design.
• understands the operation of a web offset machine.
• understands the Inline finishing methods in a web offset machine.
• identifies different types of printing papers used in a web offset press.
• understands the working of a press console.
Web offset press designs
There are mainly four types of web offset presses.
1. Perfecting blanket to blanket
2. Inline presses
3. Stack / Tower Presses
4. Common Impression Cylinder (CIC)presses (Satellite units)
1. Perfecting blanket to blanket :- Presses printing on both sides of the paper
at the same time are known as perfecting
presses or perfectors.
A perfecting blanket to blanket web offset
press does not have impression cylinder.
Instead, the blanket cylinder of one unit
serves as the impression cylinder for the
other units, and vice versa. Each printing
unit has two plate cylinders and two blanket
cylinders. The paper is printed on both sides
at the same time as it passes between the two
blanket cylinders.
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Reference Book
Each printing unit has an upper and lower inking and dampening unit. Ink
from these fountains are adjustable through a series of fountain keys. This
design is commonly used in newpaper and publishing industry.
2. Inline presses :- Each printing unit of an inline web-offset press have its
own plate, blanket, and impression cylinder and
each unit prints one colour on one side of the
web. To print on the reverse side the web of
paper must be turned to 180 degrees between
printing units by means of turner bars that expose
the unprinted side of the web to the remaining
units. Turner bars are also referred to as angle
bars. They are metal bars placed horizontal at a 45 degree angle to the feed
direcion of a printing press used to turn the moving web to flip over allowing
it to be printed on the reverse side. This press design is commonly used for
printing business forms.
3. Stack / Tower Presses :- They are also called vertical
blanket to blanket press. In this type of web-offset all
the units are designed in such a way that two blanket
cylinders are arranged on top of one another with the
web guided between them in a horizontal direction. The
plate cylinders, the inking units and the dampening units
belonging to each printing units are arranged at the top
and bottom respectively. Four colour printing on both
sides is produced by arranging four such blanket to
blanket units in a sequence.
4. Common Impression Cylinder (CIC) presses
(Satellite units):- This type of offset has
several plate cylinders positioned arround a
single large-diameter common impression
cylinder. This large cylinder supports the
substrate as it contacts a series of adjacent
plate cylinders, which lay down successive
colors. Central impression presses can have
anywhere from two to eight printing units,
with four being the most common. The major
advantage of this press is the ability to hold
excellent register.
Web operations
Paper is fed into the press from large rolls on a roll stand, replacing the pile
feeder on a sheet fed. Roll stand is a stand used with web presses to hold one
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or more paper rolls and feed each in turn with consistent and controlled tension
into the printing unit of the press. When the roll begings to run out a new roll
can be spliced on to the old, using and automatic splicer. Splicer is a machine
that joints the end of two webs of paper to make a continuous roll without
stoping the press.
The paper is threaded into the press while the press continues to run at full
speed. Large festoons are used to unwind the paper. Festoon is a paper storage
device that unwinds paper to keep the press running at the same speed while
the splice is made and the new roll accelerates to press speed. This device also
gives the web a long lead time into the press.
To run a continuous web of paper at high speed between numerous rollers and
cylinders, it is necessary to control the tension of the web precisely. Tension
control device regulates the amount of pull needed to keep the paper from
having slack.
Web guide control the side-to-side register of the web as it passes through the
press, just as a side guide exercise this control on sheet fed presses.
Drier and Chill rollers:- Modern web offset printing uses heat set inks, inks
that require the application of high temperatures to dry. As a result, web presses
that utilize such inks need a dryer and chill rolls attached after the last printing
section.
Most of the web offset printing machines have a drying chamber as an extra
attachment. Some machines have a device for blowing hot air on the printed
web for setting and drying the ink.
After passing the printed web through the heating chamber it is necessary to
cool it. The surface of the web, structure of the fibres and the newly prined ink
density are affected when it passess through the heating chamber. All these
factors of the web become normal when it pass through the chilling unit.
There are two large cylinders for chilling the web which are kept away from
each other. One side of the web passes in contact with one cylinder and the
other side with the other cylinder. Droplets of water are formed on the surface
of chilling cylinders. Chilled droplets of water vapour normalizes the heated
web by this process.
Flying pasters(Splicers):- A unique mechanism for bringing a new roll of paper
into the feed cycle without stoping the press is called a flying paster or a splicer.
As the main feeding roll nears its end, the roll stand is rotated to bring the next
full roll of paper into running position without slowing the running speed of
the press. Double sided tape is applied on the leading edge of the new role.
The full roll is then moved into contact with the running roll of paper and the
taped edge of full roll is pressed against and immediately adhers to the running
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Reference Book
roll. The paper from the depleted roll is cut off and the roll is brought to a stop.
The new roll begins to feed the press at normal running speed.
Zero speed paster:- It is a device in the infeed section of a web press that
splices a fresh roll to an expiring roll by stoping the expiring roll briefly but
not stoping the press.
Web break detectors:- A web break detector is a device that automatically detects
the site of a web break and immediately shutdown the press. The detector also
prevents any free paper from whipping back and wrapping around the cylinders.
Five main causes of web break are:
a) wet spot on web,
b) edge cuts,
c) felt hair, calender and fiber cuts,
d) tension control malfunctions and
e) humidity problems.
Image alignment and register:- There is a number of printing adjustments that
can be made to place the printed images correctly on the paper web and achieve
register in backup with other colours. The plate cylinder can be angled, moved
laterally or be packed. The entire printing unit can be advanced or retarded
and check the back to back register with the opposite plate image. The operator
can check the image quality and register on one or both sides of the web while
the press is running.
Ink drying systems:- Heat-set inks are most commonly used inks in web offset
printing. The composition of heat-set inks requires the use of heat, for drying
and chilling or cold setting to bond the pigments to the paper. Web-offset
presses using heat-set inks must be fitted with an exhaust system to eliminate
solvent vapours from the driers.
Non-heat set inks do not require the use of heat from the driers. They are used
on highly absorbent uncoated papers. Radiation curing inks, UV curing inks
and thermal curing inks are also used in web-offset presses.
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Filtration system:- Filtration and ventilation systems are commonly found in

press areas to overcome ink misting and flying. A spray, fog or mist of ink is
visible in the air as a result of ink misting and flying. Ink mist suppressors are
used to overcome this. They are typically electrically charged devices that
repel the charged ink back to the ink rollers. Electrical grounding of the press
and air conditioning the press room helps to remove ink mist from the air.
Dampening system:- Most web offset presses use either conventional or
continuous dampening system. Some web offset presses are capable of short
run waterless printing.
Inline finishing
Combination folding:- Most web presses are equipped with one or more folders
which fold work into signatures as the web leaves the press. There are three
basic types of folders- former folder, jaw folder and chopper folder. All three
folding devices are often incorporated to form a combination folder. A former
folder folds the web by pulling it over a triangular shaped former board. This
action makes to fold the web along its length. Additional folds are after former
folder are made with jaw and chopper folders. A jaw folder folds the web
across its width by allowing it to travel around a cylinder equipped with a
tucker blade which forces the paper into a jaw on an opposing cylinder. In
chopper folder, each signature is forced between two rotating fold rollers that
makes the final fold.
Inline stitching:- It is the last but one operation of the delivery unit. When all
the sections of the printed web have been gathered, the book or the magazine
is stitched with its cover. Generally two or three stitches are sufficient for
book of any size.
Single knife rotary trimmer:- Cutting is the last operation of the delivery unit.
Here, each book is trimmed at the edges. The sequence of trimming is foredge,
tail and finally the head. Single knife rotary trimmers are designed for accurate
clean cut, high speed trimming of the press products.
Three knife trimmer:- Three knife trimmers use two parallel knives and one
right angle knife to trim three sides of the printed publication inline.
Numbering tower:- This part is designed for sequential numbering on one side
of the web or both sides of the web simultaniously. It is used for numbering
coupons, newspaper inserts, security products, lottery products and direct
mailing pieces.
Pattern perforators:- This operation scores, slits and perforates any desired
pattern inline without tying up a printing unit.
Pattern gluer:- This gluer prints glue inline for the production of envelopes,
return post cards, lottery and game-card products and spot gluing in trim areas
for binding assistance.
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Web offset printing papers

Good quality paper is essential for web offset. Cleanliness and uniformity of
moisture content, thickness, substance weight and finish over the entire paper
surface are critical. The ink receptivity of the paper should be highly compatible
to the quick drying quality of the ink. The paper rolls must possess no weak
areas and must be able to withstand the greater stress the press equipment
impose. The rolls should arrive well protected and wound to proper tension
on well constructed cores of suitable diameter.
Press console
Press console provide electronic control for register and image quality on the
moving web. Information such as web side lay, register, colour consistancy
etc. are computer controlled. Press adjustments can be made on the fly (as the
press is running at printing speed). Setting of each printing unit or couple,
such as ink and dampening settings and horizontal and vertical register can be
made directly from the console. The press operator monitors the console and
make adjustments by adjusting the switches on the console, which in turn
causes the appropriate adjustments on the press itself. Many presses have
automatic blanket washing units that are controlled by the press console.
Console reduces wastage of paper and the amount of press down time. Console
also reduces the number of people required to operate the press.
Assessment Activities
Field visit
Student should visit a reputed web offset press.
Record
Draw a schematic diagram of web-offset machine and mark its parts.
TE Qestions
1. Identify other operations besides printing done on a web press system.
2. Perfecting blanket-to-blanket web presses use two __________ cylinders
and two _______ cylinders.
3. Describe the construction and operation of common impression cylinder
presses.
4. Explain a web press operation in detail.
5. Compare zero splicers and flying splicers.
6. Explain the function of driers and chill rolls in a web offset press.
7. Briefly explain about press console.
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Unit - 5
PRESS MAINTENANCE AND TROUBLESHOOTING
Introduction
During offset press operation, when a problem arise the operators skill set
includes the ability to examine the problem and methodically identify the cause-
poor paper, excessive dampening solution, inadequate roller pressure, etc. What
ever the cause the operator is counted on to systematically isolate and eliminate
it. At this point the students learn about basic press maintenance methods and
trouble shooting techniques.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• identifies paper problems and suggest remedies
• identifies Ink problems and suggest remedies
• identifies printing problems and suggest remedies
• identifies problems due to blanket and rollers and suggest remedies
• identifies problems due to incorrect cylinder pressure and suggest rem-
edies
• understands the importance of preventive maintenance
• demonstrates cleaning and caring the press
• understands the importance of Quality Control Devices in quality print-
ing
Printing problems may arise due to situations involving the substrate, the ink
or the press- or any combination of the three.
Paper problems
Electrostatic Charge on Paper
Printing sheets stick together because they are electrostatically charged. As a
result, several sheets are simultaneously sucked in from the stack, stopping up
the feeder. Static electricity arises from either an electron deficit (positive
charge) or an excess of electrons (negative charge) on the surface of the paper.
An electrostatic charge is especially likely to occur when paper that is too dry
is processed under conditions of low atmospheric humidity.
Remedies:
The moisture content of paper should range between 45% and 55%. The
electrical conductivity of paper, and consequently electrical run off, increases
with increasing moisture content
• Working spaces should be air-conditioned or humidified at a 50% to 55%
level of relative humidity.
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• Antistatic equipment such as discharge electrodes and ionic blowers re-

duce electrostatic charge; ionization equipment raises the surrounding air’s
electronic conductivity, thereby preventing the build up of static charge
Crease Formation
If paper is stored under the wrong climatic conditions, does not lie flat on the
pile, has wavy or tight edges or has developed a static charge, it may become
creased during printing.
Incorrect settings on the sheet-feeder or during paper transfer may also lead to
the formation of creases. In order to ensure that the printing stock lies flat
during the printing process, it should be kept properly air-conditioned during
storage and transport. Paper is very sensitive to fluctuations in humidity. This
is why one must be careful to maintain atmospheric humidity and temperature
at constant levels during storage. The temperature should be kept constant
between 20°C and 22°C (68°F and 71.6°F).
Creases may also develop due to incorrect machine settings - most likely on
the sheet-feeder, incorrectly set or jamming front lays, side lays that draw with
too much force, a hold-down device that has been set too tightly, or an air-blast
that is too strong. An incorrect air-pressure setting at the point of sheet transfer
may also contribute to the formation of creases. Poorly functioning or dirty
grippers, which warp the sheet, as well as a printing pressure between the
rubber and the impression cylinder that is set too high, or is uneven are also
the reasons for crease formation.
Remedies:
• Employ printing stock that is good and flat.
• Inspect the front lays and side lays.
• Do not set the hold-down device too tightly.
• Reduce the air-blast on the sheet-feeder.
• Optimize the air-pressure adjustments at the point of sheet transfer.
• Inspect, clean, and adjust the grippers as needed.
Picking
Picking occurs when small particles are torn out of the surface of the paper
during the printing process. It becomes necessary to wash the blankets more
frequently, and print quality is adversely affected. Inadequate gluing, or the
poor anchoring of the coating material on the paper's surface may cause picking.
Other causes of picking are excess ink tack, excess blanket-to-impression
cylinder pressure and tacky blanket surface.
Remedies:
• Reduce the ink tack.
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• Allow the machine to run on standard working condition.

• Repack blanket or reduce cylinder pressure.
• Use a quick release blanket.
• Use better quality paper.
Ink problems
Emulsification
Emulsification is the mixing up of ink and dampening solution. In this process,
dampening solution is distributed evenly throughout the ink in small droplets.
Too large a proportion of dampening solution in the printing ink, or too low a
pH-value causes emulsification. Emulsified printing inks will increase drying
times, as well as increasing the risk of deposits.
Remedies:
• Set the ink and dampening balance correctly, and check on it continu-
ously throughout the printing process.
• In case of emulsified ink, wash the rollers.
• Check the dampening solution, and change it regularly (the ideal damp-
ening solution has a pH-value from 4.5 to 5.5, and a temperature from
10°C to 15°C (50°F to 59°F).
Slow ink drying
It is a condition that occurs when ink fails to cure quickly, delaying multicolour
printing runs. This may lead to the rubbing off color of the print during post
press or during transport. Causes for slow drying are
• Fountain solution too acidic
• Insufficient amount of ink driers
• Wrong ink used with paper
• Low temperature in press room
Remedies: Check the pH of fountain solution, add driers to the ink, use ink
that is appropriate for the paper and raise the press room temperature to improve
drying ability.
Chalking
It is a condition in which dried ink gets easily rubbed off or is missing from the
sheet. Major causes of chalking are:
• Insufficient amount of ink driers
• Ink absorbed by the paper before setting properly
• Wrong ink used with paper
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Remedies:- Add driers as suggested by the manufacturer, add gum or binding

agents to control absorption and overprint paper with varnish.
Hickies
It is a condition in which ink spots surrounds a white background. It is caused
by small particles of dried ink, dust or paper dust getting attached to the plate
or blanket.
Remedies:- Clean the press and remove all dried ink from the fountain and
roller, check feeding pile for loose edges.
Piling
A buildup of ink on the ink rollers, plate or blanket. Causes are:
• Ink too stiff or tacky
• Emulsified ink
• Improperly ground ink
• Improperly packed blanket
Remedies:- Reduce tack by adding reducing compound, clean-up press and
use proper balance of ink and fountain solution, re-formulate ink and re-pack
blanket.
Printing problems
Blinding
The image area of the plate will not accept ink. Major causes are:
• Excess gum in fountain solution
• Fountain solution too acidic
• Excess plate-blanket pressure
• Glazed rollers
• Improper ink tack
• Contamination of plate during plate making
Remedies:- Check the pH of the dampening solution, check the roller pressure
with cylinder packing and blanket packing, deglaze or replace rollers,
reformulate ink to match the stock, clean and rinse plate and re-gum surface.
Ghosting
It is a condition that occurs when solid images print unevenly or a faint second
image appears next to the original. Major causes for ghosting are:
• Glazed or hardened ink rollers
• Excess fountain rollers
• Embossed or engraved blankets
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Remedies:- Clean and replace rollers, adjust balance of ink and fountain
solution, replace blanket
Mis-registration
Two overprinted images or colour elements do not align when printed. Major
causes are:
• Excess ink tack
• Curled or wrinkled paper stock
• Printing pressure stretch paper stock
• Image improperly positioned on plate
• Plate mounted improperly
• Loose blanket
Remedies:- Reduce tack, humidity of pressroom, adjust cylinder pressure,
remake plate with image in register, reposition plate on plate cylinder, reattach
blanket
Mottling
Uneven amount of ink in the solid portion of the image causing printed sheets
to appear cloudy. Major causes are:
• Failure of ink to be absorbed unformly by paper.
• Excess fountain solution.
• Ink not resistant to water.
Remedies:- Formulate ink to the grade of paper, adjust ink water balance, add
varnish to increase tack.
Plateware
It is the gradual disapearance of the image areas from the plate surface. Major
causes are:
• Excess form roller pressure.
• Excess pressure between plate and blanket.
• Fountain solution too acidic.
• Insufficient amount of ink.
• Dried gum on the plate.
Remedies:- Check for roller pressure, pressure by inking plate, check pH of
fountain solution, clean the plate with water and solvents, clean blanket.
Scum
Buildup of ink film on non image areas of the plate. Causes are:
• Too soft ink.
• Excess use of ink.
• Sensitized non image areas of plate.
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• Incorrect fountain solution.

• Glazed blankets.
• Dirty dampening rollers.
• Excessive printing pressure.
• Glazed and dirty ink rollers.
Remedies:- Add varnish to increase tack, adjust ink water balance, remake
plate, check pH of fountain solution, clean or replace blankets or rollers, reduce
plate-to-blanket and blanket-to-imression cylinder pressure.
Setoff
The transfer of ink from one sheet to the back of another on a delivery pile.
Causes are:
• Too much ink carried to paper.
• Excess acid in fountain solution.
• Insufficient amount of ink drier.
• Improper ink for stock.
• Delivery pile too high.
Remedies:- Check pH of the fountain solution, add dryers to ink, change ink to
match the stock, reduce pile height.
Slurring
An unwanted accumulation of halftone dots that result in a smeared image.
Causes are:
• Excessive pressure beween plate and blanket.
• Excess ink coated on paper.
• Piling of ink on paper.
• Loose fitting plate on cylinder.
Remedies:- Reduce impression cylinder pressure, reduce ink feed, use moisture-
resistant stock, re-attach plate, add reducing varnish to ink.
Tinting
Unwanted colour tint in background of image, commonly caused by
imulsification of ink in the fountain solution. Causes are:
• Ink fails to repel water.
• Improper fountain solution pH.
• Improper ink-water balance.
• Plate not properly desensitized.
Remedies:- Add varnish to increase tack, check the pH of fountain solution,
prepare new plate.
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Blanket and Roller Problems

Glazing
The ink system rollers and the blankets get shiny and hard and as a result it
looses its ability to absorb ink. Causes are:
• Improper cleaning of blanket and rollers.
• Excess use of solvents.
• Over exposure to UV light sources.
Remedies:- Clean the surface with deglazing compounds
Swelling
This defect takes place in the blanket due to the use of unsuitable chemicals.
This result in lose of image sharpness.
Remedies:- Remove excess swell of the blanket by reducing the packing, blanket
wash should be used which dries faster.
Paper sticking
Sometimes the paper is picked up by the image and non image areas of the
blanket. Causes are:
• Use of strong solvent in the blanket wash.
• The driers of previous ink may have been oxidised and created tackiness
in the blanket surface.
Remedies:- Use mild blanket washes, use blanket lacquer to remove tackness
of blanket, apply pumic powder and keep the blanket to rest for some time.
Preventive maintenance
The use of proper setup procedures, proper ink formulation, and quality offset
paper as well as proper cleanup procedures, increase the production and
maintains printing quality. The following items should receive careful attention
when preparing to run a job on the press.
• Oil the press periodically.
• Check for lubrication points and examine the belt and pully systems.
• Chains of infeed and outfeed tables needed to be greesed and free from
paper pieces and dirt.
• Oil reservoirs of vacuum pumps should be kept filled. The pump itself
should be flushed out several times a year.
• All rollers and cylinder bearings must be lubricated on daily basis.
• A consistent maintenance schedule is essential.
Cleaning and caring the press
The most common procedure is to give the entire printing unit a thorough
cleaning at the end of each work day. Before the inking system is cleaned the
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water fountain is generaly drained. A tube leading from the water fountain is
used for this purpose. For ink clean up a doctor blade is attached against the
ink roller. The wash up solution is applied while the press is running, the ink
dissolves and passes across the doctor blade into a sludge tray.
First remove as much as ink as possible from the ink fountain. Next, remove
the ink fountain and clean it with ink solvent. While the press is turned off,
attach the doctor blade against the ink roller. Then start the press and apply
wash up solution to one side of the distribution rollers until half the sysem
becomes clean and dry. Then apply the solvent to the remaining inked portion.
The solvent will desolve the ink and will be washed into a sludge tray.
Quality control in Offset
The running of an offset press involves many adjustments of various
components of the press, especially when setting the press up for the job to be
printed and monitoring it during the print run. Quality control in printing
mainly involves setting the different printing units for ink feed and colour
register. Then the dampening units, paper feed , air blast, suction, air powder
spray device and driers have to be set. Machinery has also to be cleaned and
washed.
A long make ready time and a number of operators and high paper wastage is
required for doing this work in a high speed multi colour press with neumerous
attachments such as folders, dryers and finishing equipments.
Central control consoles, with control for setting the main press function
remotely and remote control measuring systems has made the quality control
and press monitoring simple.
Remote control press console: This is a remote control system attached to
offset machine that helps the operator to set up press functions such as ink
feed, colour register,
dampening unit
setting, blowers and
suction control with
the aid of computers.
A press remote console
has two parts- an
illuminating system
equiped with a special
light source and a unit
with display screen and
input function keys.
In the first unit the
operator can compare
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the sample taken from the run visually with the master proof. The function
keys of the control console corresponds to the ink zone of the printing unit,
which the operator can use to adjust the ink zone opening in individual printing
unit and to correct the colour with the master proof. The console has another
set of function keys that are used to set the ink register. The position of the
individual plate cylinders can be adjusted in circumference and lateral direction
in series of small steps. Some control console has the facility for downloading
job data such as colour settings from storage media. Sophisticated control
console systems can control the operations of dampening unit and air suction
and air blower.
Plate Image Scanners: They are used
for colour pre-setting operations.
They scan a plate to see how much
ink it require and the data is then input
into the control console for remote
adjustments of ink zone opening.
Control console also include
measuring devices for color, register
and match. Colour measurement and
control are done with the help of
measuring devices like densitometer
and colourimeter attached to the console. Register measurement and control is
done with the aid of optical magnifying glass attached to the control console.
Quality Control Devices
They are devices which are stripped, plated and printed in an off-image area of
the press. Under magnification, these images can aid the press operator in
determining overall press sheet image quality and in making press adjustments.
Most of the devices have been developed by the Graphic Arts Technical
Foundation (GATF), which is an American organisation at who are at the
forefront of researches and developments in graphic arts.
Colour Bar : A colour bar is a strip of colours printed in the trim area of a
press sheet. This strip usually consists of overprints of two- and three-colour
solids and tints. Press operators can monitor uniform ink distribution across
the press sheet by measuring the density of CMYK patches. A colour bar is
also used to monitor printing variables such as trapping, ink density, dot gain
and print contrast.
Star Target: Star targets are circular patterns of lines primarily used to detect
dot gain, slur, and dot doubling. Dot gain is the enlargement of printed dot due
to excessive ink film or pressure between cylinders. Slur is a stretching of half
tone dots caused by a slippage of the cylinders. Dot doubling is the printing of
the same dots twice.
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Dot Gain scale : It is a quality control device used to indicate dot reproduction
of half tones and process colours. This scale consists of series of numbers
(zero through nine) that are finely screened and graduated from light to dark.
As dot gain increases, the numbers become more visible.
Gray Balance Patch : Gray balance is measured by overprinting screen tints

of three process colours to see if they produce a gray balance patch of neutral
gray. If gray balance is not achieved the patch will have a tint. The midtone
percentage for a gray balance patch is 50% cyan and 40% of magenta and
yellow.
Register marks : They are designs or shapes placed in the non-image areas of
negatives, positives, colour separations and plates to ensure correct register.
Register marks help the press operators to align one colour over another in
perfect register. Register marks can either be purchased commercially as pre-
printed transparent materials or they can be created by drawing.
Densitometer: Densitometer is a colour measurement device that computes
the light-stopping or light absorption ability of an image or surface material. It
computes density or darkness of an image.
Spectrophotometer: It is the most accurate type of colour measurement device.
A spectrophotometer measures light intensity and different colours or
wavelengths of colours. Most of the spectrophotometers used in printing
industry are limited to reading light waves in the visible spectrum.
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Colourimeter: It is a colour mesaurement device that measures and compares

the hue, purity and brightness of colours in a way that models vision.
Spectrodensitometer:- It is a colour mesaurement device that serves all the
functions of spectrophotometer, densitometer and colourimeter in a single
instrument. This single instrument measures colour values and optical density.
Magnifying glass: Magnifying glass or linen tester is used to view dots of any
size. They are also used to check whether the register marks are aligned
accurately in positions.
Colour viewer: A colour viewer is used to check halftone dot size and paper
texture.
Practical Assessment
1. Identify different paper problems, printing problems, blanket problems
and ink problem and provide the solutions for each.
2. Press manitenance and clean up procedure.
3. Handling of different quality control devices.
Assessment Activities/ Seminar
1. Different quality control devices and its applications.
TE Questions
1. A problem called ________________ occurs when a printed sheet picks
up an image on its reverse side from the sheet below it in the delivery
pile.
2. List out any two printing and blanket problems and its remedies.
3. Why is static electricity a problem in the press room? How can it be
reduced or eliminated ?
4. What are the different quality control devices used in a printing press?
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Unit - 6
FLEXO AND GRAVURE
Introduction
This unit introduces two printing processes which are being increasingly
important in the printing industry. Flexography, the first process we will discuss,
has long been a significant relief process used in packaging industry. Gravure,
the second process is an intaglio printing process which is widely used for
high quality long run jobs and for security printing purposes.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• understands the process of flexography.
• lists out the advantages of flexography.
• identifies the basic units of a flexo printing machine.
• classifies flexographic plates.
• demonstrates plate making process in flexography.
• categorises different types of flexo press.
• lists out various types of ink & substrate used in flexography.
• understands the process of gravure printing.
• lists out the advantages and disadvantages of gravure printing process.
• understands the working of the printing unit of a gravure press.
• understands the methods of preparation of gravure cylinders.
• discusses the different types of ink and substrates used in gravure pro-
cess.
• understands the importance and advantages of security printing.
Flexography - Introduction
Flexography is a method of direct rotary printing that uses flexible relief image
printing plates that are made of rubber or photopolymer material. Flexography
was originally known as aniline printing because of aniline dyes used to colour
the ink. But these aniline dyes and their harsh solvents left an odour on the
product and came to be considered toxic. Later they were banned from using
on food packaging. In 1950s, chemists developed water-based inks using low
solvents.
Flexography satisfies the demand for high quality printing on packaging
products. Corrugated boxes are the largest market for flexography. They are
also used to print on candy wrappers, shopping bags, milk cartons, cereal boxes,
gift wrappers, wall papers and many other goods.
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Advantages
• Flexography can be used for printing on a variety of absorbent and non
absorbent substrates.
• Prints on the reverse side of transparent films.
• Rubber or photopolymer image carrier can be used for printing millions
of impressions.
• Allows continuous pattern printing.
• Water soluable inks can be used and hence ecofriendly.
• Since it uses fast drying solvents the process is ideal for printing on
polyethene, the material used for plastic grocery bags and similar prod-
ucts.
• Printing plate cylinders can be taken out of the press so that it can be
mounted and proofed as a pre-press operation.
Basic units
A flexographic press consists of three major units- the infeed, printing and
outfeed unit. Majority of flexographic printing is done on roll-fed materials.
Infeed unit and unwinding unit
Majority of flexographic printing is done on rollfed materials such as film,
foil, laminates used for food, medical and sanitary packages. The infeed system
consists of a roll stand with tensioning devices, dancer roller and brake to
control the web tension. Sheet-fed flexo is also possible for printing of thicker
materials such as corrugated board. Sheet-fed flexo infeed system are designed
to feed heavier stock.
Printing unit
In a flexographic printing unit, the ink fountain holds the ink. The fountain
rollers are made of soft or hard rubber and transfer the ink to the next roller in
the chain, the anilox roller. Anilox rollers are metal of ceramic roll engraved
with cells that carry ink to the plate cylinder.
There are two types of inking system- three roller system and two roller system.
A three roller inking system consists of an ink fountain roller, typically made
up of rubber, which passes
ink to the anilox roller.
The fountain roller moves
at a slower speed than the
anilox roller. This helps to
remove excess ink from
the anilox roller. This act
of removing excess ink is
called ‘doctoring’.
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In two roller system the

anilox roller turns directly in
the ink fountain and a doctor
blade is used to remove
excess ink form the anilox
roller. The doctor blade is a
thin metal blade which is
angled to the anilox roller
and cleans excess of ink from
the non-cell areas of the
anilox roller. It helps to produce excellent and even inking of the cells in the
anilox roller.
The image carrying plate is mounted on the plate cylinder and is made of
rubber or photopolymer. The anilox roller ink the relief image plate with a
continuous metered supply of ink. The substrate is fed under controlled tension
against the impression cylinder. The fast drying ink prints on the absorbent or
non absorbent substrate and dries instantly. The recent improvement in the
flexographic inking system is an enclosed dual doctor blade system.
The plate cylinder is designed to hold the flexible flexographic plates through
an adhesive. Flexographic plate size varies with the job to be printed. Several
repeat images are printed in succession from several plates mounted on the
same cylinder. Thus the size of the plate cylinder is chosen to match the repeated
image size i.e., if the image to be printed is 6”, a 12” plate can be used to print
two repeated images. Because the plate cylinder must be changed to match
the plate, the anilox roller must also match the job. Flexo presses are designed
so that the plate cylinder and ink train can be removed easily and installed as a
unit in the press, each time a new job is run.
Outfeed unit
Outfeed unit consists of a rewinder which rewinds the substrate into a roll for
later processing. Some flexo presses are designed in-line with the
manufacturing production line so that printing and packaging can be done as
one continuous operation.
Flexographic plates
Flexographic presses use flexible plates with raised images, much like
letterpress image carriers. It can be made of molded rubber or photopolymer
materials and through laser imaging.
The major disadvantage of rubber plates is that they are more costly than
photopolymer plates.
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Plate making process

There are mainly four types of flexographic plates. They are molded rubber
plates, photopolymer plates, sheet photopolymer plates and liquid photopolymer
plates.
Molded rubber plates or rubber stereo plates:- Molded rubber plates are created
in a multi step process. A sheet of metal alloy coated with a light sensitive
emulsion is placed in a specially designed vacuum frame. The emulsion is not
only light-sensitive, it is also an acid resist. A negative of the job is placed
over the coated sheet and light is passed through the negative. Where light
strikes the emulsion, the acid resist is hardened. During processing, the
unhardened resist in the non-image areas is washed away, leaving hardened
resist only on the image areas. The metal sheet is then etched, which lowers
the non image areas, leaving the image areas raised. The remaining resist is
washed off. The completed engraving is then moved to a molding press where
a matrix (mold) of the engraving is made by pressing matrix material against
the engraving with controlled heat and pressure. The matrix material sinks
into the metal engraving to form a mold. The rubber plate is made from the
matrix by pressing a rubber sheet into the matrix again under controlled heat
and pressure. The thickness selected depends on the job to be printed.
Photopolymer plates:- These plates are made from light sensitive polymers
which are hardended by ultra-violet light. Photopolymer plates are made
from both sheet and liquid materials.
Sheet photopolymer plates:- The plates are cut to the required size and placed
in an ultraviolet light exposure unit. One side of the plate is completely exposed
to uv light to harden or “cure” the base of the plate. The plate is then turned
over, a negative of the job is mounted over the uncured side, and the plate is
again exposed to UV light, which hardens the plate in the image areas. The
plate is then processed to remove the unhardened photopolymer from the non-
image areas thus lowering the plate surface in the non-image areas. After
processing, the plate is dried and given a post exposure of UV light to cure the
whole plate.
Liquid photopolymer plates:- These plates are made in a special UV light
exposure unit. In this process, a clear plastic protective cover film is mounted
over a negative transparency which is placed emulsion-side up on the exposure
unit. A layer of liquid photopolymer is then deposited over the transparency
and the cover film. A substrate sheet, which is specially coated on one side to
bond with the liquid photopolymer and to serve as the back of the plate after
exposure is placed over the liquid.
Exposure is made first on the substrate side of the plate. This exposure hardens
a thin base layer of the liquid photopolymer and causes it to adhere to the plate
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substrate. A second exposure through the negative forms the image on the
plate. As with the sheet materials, the image areas are hardened by this exposure.
The non-image areas remain liquid. Processing removes unwanted liquid in
the non-image areas, leaving raised image areas. A post exposure is then made
to cure the whole plate.
fig. 17.6, 7 IIIrd edn
Liquid Photo Polymer Sheet Photo Polymer

Rubber Plate
Plate Plate
Computer-to-plate processing transfers images directly from the computer to
the plate, thus eliminating film. Some photopolymer plates can be direclty
imaged by Lasers. In recent years, laser engraved rubber cylinders have been
used to print wall paper and other continuous pattern jobs.
Press types
There are three types of flexographic machine configurations: Stack press,
Central Impression Cylinder (CIC) and Inline presses. Stack presses are the
first type of flexographic presses. In this type of press, the moving web is
unsupported between the printing stations which causes register problems.
Unstretchable substrates such as thick paper or heavier gauge plastics are better
suited for this configuration.
In CIC presses, the web travels from one print station to the next around a
central drum. The moving web is supported between stations, so the press is
ideal for stretchable films needing close register. CIC presses print on one
side only.
Inline flexographic press has separate print stations placed in a straight line.
Each station has its own driers. Two sides can be printed in one pass with the
aid of turner bar. These presses are used to print linear board for corrugated
boxes before corrugation takes place. They are also suitable for printing narrow
web labels and forms that are 6” to 18” wide.
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Flexo Makeready
Printing cylinders are completely round and are removable. After the plates
are mounted on to the cylinders, the cylinders are brought to the press in the
proper station. Required aniloxes are installed. Ink is fed in each station.
Press adjustments are made and the job begins to print. Registration is acheived
by moving cylinders into a timed position.
Flexographic ink & substrates
Flexographic inks used are more fluid and free flowing than lithographic inks
and are less viscous.
Three type of flexographic inks are widely used in the industry- alcohol based
inks, polyamide inks, and water based inks.
Alcohol based inks come in full range of dyes. Pigmented inks are also
available.
Polyamide inks are solvent type inks requiring alcohol and acetates to dissolve
their resins. They successfully print on any substrate including absorbent and
non absorbent plastics. Both alcohol based and polyamide inks emit Volatile
Organic Compound (VOC), which are toxic substance that evaporates into the
atmosphere, contributing to smog and causing health concerns.
Water based inks are more eco friendly but do not adhere to some substrate as
solvent inks.
Gravure Printing - Introduction
Gravure is an intaglio printing process in which the ink is transferred from a
sunken surface. Several important characteristics makes gravure an ideal process
for jobs requiring high quality and extremely long press runs. Currency notes,
postage stamps and stock certificates are some of the products printed by this
process.
Advantages and disadvantages
Main advantage of gravure process is its simplicity. Gravure presses can run
at high speed. It is a direct printing process that does not have to contend with
ink and water balance. Gravure is capable of consistent high quality
reproduction at a low cost on extremely long press runs. The long life of gravure
cylinder sustains high quality reproduction. Ink used for gravure printing dry
fast.
The main disadvantage of gravure is the length of time required to prepare the
printing cylinder. If an engraved cylinder is damaged during production the
entire cylinder or set of cylinders have to be re-engraved which is a costly
operation.
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Gravure printing unit

Gravure printing unit comprises of the printing cylinder running in a trough of
ink, a rubber immersed roller and a doctor blade to remove excess ink from
the surface of the cylinder.
Printing cylinder :- are generally one piece continuous cylinder containing
recessed screened image which has been produced either by etching or
engraving. The cylinders are designed to easily removable for quick change
over and to enable the cylinders to be proofed, prior to printing and whenever
necessary, stored for future use. At each unit the cylinder is immersed in the
ink fountain. As the cylinder turns, its tiny ink cells get filled with ink.
Impression cylinder :- An impression cylinder which is made up of rubber,
neoprene or other synthetic products usually applies pressure to transfer the
ink to the substrate.
Ink duct :- It is a part of complete circulating system where ink is pumped to
the tray from a bulk supply and surplus ink returned filtered and adjusted for
solvent balance, then repumped to the cylinder. The entire system should be
enclosed as far as possible to ensure cleanliness of the ink and to avoid
evaporation.
Doctor blade :- It is a thick blade made of stainless steel or plastic set at twenty
degree angle with the cylinder. Doctor blade is prepared to ride on the surface
of the printing cylinder and remove surplus ink without damaging the surface
of the printing image.
Electrostatic assist :- To improve the ink transfer to the substrate especially
when the surface is hard or has poor ink receptivity a power source feeds
electrical charges between the impression roller and the printing cylinder which
create a force that helps to release ink from the etched cells. This process is
called electrosatic assist.
Cylinder preparation methods
Transferring the image to the cylinder is accomplished using electromechanical
engraving and laser beam engraving methods.
Electromechanical method :- Direct digital electromechanical engraving
produces the most reliable cylinders for the press. In this method the cylinder
is prepared using scanned data to drive an engraving machine. The scanner
and the engraver are electronically linked. The scanner reads the original copy
and converts it to electronic pulses and transfer it to the engraver. The engraver
prompts a diamond stylus cutting tool or a laser device to form tiny wells on
the image carrier surface.
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Laser beam engraving :- In laser beam engraving the cylinders are coated with
plastic and the laser functions as a cutting tool. The laser vaporize the plastic
to form the cells. Zinc is more suitable metal base for laser engraving. This
technology is more used in publication and packaging gravure markets. Major
advantages of laser imaging methods are quick imaging, repeatability,
significant ink saving and greater stability.
Ink and substrates
Gravure inks are thinner than those inks used in other printing processes.
Viscocity is also much lower than most inks. Solvent based inks are highly
volatile.
Gravure printing is done on a wide variety of substrates including inexpensive
paper stocks. Packaging and special products typically use substrates such as
film, cellophane, cloth, plastic, and corrugated board. Gravure press also runs
newsprint stock and coated stocks for publication work.
Security Printing
Introduction to security printing
Security printing is used in areas such as currency notes, stamps, credit cards,
cheques, postal orders and many type of top secret goverment informations.
Gravure and offset are the most commonly used security printing methods.
Three main concerns of security printing are:
1. To secure confidentiality of documents.
2. To ensure authenticity of documents and make them readily identifiable.
3. To make copying, duplicating and forgery of the documents as difficult as
possible.
Security features
Major features in security printing are watermark, security thread, latent image,
microprinting, colour-shifting ink, see through register, etc.
Water mark:- Faint images that are part of paper that are visible from both
sides of the paper are water marks. In currency notes watermarks include
portraits of historical figure and numerical value of currency.
Security threads:- They are plastic strip partly visible and partly embedded in
the paper that displays value of the bill. Depending on the denomination,
security thread glow orange, green, or yellow when held under UV light.
Guilloches:- They are printed backgrounds consisting of elaborately interwoven
regular wave or arch shaped lines which are produced according to certain
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mathematical laws. They may have shine through effect that create complete
picture from sections on the front and on the reverse side of the bank note.
Microprinting:- Tiny characters, words, or phrases printed which are usually
not visible to the naked eyes. Microprinting is difficult to be reproduced by
counterfieters.
Colour shifting:- Images or numbers printed that change from copper to green
when viewed in different angles. This effect is created by adding metallic
flakes to the ink.
Security ink
Security printing ink can be divided into two categories: Anti-duplication
security inks and Anti-alteration security inks.
Anti-duplication security inks:- are designed to prevent unauthorised
copying or duplication of documents. They provide usually covert features
for authentication such as UV fluorescence or reactivity to heat, metal,
UV, IR light etc. These features cannot be duplicated digitally or by
photocopying.
Anti-alteration security inks:- These inks provide indications of tampering
such as discolouration upon exposure to water or chemicals, or distruction
of the background upon erasure.
Numbering with MICR ink:- MICR or magnetic ink character recognition inks
contain ferro magnetic particles and they are machine readable which provide
an excellent method for machine processing of large number of cheques or
bank notes and at the same time as a counterfeit deterrent.
Security paper:- The major distinguishing paper attributes for security printing
is the fact that they contain a mixture of multiple overt (public security features
that are visible with unaided eye - eg: watermark, security thread), covert
(feature that are not easily visible - eg: paper fluorescence) and forensic features
(requiring advanced knowledge and special instrumentation for verification).
Currency printing :- Bank notes are printed on specially tough rag based paper
produced under conditions of high security. It contains its own water marks
which are different in design and position for each denomination. Some bank
notes comprises more than one layer of paper which enables metal or plastic
strips and other devices to be incorporated. To aid identification and avoid
forgery complicated line patterns, microimages, or secret patterns are also
included.
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Cheque printing:- In cheque the number and other coded informations are
printed with an ink containing minute ferrous particles which can be detected
by a Magnetic Ink Character Recognisation system(MICR).
Holograms :- Holography is a process that creates the illusion of three
dimensionality on a two dimensional surface. Today any image or model can
be transferred into holographic foil. There are four holographic effects which
can be captured in a foil image:
1. Holographic patterned foil :- They produce images of depth and a rain-
bow of shifting colour as the angle of view changes.
2. Three dimensional holograms :- 3D holograms produce 3D illusion of
objects and seems to rotate in space as the angle of view changes.
3. Multiple plane holograms :- This type of hologram layers two to four
images into seperate planes creating the illusion of a 3D scene.
4. Stereograms:- They are sophisticated holograms of live moving models
that incredibly render the illusion of a brief 3D movie on a two dimen-
sional surface.
Barcode:- Barcode is an optical machine readable code in the form of numbers
and a pattern of parallel lines of varying width printed on a commodity and
used for stock control. Major use of barcode is to automate supermarkets,
libraries, etc.
Barcode reader is an electronic device that can read and output printed barcodes
to a computer.
QR(Quick Response) codes:- QR code is a two dimensional barcode system.
They are made up of black and white squares which are generated using a code
generator. Even a smartphone can be used as a QR code scanner. QR codes are
now used over a wide range of applications including commercial tracking,
entertainment and transport ticketing, mobile coupening and more. It can also
be used in storing personal information for use by organizations.
Practical Actvities
1. Preparation of flexographic rubber plate in your plate making unit.
2. Distingish between offset, flexographic and gravure ink from the collected
samples.
3. Generate a barcode for a particlar item in yor computer and list out its
features.
4. Generate and read a QR code for an address using smart phone QR code
application.
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Assessment activity
1. Collect samples of plastic bags that have been printed by flexographic
process colour method and check the colour register. Write your
observation.
2. Select 10 major magazines and determine if any of them are printed by
the gravure process.
3. Identify 5 products that have been printed by gravure process.
4. List out and compare the security features provided in different currency
notes and bank cheques.
5. Collect different samples of holograms which are used in day-to-day life.
6. In your lab record draw diagrams of flexographic inking system (two roller
& three roller) and mark its parts.
7. Prepare a diagramatic representation of different steps in producing a
flexographic rubber plate.
8. List out the security presses in India.
TE Questions
1. Why was flexography originally known as aniline printing?
2. What device scrapes the ink off the anilox roller?
3. Name the two main type of flexographic press configuration.
4. List out the major advantages and disadvantages of gravure printing
process.
5. Name the two cylinder engraving method in gravure printing process.
6. A metal roll with engraved cell surface that carry ink to the plae cylinder
in flexographic printing process is _____________
7. Briefly explain about the major features in security printing.
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Unit - 7
SCREEN PRINTING
Introduction
Of all the major printing processes, this porous printing process is undoubtably
the oldest, simplest and inexpensive. Modern screen printing developed in
1940’s and 50’s. Rapid technological advances continue to improve the process
and lead to expanded market. In this unit we will discuss about this process in
detail.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• understands the applications of screen printing
• demonstrates the screen printing process
• understands various types of screen frames and fabrics
• demonstrates the preparation of stencil for screen printing
• lists out the substrates for screen printing
• understands the automation in screen printing process
• understands the special applications of screen printing process
Screen printing is the porous printing process of forcing ink through a porous
fabric and the open areas of a stencil to produce an image. Screen printing can
be a very simple process, requiring only a few inexpensive tools and materials
or it can be extremely complex, requiring an array of sophisticated equipment
and production techniques.
Applications of Screen Printing
It can be done on a wide variety of materials including paper, metal, glass, wood
etc. Images can be created using screen printing on clothing and printed circuit
boards. Finished products are as diverse as a football jersey or a traffic sign.
The advantages of screen printing include:
- Images can be printed on a wide variety of substrates
- The production process is relatively easy
- Costs are low compared to other printing processes
- Images can be printed with glitter, flock, and other decorative finishes
- Screen printing can be done on substrate with any shape (flat, cylinder or
irregular)
Disadvantages are:
- Rate of production is slow
- Ink mileage is poor
- Details and fine-line images may be difficult to print
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Screen Printing Process

First, porous fabric is stretched across the frame. Next, a stencil is adhered to
the fabric, blocking out certain portions of the fabric and leaving open the
desired image areas. Ink is poured on to the fabric and forced through the
image areas using a rubber or plastic blade called a squeegee. The ink is
deposited on a substrate below, producing an image of the cut stencil. Additional
prints are made by repeating the squeegee action on new substrates.
Squeegees:- A handheld squeegee has a smooth wooden or aluminium handle
and a rubber or polyurethane blade. Squeegee blades are rated by hardness, as
determined by a shore durometer.
Different substrates require different blade edges. There
are six squeegee blade shapes. The square-edge blade
is used for flat surfaces and general-purpose printing.
The squared-edge with rounded corners provide extra
heavy ink deposits on flat substrates and is used when
a light colour will be printed on a dark substrate.
A rounded-edge blade is used primarily in textile
printing where an extra-heavy ink film is required.
Single beveled edge blades are used for printing on
glass. The double beveled edge with flat point is used
for printing on ceramics and the double beveled edged
is used for printing on cylindrical objects such as bottles and containers.
Screen printing inks:- The type of ink depends upon the type of stencil being
used, the substrate, and the intended product. The ink pigment and ink vehicle
in screen printing must freely pass through screen fabric and create an image
of acceptable density on the receiving surface. Screen inks are thinner than
letterpress or lithographic inks but thicker than inks used in gravure.
Solvents:- Screen printing solvents are classified as thinners, retarders and
washup solvents. Thinners are solvents added to inks to change the viscosity
(thickness) of the ink. Retarders are solvents added to inks to thin the viscosity
and slow the drying time. Washup solvents are used to remove ink from the
screen.
Drying system:- Oven drying systems are used now instead of drying racks for
faster drying times and an efficient use of floor space.
Screen frames and Fabrics
The screen frame serves several important functions. A frame:
Provides a means of attaching fabric at the proper tension
Provides rigidity and dimensional stability
Resists mechanical stress and warpage
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Resists chemical action and corrosion

Provides a means for register
Frame materials:- Materials used to manufacture screen frames include wood,
metal alloy, steel and plastic. Wood and metal alloy are the most commonly
used materials.
Wood frames:- Woodframes are constructed using screws, corrugated fasteners,
dowels, and nails. Frames are continuosly subject to mechanical and chemical
stress and is in contact with water. Fastners must be able to withstand the
stress. Avoid metal fasteners which may cause rust and corrosion and loosen
the joints.
Metal alloy frame:- Metal alloy frame provide greater rigidity and dimensional
stability than wood frames. They are not susceptible to chemical attack from
water but have poor resistance to acid and soda solutions.
Print size:- The maximum print size is determined by the inside dimension of
a screen frame. Normally, the non-image areas should be twice the size of the
image area. An ideal frame size is four times the image area.
Classifying screen fabrics
Screen fabrics are classified according to filament, mesh count, strength and
weave pattern.
Filament:- A filament is a single thread. It refers to the type of thread. A fabric
may be either multi filament or mono filament. Multifilament means there are
several strands of material per filament. Silk is an example for multi-filament
strand. Multi-filament silk strands provide greater cross sectional area than
monofilament strands and allow for the strong adhesion of any stencil. But
silk is not dimensionally stable which means it changes shape and size with
change in temperature and humidity. This
makes it unsuitable for work requiring critical
control of registration.
Monofilament means each filament is a
single strand of filament or one thread. Nylon
is an example for monofilament fabric. They
provide better ink film thickness, uniformity
and dimensional stability than multi-
filaments. They have uniform weaves and
pass pigments more easily through the mesh
openings.
Mesh count:- Mesh count is the number of
threads per linear inch in a fabric. The higher
the mesh count, the better the reproduction
of fine details. A high mesh count makes the
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edges of the image smooth and sharp. As the mesh count increase, fabric
strength and durability decrease.
Fabric strength:- It is directly related to the thread diameter. As the mesh
count increase, thread diameter must decrease or no porous areas will exist.
Types of fabrics:- Three types of fabrics are used as screens- natural, synthetic,
and metal mesh. Natural fabrics are always multi-filament. Synthetic fabrics
may be either multi-filament or monofilament. Metal mesh is a monofilament.
Typically it is stainless steel, but it can also be bronze, copper or brass. It is
used for printing with heated inks on plastics.
Stencil preparation
Stencils can be classified into three groups: Hand cut, Tusche and glue and
photographic stencils.
Hand cut stencils
Hand cut stencils are prepared by removing the printing image areas manually
from some form of base or support material.
Tusche and glue stencils
It is an art process which involves drawing directly on the screen fabric with
lithographic tusche (an oil based pigment) and then blocking out non-image
areas with waterbased glue material.
Photographic stencils
They are generally produced by a thick, light sensitive, gelatin based emulsion
that is exposed and developed either on supporting film or directly on the
screen itself. Only hand cut and photographic stencils are used in commercial
printing.
The primary advantage of photographic stencil is the possibility for complex
and high quality line details. This method allowed the screen printers to enter
the field of packaged product illustration. A colour image can be screen printed
with nearly any ink on nearly any surface shape (flat, cylinder or irregular)
with this process
All photographic stencil process are divided into 3 types:
Indirect, direct and direct-indirect
Indirect:- The indirect process uses a dry emulsion on a plastic support sheet.
The stencil emulsion is sensitised by the manufacturer and is purchased by the
printer in rolls. The stencil film is exposed through a transparent, right reading
positive and is then treated with developer solution. The area that the light
reaches (non-image area) harden during exposure. The remaining areas are
washed away with a warm water spray to form the image area. The stencil is
adhered to a clean screen while it is wet from the spray and support sheet
removed after the stencil dries.
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An indirect photographic stencil method involves six steps:

1. Exposure
2. Development
3. Washing
4. Application of stencil to the screen
5. Drying
6. Removal of the base material
Direct process:- It uses a wet
emulsion that is coated directly on
a screen. The emulsion is exposed
through a transparent positive to
harden the non-image areas. The
images area washed away with a
warm water spray. When the
emulsion is dry the stencil is ready
to print.
Five steps in preparing the direct
photographic stencil are :
1. Preparation of a sensitized
emulsion
2. Application of the emulsion
to the screen
3. Drying the emulsion
4. Exposure
5. Development
Direct/Indirect process:- This
process combines the indirect
and the direct photographic
process. An unsensitised film
material is placed under the
stencil side of the screen on a flat
table. The stencil emulsion is
stored in two parts, a liquid
emulsion and a sensitiser. When
the two are mixed, and coated on
the screen, they become light
sensitive and coat through the
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screen to the film support. When the emulsion is dry, the backing sheet of the
stencil is removed and normal direct exposure technique is carried out.
Automation in screen printing

The basic problem with any hand operated hinged frame screen printing system
is the small number of impressions that can be made per hour. Production is
limited by how rapidly the printer can feed the stock, close the frame, position
the squegee, pull the impression, remove the squegee and deliver the stock.
The development of high speed screen printing presses such as lever action
hand-operated, semiautomatic and automatic units has made the screen printing
process more easy and popular.
Special screen printing applications
Cylindrical screens:- They are used to print on long roll materials such as wall
paper or bolt fabrics which require continuously repeating images.
Screen printing on cylindrical surfaces:- It is used to screen print on lables
directly on cylindrical or conical containers such as bottles, cans, and drinking
cups.
Carousal units:- It is a popular method of screening multi colour images on
materials such as T-shirts. It is a wet-on-wet printing method on which printing
of one colour is done directly over another without waiting the ink to dry.
1. Stencil preparation using different photographic methods.
2. Prepare an invitation card using screen printing technique.
3. Identify basic shapes of squeegee blades available in your lab.
4. Identify the chemicals used in screen printing.
Assessment activities
1. Assignment on latest developments in screen printing.
2. Project work - single colour and two colour screen printing on various
substrates.
TE Questions
1. What is the basic concept of screen printing?
2. What are the three type of stencil preparation method?
3. What is the primary advantage of photographic stencil?
4. What does the term wet on wet printing means?
5. What are the major types of fabrics used for stencil preparation in screen
printing process?
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MODULE 4
BINDING AND PACKAGING
Overview of Module 4
Once an image has been printed on a substrate, some form of binding and
finishing is usually required. Binding is the process of joining together multiple
pages of a printed product by various means including sewing, stapling, spiral
wire and adhesives. Finishing includes various processes that enhance the final
printed product. Some of the more common finishing operations include
embossing, die-cutting, stamping, punching, drilling, round cornering, and
padding. Laminating and coating are also considered as modern finishing
operations. Packaging basically involves wrapping, strapping or boxing of
various consumer products. In this module we go through various finishing
operations, modern packaging operations and its application in our day to day
life and also about the importance of safety, health and eco-printing. In this
module we have a unit that deal with the basic engineering aspects of offset
machines and a unit that gives introduction to basic engineering drawing for
the students.
Unit - 1
SAFETY, HEALTH AND GREEN PRINTING
Introduction
Unsafe machines, work areas, and procedures are the cause of many accidents.
Take time to inspect all equipments and work areas. When unsafe conditions
exists, take immediate action to correct and eliminate them. Also manufacturers
of printing supplies and equipment has to take the responsibility of developing
new environmentally friendly technologies and materials. This unit acquaints
the student with many issues and practices invloved in advancing safety, health
and Green printing in the work place.
Learning Outcomes
• understands the Safety regulations related to printing industry.
• understands the importance of Safety guards in an offset machine.
• understands the safety measures for operating a cutting machine.
• chooses personal protective devices.
• classifies Fire & choose appropriate fire extinguishers.
• understands the importance of Green printing.
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Safety and health are important considerations in the printing industry. This
fact holds true for school graphic programs, training laboratories, small printing
presses, and large printing firms. Many accidents are caused by carelessness
and ignorance and can be prevented if all employees are well informed in
preventive and protective safety measures.
Safety regulations
The five specified hazard areas in most printing presses are mechanical,
chemical, noise, fire, and light. Careful adherence to regulations, good house
keeping, and a healthy attitude towards safety can make the facility a safe and
pleasant work space.
Mechanical hazards:- Many on-the-job physical injuries are the result of
mechanical hazards that can be controlled if,
• machines are properly guarded
• energy isolating devices are locked out and tagged out during mainte-
nance.
• workers properly use personal protective device.
• workers are trained to handle materials, tools and equipments safely.
Chemical hazards:- There are several types of chemicals or products that are
toxic or hazardous. Chemicals can enter the body through the skin, by inhalation
or by injection. Wear personal protective devices appropriate to the level of
hazard. Organic solvents, platemaking chemicals, ink mist, gases and fumes
are the different types of chemicals or agents that pose hazards to workers in
the printing industry.
Noise hazards:- Unwanted and extensive loud noise is found in many industrial
facilities. Excessive noise can lead to permanent hearing loss. Best way to
protect against ear damage is to control the noise.
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Fire hazards:- Printing involves flammable materials which create significant

fire and explosion risks. Good housekeeping, preventive measures, and
education are the key elements to fire protection plan. Provide Local Exhaust
Ventilation (LEV) at printing units and adequate ventilation in work room to
reduce the risk of fire. Also, provide fire detection and extinguishing systems.
Light hazards:- Light hazards include light sources that can cause damage to a
person’s skin or eye. Light sources commonly used in printing industry include
UV radiation, infra-red light, laser beams, pulsed xenon lamps and mercury
vapour lamps which are harmful to eyes and skin.
Safety guards in an offset machine
Machine guards:- Hazards are posed by reciprocating, rotating, and shearing
actions of various type of machinery in the industry. Therefore, properly placed
guards on mechanical equipment are very important for the operator’s
protection. Typical rotating mechanisms are spinning rollers, rotating chains
and sprockets, turning gears, rotating belts, etc.
Most machines used in printing industry are equipped with some type of
guarding. Emergency stop buttons, feeder guards, registration board guard,
cylinder guards, delivery guards, machine guards, barrier guards are some
among them.
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Safety measures for operating a cutting machine

The bindery and finishing area has very powerful, high speed equipment. Some
have sharp blades.
• Never place hands under a knife or clamp.
• Do not wear loose clothing while operating power machineries in bind-
ing area.
• Never byepass or rewire two-handed controls on paper cutting machine.
• Turn off the power when you are finished with paper cutting.
• Do not talk with others while operating the paper cutter.
• Make sure that only one person is near the paper cutter to prevent distrac-
tion.
• Do not test a blade for sharpness with your finger.
Personal protective devices
Personal protective devices include ear protection
devices, eye protection devices, respiratory protection
devices, skin protective devices
Ear plugs:- Ear plugs are utilised for protecting the
workers form the adverse effects of loud noise
produced by machines. Ear muffs give total protection
and comfort to the wearer during work.
Eye protection devices include safety goggles,
glasses, and face shields. Eye protectors should
be worn when operating any type of machine that
can cause material to fly and strike workers.
Respiratory protection devices include respirators
and dust masks. Respiratory protection devices
should be worn when air borne particles create
respiratory hazards such as ink mist and chemical
vapours
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Skin protection devices include rubber, leather, or plastic gloves, aprons, and
safety footware and full safety suit. Skin protection devices should be worn
when working with or cleaning up chemicals and solvents that can cause minor
irritations or severe bodily damage.
Safety helmets are used in the industry for protection of head injuries during
the operation and to prevent risk.
First aid kits
Everyone working in a printing industry should be trained in basic first aid.
First aid should be visible and easily accessible and they should be checked
and stocked at regular basis.
Fire classifications & Fire extinguishers
There are four general type of fires. Class A, Class B, Class C & Class D
Class A : Fire arising out of materials such as wood, paper, textiles, etc.
Soda acid and pressurized water are the type of fire extinguishers used for
Class A fire. This type of extinguisher should not be used for Class B, Class C,
and Class D.
Class B : Fire caused by flammable liquids such as grease, gasoline, oils, and
paints.
Carbondioxide gas under pressure is the type of extinguisher used for Class B
fire. It should not be used for Class A, Class C and Class D.
Class C : Fire caused by electrical equipment such as motors, switches, etc.
Dry chemicals and carbon dioxide gas are the most common fire extinguisher
used for Class C fire. It should not be used for Class D.
Class D : Fire arising out of combustible metals such as magnesium and lithium.
Granular type of dry chemical materials are used as fire extinguishers of Class
D. It should not be used for Class A, Class B, and Class C.
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Green printing
As a result of the growing concerns over environmental issues, the printing
industry has become dedicated to becoming more green. Green printing instruct
and help companies plan on how to reduce their environmental impact.
Recycled paper:- Current environmental concerns include a papers content of
recycled fibre and the chemistry used in its bleaching. Recycled paper is
produced from pulp made from recovered paper and paper products,
manufacturing wastes, non paper materials, and wood residues.
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Logos of recyclable and recycled paper:- Paper products

carrying recycling logos are not necessarily made from
recycled fibres. Dark chasing arrows indicate the paper is
made from paper that has been recycled, and light chasing
arrows indicates the paper is appripriate to be recycled.
Paper made with alternative chemicals:- The primary
bleaching chemical for producing white paper is chlorine
gas. It was discovered that the waste water from paper mills
contained tiny amounts of dioxin which is harmful. Paper
mills have sort out alternative methods of bleaching pulp
because most dioxin is produced when the element chlorine
is used as a bleaching agent.
Elemental chlorine-free (ECF) bleaching:- It is an alternative bleaching process
that uses chlorine dioxide or sodium hypochlorite instead of chlorine gas as a
bleaching agent.
Totally Chlorine Free (TCF) bleaching:- Any method of bleaching that uses
no chlorine neither in its element state, nor as part of a compound such as
chlorine dioxide or sodium hypo chlorite.
Oxygen delignification:- An approach to eliminating dioxin formation that
allows chlorine bleaching. It uses oxygen to remove lignin from pulp in
preparation for bleaching.
Acid free paper / Alkaline paper:- Paper that has pH above seven are classified
as acid free papers. During production acid free paper is treated with an alkaline
compound, usually calcium carbonate, to neutralize the acid and to bring the
pH of paper to seven or slightly more.
Wood free paper:- is paper created exclusively from chemical pulp rather than
mechanical pulp. Chemical pulp is normally made from pulp wood, but is not
considered wood as most of the lignin is removed and seperated from the
cellulose fibres during processing.
Vegetable inks (soy ink):- Vegetable oils have replaced mineral oils in ink
manufacturing for environmental reasons. Petro chemical solvents and mineral
oils emit environmental toxic Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC). Vegetable
oil based inks have several technical benefits such as cleaner and sharper
printing and brighter colour. Soy inks use oil extracts from soy bean as part of
the vehicle. Soy oil is free of environmentally harmful substances. Therefore
printing with soy ink result in less release of VOC within the press room.
Soft proofs:- Soft proofs are electronic files that represent what the final printed
page will look like. Soft proofs are becoming more widely used than digital
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proofs. Soft proofs reduce the use of paper in multiple rounds of checking
proofs. They eliminate the use of ink and creation of any VOC’s in the
production of printing proofs. There is no transportation invloved since soft
proofs are sent over the internet.
Use of renewable energy resources in printing:- Regular printing uses vast
amount of energy. In contrast eco-friendly printing mainly uses alternative
energy sources such as sun, wind, and water power. This is in comparison to
those energy sources which produce carbon dioxide emission that can easily
damage the environment.
1. Identify the different safety guards and safety button on the HMT offset
printing machine in your lab.
2. Identify the possible circumstances of fire in your printing lab and take
appropriate measures to prevent it.
1. Assignment: Prepare a presentation on different classes of fire that is likely
to occur in an offset press.
2. Prepare a chart on different personal protective devices used in the print-
ing industry.
3. Collect samples of recycled paper.
4. Prepare a chart showing various renewable energy resources in printing.
TE Questions
1. What are the five specified hazard areas in the printing industry?
2. What are the major protective devices used by printers?
3. What are the four general classes of fire and name the appropriate fire
extinguishers for each class?
4. What are the major safety measures to be taken while operating a cutting
machine?
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Unit - 2
CONVENTIONAL BINDING
Introduction
The process of binding books remained a slow specialised craft until the 18th
century. Modern book binding is mechanised for the most part. Decoration is
simplified and the effect is retained on the overall appearance. Paper bags and
threadless binding have suppressed the old fashion binding. New fabrics are
available for case books.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• understands and define binding
• classifies different methods of binding
• understands the styles of binding
• lists the different steps involved in the binding process
• understands different covering and finishing operations
Definition of binding
Book binding is the hand or machine process of fastening together printed or
plain sheets and enclosing them within a protective cover. It include gluing,
stiching, sewing, stapling, or other mechanical means.
Classification of binding
Binding has been classified according to the use of the products and the types
of binding.
They are mainly classified into letterpress binding and stationery binding.
Letterpress Binding
Letterpress binding is again classified as extra leather binding (also called
extra letterpress binding), library binding, miscellaneous binding and publishers
binding.
Extra leather binding
Extra leather binding is done as ‘tight-back’ without the help of machines.
Usually leather or such type of materials are used for covering.
Library binding
Good quality materials are used for library binding. End papers are used and
it is sewn by placing tapes. Half binding and Full binding is also done in library
binding.
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Miscellaneous binding
Usually periodicals come under this category. Calico, leather, etc is not used
in this type of binding. Attractive covers are used.
Publishers Binding
It is done with the help of machines. Book and cover are separately made and
the book is inserted in the cover. It is known as case binding.
Stationery binding
The process of binding the writing materials is called stationery binding.
Account books, ledgers, day books, registers, diaries, bill books, cheque books,
receipt books, blank proformas, and exercise notebooks are examples for
stationery binding.
Stationery binding is again classified into four as account book binding,
manifold binding, general and office stationery binding and exercise note book
binding.
Account Book Binding
It is done manually without the help of machines. Sewing is done by placing
tape. Half leather or full leather binding is done. It is also known as ledger
binding.
Manifold Binding
This type of binding is carried out for receipt books, bill books, cheque books
etc in cheap cost with the help of machines. It will have numbering and
Perforation.
General and Office Stationery binding
It include binding of office stationery like file boards, file books, writing boards,
letter pads etc.
Exercise Notebook binding
It is the binding of books in cheap rate for the use of students with or without
the help of machines.
Styles of binding
Paper back cut flush binding
Most of the exercise books are bound in this style. Thick paper is covered on
the notebook or registers. All the three edges are trimmed along with the
cover. This process of trimming is called flush-cut.
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Board covered Cut Flush Binding

Trimming the folded and sewn sheets after putting the suitable paper board
cover is cut flush binding. These types of books will not have the projection of
covers at its ends.
Quarter bound cut flush
Account books and small size ledger books are covered with thick boards. Its
case is prepared separately using leather or rexine on the back edge of the
book. About quarter part of both sides of the book along with the spine, is
covered with covering material. The edges of the board are made similar to
the size of the book.
Quarter Cloth Turned in
In this type of binding after cutting the edges of the book the covering material
is folded inwards to hide the edges of the board. It will not have the projected
cover boards.
Full bound
When the covering material is fully covered on both sides of the board using a
single material like leather or calico is called full bound book. The full covering
of the book ensures long life to the book. It also makes it attractive.
Half Bound
When the covering materials like leather or calico is covered one fourth part
on the back side including spine and corners of the book is called half bound
book. Sheet of paper is pasted in the uncovered part of the board and 3mm
overlapped on the corners and back of the covering material.
Quarter Bound
When the covering material like leather or calico is covered about one fourth
part of the width of the book on the back side including spine is called quarter
bound book. Fore edge, tail and head of the paper is turned inside the board
about 3mm.
Materials for book binding
The important materials used in stationery book binding are paper, board,
binding cloth, leather, tape, paste, gum, animal glues, synthetic adhesives,
threads, and egg albumin.
Boards
Boards used for covering the books are available in 78 X 102 cm size, which
can be cut into various sizes according to the size of the book. Straw board,
mill board, pulp board, duplex board, and index board are various qualities of
boards. Mostly straw boards and mill boards are used for binding of books.
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Adhesives used in binding

Adhesives are sticky materials which join any two surfaces. Various types of
adhesives used in book binding are vegetable adhesives, animal glues, synthetic
adhesives or hot metal adhesives.
Vegetable adhesives are of two types - paste and gum.
Paste:- It is very cheap but best adhesive used in various operations of stationery
binding. It is prepared by fine wheat flour (maida). Water, alum, and
formaldehyde is mixed with the flour and the paste is prepared by boiling it.
Copper sulphate is also mixed as a preventive for rats, insects and fungus.
Gum: It is also a vegetable material obtained from Accasia trees. Gum is
mostly used in packaging book binding, envelopes, stickers, stamps, and labels.
Animal glue: It is prepared from the bones, skins and other parts of animals.
Synthetic glue: They are ready to use adhesives which are available in tubes
and containers. They are made from poly vinyl acetate in liquid form. These
adhevsives are used in adhesive binding, foil, lamination, back lining and
cartons.
Hot metal adhesives:- They are made from resins, waxes and polymers in
solid state. They are used in highspeed machines.
Steps in Binding
Various steps in binding includes warehousing, forwarding, covering, and
finishing.
Warehousing
Operations such as counting of sheets, examining and rejecting of bad sheets,
folding, gathering, collating, sewing and stitching are done here.
Counting: Press sheets when received would be counted and compared with
the work order features. Wrongly backed sheets, sheets with smears, setoff,
smudges, tone sheets, sheets out of register, etc are to be rejected.
Jogging: This is piling the sheets into neatly laid edges, expelling air and
avoiding bulking. Jogging is done before the sheets leave the machine room.
Pressing: Without pressing the sheets will not be solid and the book cannot be
compact.
Folding: Floding can be done either by hand or on a machine. The person who
is folding should understand the imposition and the number of folds as well as
the direction of the fold. A bone or wooden stick used to strike down the
sheets in hand folding is called a folder.
Signatures are small figure or letter printed on the first page of every forum in
case of a half sheet work and first and third page of every full sheet work to
signify the number of the forum.
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Gathering: This is the next operation after folding. Gathering is the process of
assembling signatures by placing one next to the other. It is commonly used to
prepare books whose page thickness will be greater than one centimetre.
Collating: Examining the gathered sections
and rectifying any omissions, wrong placing
or duplication of sections is called collating.
Collating marks are marks made at the back
edge of the folded sections during the printing
process of the forum. Books with large
number of pages should have collating marks
in the continuous steps. If the collating marks
are in uneven step, it means the gathering of
sections are not correct.
Sewing and Stitching : The process of joining of all the gathered sections of
a book using a thin wire or thread is called sewing. The wire sewing is called
stitching and sewing with thread is called thread sewing.
Wire stitching
Wire stitching is done by two processes a) Saddle stitching and b) side stitching.
(a) A method in which metal wire is forced through the folded edges of a
signature and formed into staples to hold the pages together is called
saddle stitching.
(b) A form of stapling in which metal wire is forced through the sides of
the sheet and formed into staples to hold sheets together is called side
stiching.
Thread sewing
Thread sewing is the process used to bind thin and thick books with thread.
All the sections of book are sewen with a thread using a long steel needle.
Linen thread is used for book sewing. The needle along with the thread is
inserted into all the sections one by one and the sections are joined together.
Overcast sewing, cord sewing (sawn-in-sewing), tape sewing (library sewing),
flexible sewing, and double flexible sewing are different types of thread sewing.
Overcast sewing : Generally old books are sewen by this process. Holes are
made on two or three places at the back edge of the book leaving about half to
one centimetre. Needle is inserted in all the holes along with the thread one by
one. The thread is tightened and a knot is made in the last.
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Cord sewing (Sawn-in-sewing) : It is done

for thick and high quality books. Two or
three thick cotton cords are placed on the
spine of the book. Grooves are then cut in
the spine of the book to accommodate the
thickness of the cords. Threads are
covered over the cords during the sewing
process.
Tape sewing (library sewing) : In this sewing four strong tapes are placed in
the spine of the book. The tapes are covered with threads during the sewing
process of sections of the book. Tape
sewing makes the book more durable.
The tapes should be kept flat. The
needles with the thread proceeds outside
the tape without encircling it. Tape
sewing is similar to cord sewing, but it
is more easier. It is not necessary to pull
the threads tight for every tape.
Flexible sewing:- In flexible sewing no saw cuts are made at the back. The
sections are sewn one by one on the stout cords that ultimately form the raised
bands across the back. A leather band is pasted directly on the back. With the
threaded needle in the right hand it is pushed through the inside of the section at
the head of kettle stitch mark and with the left hand it is returned again to the
outside at the far side of the first cord and passes again through the inside and
sewn round encircling the cords similarly, until knot is made at the kettle stitch
mark. This process is repeated at the rest of the sections. The knot made at the
kettle stitch mark is known as kettle stitch, chain stitch or catch up stitch.
Double flexible sewing:- In double flexible sewing two cords are used and the
threads encircles each of the cords.
Forwarding
Forwarding includes all operations after sewing upto covering. There are two
broad kinds of forwarding, namely inboard forwarding, in which the board is
attached and then the edges are cut and outboard forwarding, in which the
edges are cut first and then boards are attached. Different steps in forwarding
includes attaching end papers, fraying the slips, hammering, gluing the back,
rounding, backing, attaching the board, cleaning the glue in the back.
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End Papers
The papers which are pasted or sewn on both sides of a book are called end
papers. These two inside sheets hold the cover to the body of the book. End
papers may be made thicker than the papers of the book. The cover of the
book becomes more durable due to end papers. Various types of end paper are
single end paper, double end paper, made end paper, cloth joint end paper, zig
zag end paper, self end paper, etc.
Single end paper: This end paper is very simple and used in paper back cover
books. Two leaves are made for this end paper, one leaf is pasted with the
cover and other becomes open with the book.
Double end paper: This is also called inserted end paper. Two sheets of paper
are folded, inserted with each other and tipped at the back edge. The first is
cut leaving about half inch and second sheet is pasted with the cover. The third
and fourth sheets are fly leaves and are attached to the book. This end paper is
used in thicker and more durable books.
Made end paper: The made end paper has two fly leaves and one made end
leaf. It is more durable than double end paper. This end paper is mostly used
for leather bound books. Three folded sheets or six open sheets are used to
prepare one made end paper. The first is waste sheet, second and third are
pasted with each other. Fourth sheet is tipping sheet. Fifth and sixth sheets
are fly leaf and remains open towards the book.
Cloth joint end paper: This end paper is used with thick and large size books.
A strip of linen or cloth is pasted with the back of this end paper. The cloth
joint end paper has one waste sheet, two paste down sheets, one stiff leaf, and
two fly leaf. This end paper is sewn with the book as first and last section.
Zig-zag end paper: This is very strong and durable end paper. The zig-zag
design of this end paper prevents the extra drag of the cover with the book. It
has also six sheets to make the end paper. The back of two sheets is made in
zig-zag design. Another two folded sheets are set into the zig-zag part. The
first sheet is waste sheet, two and three are stiff sheets, fourth is tipping sheet.
Fifth and sixth are fly leaf. Marble sheets are also used in this end paper.
Self end paper: Generally self end papers are used in exercise books. The first
and last sheet of the book is pasted with the cover. It does not have durability,
with the book and its cover.
Glueing
Rubbing thin glue into the back of the sewn sections is known as glueing. The
final shape of the book depends upon this operation. knock the head and back
squarely maintaining proper level. Confine the glue to the back sections without
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getting on the cords or tapes. It is convenient to place the book between two
pieces of waste board and the slips being tucked away between them.
Rounding
By rounding the swelling in the back of the book is reduced. Rounding gives
the familier round shape to the back, convex at the back and concave at the
foreedge. After some use the back of the book may sink in, but rounding
prevents this.
Backing
Backing is carried out only for letterpress binding. For account books, spring
back is adopted and only rounding is done. The objective of backing is to bind
the sections together independent of sewing, to form a slight fold down the
back for ease in opening the book flat; to form a groove or joint to attach the
board to the book.
Trimming the edges
The last operation is to trim the head, tail, and foreedge of the book. Adhesive
bound or perfect bound books are ready for use after the above operations are
completed.
Edge decoration
It is the method of decorating the edges by different methods. Edges are
decorated for improving the appearance of the book and for preventing the
edges from getting dirt.
Colouring, sprinkling, gilding, painting, gauffering, and marbling are different
edge decoration methods.
Colouring: This is the simplest method of edge decoration. The book is kept
under a weight board, water colour is applied with a brush evenly through the
edges.
Sprinkling: Different colours are sprinkled or sprayed to the edges with a brush
or with a sprayer.
Gilding: Gilding is the method of producing solid gilt edges instead of solid
cut edges.
Painting: Painting is done only at the foreedge since the leaves are frayed out
or fanned out for painting the picture.
Gauffering: After gilding, solid gilt edges are cut into different patterns (like
flowers, leaves,etc.) harmonizing with finishing the works on the cover. This
is done with small hot tools.
Marbling: It is a colouring process used for decorating the edges of heavy
account books. Thick and smooth paper should be used for marbling. It is
usually done after cutting the edges or before rounding.
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Covering and Finishing

Covering
The covering operation is done in the last of the book binding process. Cover
of the book contains the name of the book, author, and publisher. It is made
attractive by printing in multicolours. Cheap edition and general textbooks
are covered with thick printed card sheets. High quality books are covered
with boards. There are two types of covering process namely Paper back edition
and Board cover edition also called hard bound book.
Paper back edition:- In paper back edition, the book is covered with a thick
card or paper. The centre part of the book cover is creased according to the
thickness of the book. Paste is applied on the spine of the book and in the
centre part of the cover. The spine of the book is placed on the cover and fixed
with the book. Then paste is applied to both sides of the end papers and pasted
with the cover of the book. When it is dry, the edges are trimmed in the last.
Board cover edition (Hard bound books):- Books that need long life are covered
with boards. Board covering process is divided into the following processes:
1) Preparation of the cover: The cover of the book is prepared separately.
Two pieces of boards for each book are cut 5 mm larger in the length and
same size in the width of the book. The covering material of the boards is
also cut 15 mm larger in the length, and width plus spine of the book. A
thin layer of paste is applied on the rough side of the covering material.
Both pieces of the board are placed on it and pasted with turning in, the
excess part of the covering material. A thick strip of paper is pasted on
the covering material left for the spine of the book.
2) Preparation of the book: First the book is trimmed at the head, tail, and
fore edge of the book. Thin liquid glue is applied on the spine. Rounding
and backing operations are done for the spine of the book. A strip of cloth
is pasted on the spine with overlapping about one inch on both sides of
the book. Headbands are fixed on both sides of the spine.
3) Setting cover of the book: The spine of the book is placed in the centre of
the prepared cover. Paste is applied on both sides of the end paper and
pasted on the board of the cover. Paste is also applied in the spine for
tight back book. For hollow back book, a strip of paper is pasted on the
spine of the book and the spine remains unpasted with the cover.
Finishing
All the work that is done in binding after forwarding is called finishing.
Preparing the leather for tooling, designing, decoration of the cover, tooling
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the design and title on the cover, polishing the leather sides and back of the
book are included in this process.
Tools made of brass used for impressing on surfaces of leather or cloth are
called finishing tools.
1. Letterpress binding
2. Stationery binding.
3. Different types of sewing
a) Cord sewing (Sawn-in-sewing)
b) Tape sewing
c) Overcast sewing
d) Flexible and double flexible sewing
4. Case binding
5. Gum preparation for binding
6. End paper making
7. Backing, rounding and edge decoration of books.
1. Prepare a Notebook using flexible sewing method.
2. Prepare an Account book using cord sewing method in half cloth style
binding.
3. Prepare a file board and a writing board.
4. Prepare a Notepad in A5 size with paper back cover.
5. Prepare a chart showing different types of end papers.
TE Questions
1. Define book binding.
2. What are the main classifications of binding?
3. What is an end paper? Write notes of different types of end papers.
4. What are the various materials used in book binding?
5. Explain briefly about different types of adhesives used in book binding.
6. Describe the various covering processes in book binding.
7. Explain briefly about the different types of sewing processes you have
studied.
8. What are collating marks?
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Unit - 3
MODERN FINISHING OPERATIONS
Introduction
After printing the product needs further operations to be finished. The two
most common types of classifications are finishing and binding. In the previous
unit we have learnt about the binding operations. In this unit, we study about
all other operations that enhance the appearence of the printed product.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• understands and demonstrate the operation of a paper cutting machine.
• categorises folding operations.
• understands other finishing operations.
• lists out various methods of binding.
Finishing
Finishing is the term used to describe all operations performed on a printed
material which include cutting, folding, slitting, perforation, scoring, die cutting,
embossing, foil stamping, numbering, laminating, drilling, varnishing etc. One
or more finishing operations are done on many jobs. The equipment used to
perform these operations may either be automatic or semi-automatic.
Cutting
Making a large sheet of paper into several smaller sheets is termed cutting.
Paper cutting can be of either inline or offline. Inline cutting are commonly
performed in web-offset presses. As the web moves out of the printing unit it
will be cut into sheets of desired length.
Offline cutting is performed in sheet fed presses. Sheets are cut to size so that
it can be fed into presses or the printed sheets can be cut to produce finished
products such as business cards.
Trimming is the process of cutting uneven edges of the paper. It is performed
in booklets, magazines or other publications.
Cutting and trimmimg are done by equipment such as guillotine cutters (single
knife cutters) and three knife cutters
Guillotine cutter
It is a device equipped with a single blade to trim or cut a pile of paper to
finished size.
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The most basic guillotine cutters consist of the following parts:

Bed:- It is the flat, smooth and level surface
on which the paper pile sits on a cutting
machine. Modern automatic cutters are
equipped with air table with a number of
small holes through which air passes to help
the operator to slide the paper easily.
Side Guide:- It is a wall on the left side of
the bed aganist which the left side of the
paper pile is aligned.
Movable Back guide:- It is a guide on the cutting device used to hold a stack of
paper and to position it in the desired position on the bed.
Clamp:- It is a metal device that
moves downwards against the
paper pile to hold the paper pile
with force while it is being cut.
Knife:- It is a razor-sharp metal
cutting blade made of steel or
steel-carbage and is mounted to
a bar located near the front of
the machine just in front of the
clamp.
Cutting Stick:- It is a plastic or wooden piece located directly below the cutting
blade beneath the table to protect the blade when it touches the table after
cutting the paper pile.
Three-Knife cutters
It is a paper cutting device with three blades; two parallel knives and a right
angled knife to trim the three sides of printed publications such as magazines.
All the three knives do not cut together. First the two parallel knives cut together
and then the right angled knife cuts individually. Three knife trimmers can be
stand-alone unit or part of collating, folding and binding system.
Folding operations
It is another method of finishing operation. Most printed materials require
some type of folding which is done on a folding machine. There are two basic
type of folds- Parallel fold and right angle fold. Parallel fold is made parallel
to the previous fold whereas a right angle fold is made at right angle to the
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preceding fold by changing the direction of the sheet 90o before the second
fold is made.
Other type of folds include letter fold, accordion fold, French fold, barrel fold,
gate fold and short fold.
Types of folders: There are two type of folding equipments - Knife folder and
buckle folder. Some equipments use a combination of these two configurations.
Knife folder: It is a folding device that
use a metal blade to force a sheet through
a set of folding rollers to create a fold.
Fold rollers are metal rolls that transport
a sheet through a folder. The paper is fed
into the folding unit with moving tapes
or belt. Side guide keeps the paper aligned
and fold guides stop the paper in position
above the nip of a fold roller. Then the
knife is lowered and it pushes the paper
into the rotating fold rollers that crease the sheet. If additional folds are required,
one or more folding units are added and folded sheets are added to them
automatically. Knife folders are more accurate in producing right-angle fold.
Heavier-weight papers perform well on knife folders.
Buckle Folders: It is folding device that use a fold plate to force a sheet to
buckles so the sheet can be pulled through a set of folding rollers. The buckle
folder uses tapes or belts to carry a sheet of paper. The sheet is carried towards
a fold plate consisting of two metal plates positioned at a slight incline above
the drive and the fold rollers. The drive feeds the sheet into the fold plate and
continues to move the sheet after it hits the stop guage at the top of the fold
plate assembly. The sheet buckles downwards, and the fold rollers catch them
in a predetermined spot. The rollers grab the sheet at the buckle, pull the sheet
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down and create a fold. The location of the fold can be adjusted by moving the
fold guide slightly. Light weight papers fold better on buckle folders.
Other finishing operations
Punching
Punching is an operation in which rectagular or specially shaped holes are cut
in paper by forcing a metal rod through the paper to remove the stock. Punching
is used for such applications as producing holes needed to do spiral binding.
Automatic punching machines are used for this.
Drilling, Slotting and Cornering
Drilling is a piercing operation that uses a revolving hollow drill bit with very
sharp edges to produce round holes in the paper. Drills are available in various
diameters. This operation is performed by a machine called paper drill.
Slotting is a method of making holes on paper for binding that are not round.
Round cornering is a rounding operation performed on the corners of paper.
Slotting and rounding operations are also done by a paper drilling machine.
Scoring
Compressing a line across
a heavy sheet of paper to
improve the sheets ability
to fold on that line is called
scoring or creasing.
Scoring is performed by
pressing a steel rule aganist
a paper or by sending the sheets under scoring wheel.
Following points should be observed when scoring a paper
- For thicker paper, thicker scoring should be given.
- Scoring wheels are not effective as steel rules.
- Scoring wheels should be used with extreme care on coated paper.
Slitting
Slitting is the process of cutting printed sheets or web into two or more sections
by means of a cutting wheel on a printing or folding machine. It is used to
seperate two or more products from a large sheet.
Die cutting
It is a finishing operation that uses a sharp steel rule or knife to cut a specific
pattern into a substrate or to cut a substrate into a specific pattern. Irregular
shapes or designs that cannot be cut with a stright cut is done by this process.
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In die cutting process pressure is used to force a sharp metal die through the
stock.
A die has a metal cutting edge that matches the outline shape of the design
used. A die used in the process consist of a base, called die board, with steel
rules shaped and inserted in a saw kerf. The saw kerf is the open area left after
sawing the base material. Pieces of sponge rubber are glued to the die board on
either side of the rules to release substrate material after cutting.
Die cutting presses are similar to letterpress printing presses. Sometimes
letterpresses are used for die cutting. Example for die-cut products include
boxes, cartons, tags, labels, cards, children’s pop-up books, etc.
Foil Stamping
It is a letterpress process that transfers a thin layer of metalic tone or colour to
a substrate using heat and pressure.
In foil stamping process a heated die containing the relief image presses down
on a roll of foil passing betweeen the product to be stamped and the heated die.
The relief image presses aganist the foil and the combination of heat and
pressure transfers the metalic coating on the foil film to the substrate. The film
or foil used for foil stamping is very thin and made entirely of metal or a tissue
like material coated with metal. In most case the metals used to create silver
and gold appearance are aluminium and brass. Hand operated to web rotary
presses are used for foil stamping.
Embossing
The processes that create a three dimensional raised image on a substrate by
pressing it between two dies is called embossing. Embossing is done by a
male die and a female die. One die is relief (male die), while the other is
recessed (female die). When they are
brought together with the stock
between them, the clamping force
creates a raised image on the stock.
Normally the image is printed and the
stock is then embossed. Sometimes
ink is not used and the stock itself
creates the raised image after
embossing. This technique is called blind embossing. If an image is sunken
into the substrate using embossing processing, it is called debossing. The dies
are three dimensional moulds that press their image into the paper under great
pressure to make the raised design.
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Numbering
The process of imprinting tickets, cheques, certificates, or other items with
consecutive figures numbers and letters is called numbering. Using a device
called numbering machine, the figures are transferred from an inked relief
image onto the stock. Often numbering is set to start from the maximum amount
and run in the reverse order, so the last figure printed will be 1. This prevents
an over run and places the tickets, forms or other numbered material in correct
order.
Perforation
Perforation is an operation
that places a series of small
cuts or slits in the substrates
using various types of
blades or wheels on the
press or folder. Whenever
it is necessary to remove a
portion of printed material,
the sheet is perforated. This
makes it possible to readily
tear off and remove a reply
card on an advertising
circular or a page from a
book.
Varnishing
Varishing is a process that places a coating, or surface finish, on printed sheets
to impart resistance to chemicals, heat, water and other elements that would
otherwise damage the paper. Varnish can be applied over an entire press sheet
or on selective areas as a clear ink. An image printed in a dull varnish over a
gloss sheet is visible, due to the difference in reflection. A water based clear
and fast drying material called aquous coating is replacing other types of
varnishes. Aquous coating is available in both matte and gloss finishes.
Lamination
It is a process in which a thin film of plastic with an adhesive coating is bonded
to a printed substrate to provide protection against abrasion and moisture. A
common application of lamination is on restaurant menu cards which must be
protected from moisture and constant handling.
Liquid lamination is a coating method similar to varnishing. The plastic material
is applied in liquid form and then cured into a tough protective layer by exposure
to uv-light. For this reson it is sometimes called UV-cured coating.
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Thermography
Thermography is a process of producing raised printing through the application
of powder and heat.
Several steps are required to produce thermographic effect. First a fine resin
powder is springled on a freshly printed sheet. Second, the exess powder is
removed from the non inked area. Third the powder remaining on the wet
image area is heated. The heat melts the powder and creates a raised effect
when the powder cools. Clear powders allow the colour of the base ink to
show through, whereas opaque powder colours have complete hiding power.
Thermography can be used on illustrations, halftones and type. Type smaller
than six point in size and letters with delicate serifs should be avoided because
they both tend to fill in.
Binding
Pamphlet binding : Most of today’s magazines, catalogues, and booklets fall
into the pamphlet binding category. One of the simplest techniques is saddle
wire stitching. Sheets are folded, gathered, and stitched through the centre, or
saddle, of the folded sheets.
Many booklets and magazines are fastened by this method. The folded sheets
are placed one over the other and then placed on the saddle of the stitcher. The
maximum number of pages is regulated by the limit of the stitcher and/or
pamphlet thickness allowing the booklet or magazine to lie flat.
When larger publications are bound, the machine is capable of gathering the
signatures and cover. They are then stitched and trimmed.
Edition binding : Also called case
binding, is considered the most
durable and permanent method of
binding books that will be used
extensively over a period of time,
such as text books and reference
books. The parts of an edition-bound
book are backing paper, lining, head
band, supercloth (mull), sewn
signatures, book body, end sheets,
cords, book cover, and binders board.
The binding process involves
gathering and sewing the signatures
together, then compressing the
signatures, and trimming the edges.
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The book body is then glued, the spine rounded, and lining applied. The book
cover is manufactured separately by wrapping and gluing a printed cover on
binder’s board. It is then attached to the body with and adhesive in a process
called casing in. The bound book is then clamped in a fixture until the adhesive
dries.
Perfect binding : The perfect binding process, used for producing books that
are usually described as softcover or paperback, is a fast and relatively low-
cost method. Since it eliminates the need for sewing and constructing a hard
cover, it is more economical than edition binding. Perfect binding is not as
long-lasting or rugged as edition binding. For this reason, it is often selected
for products that will have a limited lifespan, such as telephone directories,
magazines, and some books for children. Its low cost has made it popular for
mass-market novels and other books where price is a competitive factor.
In this process, either signatures or single sheets can be gathered or collated to
form the book body. The binding equipment then grinds or saws the binding
edge of the book body to roughen the surface, and a flexible glue is applied.
The cover is then placed on the body and clamped until the glue sets. The
book is then trimmed.
Mechanical binding : It consists of a number of methods that employ a
mechanical device (metal spring, plastic fastener, etc.) to hold sheets together
in loose-leaf form. Two of the methods usally used are plastic comb binding
and spiral binding.
Plastic comb binding:- It is commonly used for booklets that might have to be
altered by adding or removing pages. Books bound with this method permit
the pages to lay perfectly flat when open.
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This method involves using a special machine, to punch rectangular holes

along one edge of the printed material. After the sheets are punched, they are
positioned over the spread or expanded plastic teeth of the fastener. When
released, the plastic teeth are extended to the punched holes to bind the
publications. The same machine can be used to open the comb teeth so pages
can be removed or added.
Spiral binding:- It is similar to the plastic comb method, but does not allow
opening the binding for the addition or removal of pages. In this method,
smaller round holes are punched, then the wire is spiral fed through the booklet
using an automatic equipment. The method is used for many types of products
from small pocket notebooks to calendars, to books an inch or more in thickness.
Several variations of the spiral method are used, but all follow the same
principle.
Like most mechanical bindings, the spiral wire method allows a book to be
opened flat and remain that way. The spiral binding allows for the tearing out
of a page but not the insertion of sheets.
1. Perforation
2. Numbering
3. Spiral binding
4. Plastic comb binding
5. Case binding
6. Wire stitching
1. Collect samples of printed products processed with
a) embossing
b) die cutting
c) foil stamping
d) lamination
e) numbering
f) slitting
2) Identify male and female dies used for embossing
3) Distinguish between creasing rule and cutting rule.
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TE Questions
1. What are the two types of folders you have studied? Explain.
2. What is the difference between a guillotine cutter and a three knife cutter.
3. What is an air table in a cutting machine?
4. Draw a neatly labelled diagram showing the parts of a cutting machine.
5. Explain the process of lamination.
6. Explain the perfect binding process.
7. What is embossing? How is embossing done?
8. Explain the process of case binding.
9. Identify the different parts of an edition bound book.
10. What is the difference between film lamination and liquid lamination.
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Unit - 4
PACKAGING
Introduction
Packaging is a branch of printing industry which includes the production of
hand made card boxes, machine made cartons manufacturing or flexible bags
and craft paper bags, polythene and plastic bags, collapsible tubes for tooth
pastes and balms, tin containers for powders and similar materials. The main
purpose of packaging is protection of the contents. Packaging plays an important
role in advertising. Packaging basically involves wrapping, strapping, or boxing
of different products for delivery to the customer. This is highly specialised
branch of printing profession which requires special equipments and highly
skilled technicians. In this unit, you’ll learn about the functions of packaging,
different materials used in the packaging industry, different types of cartons,
packaging dies and the scope of packaging industry.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• understands and defines the importance of packaging
• understands the fundamentals of packaging design
• lists out the different materials used in the packaging industry
• classifies cartons based on its style and construct a packaging die
Functions of packaging
Packaging is the technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution,
storage, sale, and use. Packaging also refers to the process of designing,
evaluating, and producing packages. It is a coordinated system of preparing
goods for transport, warehousing, logistics, sale, and end use. Most products
have some form of packaging.
Package may be defined as ‘all products made of any materials of any nature
to be used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and preservation
of goods from the producer to the user or consumer’.
Major functions of packaging are:
1) To protect a product from contamination by micro organisms, air, mois-
ture and toxins:- The product must be protected against the climate in-
cluding high temperatures, humidity, light and gases in the air. It must
also be protected against micro organisms, chemicals, soil, and insects.
2) To keep the products together, to contain it so that it does not spill :-
Some shapes can not be easily packaged, for example certain vegetables.
They may fit into cans. Some products such as fruit juice and sausages
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need to be contained in packages that hold them together and are sealed
to prevent spillage and loss.
3) To identify the product:- Packaging is the main way products are adver-
tised and identified. The customers usually recognize the product using
package. Package, through its colour scheme and logo helps the cus-
tomer to identify the product.
4) Protection during transport and ease of transport:- Package should be
designed to make it easy to transport, move and shift. The product must
be protected against being dropped, crushed and vibration it suffers dur-
ing transport. Unusually shaped packages can lead to space being wasted
and this can be costly. A regular shaped package such as cuboid which
can be stacked without wasting too much space between each package.
This means more packages can be transported in a container or lorry.
5) Stacking and storage:- In supermarkets and shops it must be possible to
stack packages so that space is not wasted on the shelves. The packaging
must be designed in such a way that all important information can be seen
by a potential buyer, especially the product name. The shape and the
form of the package determines how efficiently they can be stacked or
stored.
6) Printed information:- Information that is useful to customers and compa-
nies such as supermarkets is printed on packages. This includes the ingre-
dients, ‘sell by date’, price, special offers, manufacturer’s address, prod-
uct title, bar code and more.
Packaging design
Packaging design reveals much about the cultural values of the market. Since
packaging design exists primarily in market places, where people with varied
cultural backgrounds and values come together, they must grab the consumer’s
attention immediately. This is achieved by employing the visuals and design
elements that attract the target consumer.
Packaging design objectives are framed around the relevant marketing
background and strategic objectives for a brand. The marketer or manufacturer
provides specific, detailed information and points exactly to measurable roles
for packaging design.
Materials for packaging
Metals - Aluminium and tin are the most commonly used metals in packaging
Aluminium:- Aluminium is appropriate for packaging foods (canned
foods). For drinks such as soft drinks and beers, aluminium is often used.
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It is also used for packaging of tablets. Aluminium is attractive, light and

strong. It can be recycled.
Tin:- Tin plate is a solid, heavy, steel covered with tin to protect it against
rust. It is used to package canned foods. It can be recycled.
Glass:- Glass can be moulded into a variety of shapes. It can also be
manufactured in a variety of colours. One of the reasons for using glass is that
the product (normally a liquid) can be seen inside it. Glass is used for preserving
foods like honey and jams. Some drinks have gases added and so glass bottles
must be able to withstand internal pressure. It is even used for consumable
goods like, medicines, cosmetics (perfumes), beer, wine, juice bottles. It can
be recycled.
Plastics:- Plastic is the most common packaging material and, at the same
time, one of the most difficult to dispose of. The factors common to all plastics
are that they are light, strong and cheap to manufacture.
Poly Ethylene Terephthalate (PET):- a shatter proof plastic becoming very
popular for drinks containers. It is light weight and 90% recyclable.
Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC):- used for soft drinks containers that are not
pressurised.
High Density Polythene (HDPE):- a strong plastic used for buckets, bowls,
pipes etc.
Low Density Polythene (LDPE):- a softer plastic used for plastic bags,
squeezy bottles for substances such as detergents. Also used for pouches
containing products such as drinks and semi-solid foods. Very popular as
containers of sports/energy drinks. These containers are flexible, shatter
proof, and cheap to produce.
Paper and cellulose film:- This type of packaging material is easy to print on
and can be coated, treated or laminated. Often it is manufactured from
renewable materials (recycled paper and pulp). It is easy to handle and light
weight. In addition, it can be folded into a variety of shapes by machines or by
hand. In general, it is used for labels, cartons, boxes and wrappings.
Brick carton:- It is a light, strong air-tight packaging material made up of
several layers of plastic, paper, aluminium. Its complex composition makes
it difficult to recycle. It is becoming the main packaging material for
basic food stuffs. It is used mainly to keep drinks such as milk, juice, etc.
Cardboard:- Cardboard is appropriate for packaging materials wrapping.
It is used in the form of boxes or sheets. It is highly recyclable.
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Corrugated board:- Corrugated cardboard is a stiff, strong, and light weight

material made from a combination of two sheets called liners glued to the
corrugated inner me-
dium called fluting.
These three layers of
paper are assembled
in a way which gives
the overall structure,
a better strength than
that of each distinct
layer. One sided corrugated boards having a flute with one layer of sheet
are called sigle faced corrugated boards. A flute with sheets on both sides
is called single wall corrugated or double faced corrugated boards. Single
walled, double walled or triple walled corrugated paper boards are com-
monly used for outer packagings such as shipping cartons and containers.
Special packages
Blister packs:- It is a rigid plastic packing method. This plastic is thermoformed
around the front face of product
allowing it to view through the
transparent plastic. The blister
is adhered on to a printed paper
board backing on which the
product information are
displayed. Hinged or double
blisters (clam shell) are formed
around both sides of the product
allowing for complete product
visibility. Graphics can also be
printed directly on the plastic
structure. Battery packs, toys
etc. are examples. Capsules and tablets are also blister packed but backed
with aluminium foil instead of paper board.
Bubble wrap:- It is a special type of package used for packing fragile products,
electronics items, etc. It is a pliable transparent plastic material in which
regularly spaced, protruding air-filled bubbles provide cushioning for fragile
items.
Shrink wrap:- Also called shrink film is a material made up of polymer plastic
film. When heat is applied, it shrinks tightly over whatever it is covering.
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Cartons
A carton is a box or container usually
made of paperboard and sometimes of
corrugated fiberboard. Many types of
cartons are used in packaging.
Sometimes a carton is also called a box.
Classification of Cartons based on
its style
General types of box styles are: four panel
styles box, tray style boxes & other box
styles.
Four panel style boxes:- These often include end enclosure panels and flaps
which are fastened in a variety of ways to create tuck end, seal end, or lock end
closure devices.
Straight Tuck End (STE):- In the STE box, the top and
bottom closure panels tuck from the rear to the front or
from the front to the rear. It is particularly well suited
for products requiring a paper box with a window in the
front display panel. The STE is used in most categories,
including beverage boxes, cosmetic boxes, food boxes,
medical boxes, pharmaceutical packaging boxes, retail
boxes, toy boxes etc.
Reverse Tuck End (RTE):- In the RTE box, the top
closure hinges off the front panel and tucks to the rear,
while the bottom closure hinges off the rear and tucks
to the front. This style is preferred for cosmetic boxes
since it presents a more
finished appearance
and better graphic
design opportunities.
It is also used for food boxes, medical boxes,
pharmaceutical packaging boxes, reatail boxes
etc.
Snap lock bottom:- It is also called 1-2-3
closure. The bottom structure is simple,
aesthetic and economic with strength and
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tightness. It is the most commonly used lock bottom structure and widely
used in cosmetics, alcohol and food packaging.
Automatic lock bottom:- In automatic lock bottom type cartons, the body and
the bottom of the box can be folded into a flat plate shape, and the bottom of
the box can be automatically restored to the sealing status when the box is
stretched. This structure is complex and the cost is higher compared to other
boxes.
Tray style boxes:- Many tray style custom boxes also include covers or lid
components hinge-connected to one or more of the upper edges of the side or
end panels.
Seal End:- The seal end box is typically erected,
filled and closed by packaging equipment. It is
often used for food boxes, medical boxes and
retail boxes.
Set-up boxes:- Set-up boxes are rigid pre-
assembled structures with a top and bottom.
They are made from heavy weight paper board
laminated with decorative papers, materials, and
other finishes that cover all of the outer side and edges. Cosmetics, candy,
jewellery, and other high end products that need luxury impression uses this
type of packaging.
Packaging Die
Once a packaging structure and material are determined, a designer usually
receives a digital file of the packaging die from the client. The die is the blue
print of the structure or design layout and provides the exact dimensions and
product specifications. Bleed requirements and gluing specifications are
included in a two dimensional drawing to which a designer can apply brand
informations and graphics using computer software.
A die prepared for a packaging job has two parts. First is the preparation of
cutting and creasing rules which are preapred according to the size and design
of the job. Cutting and creasing rules are made of flexible steel. One edge of
the cutting rule is sharp and the other edge is blunt or thick. Both sides of the
creasing rules are blunt or thick. These rules are cut and bent into circles or
triangles or semi circles according to the size and design of the job.
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The second part is specially made ply board or die board. The board used for
this purpose is strong and about 1.5 cm thick. The board pieces are cut about
2 cm larger than the actual size of the job. The line design of the packaging
job is drawn on the ply board by a pencil. A hole is made on any line of the
design by a drilling machine. The ply board is placed on the plate of a board
cutting machine. A zero number saw blade is inserted into the holes of the ply
boards. The saw blade is made up and down by pressing the pedal of the
machine. The ply board is rotated or moved by hands so that the saw blade
should move and cut only on the lines of the packaging design. By this cutting
process, all the line design of the ply board is cut very carefully. All the cutting
and creasing rules are then set within the cut pieces of the ply. Normally the
thickness of the saw blade is similar to the thickness of the rules. Therefor all
the cutting and creasing rules are easily fitted with the cut pieces of the ply
board.
Scope of packaging
Printing and packaging are the two sides of a coin. All the packagings are
printed first and then converted into package. Job opportunities for printing
has been increased due to the developments in the packaging industry.
Packaging has become necessary for creating attraction in selling the products
to the customers. Attractive packages printed in multi-colour catches the
attention of the customers at the point of purchase. Due to the expansion and
development of various industrial products, the packaging industry has also
been developed so much. Many edible materials, soaps, detergents, electrical
and electronic goods have global market. They are to be transported and sold
worldwide. Hence the usage of packaging has become extensive.
1. Prepare a carton with the given measurements.
Length - 9 cm width- 5 cm depth - 5 cm.
2. Prepare the drawing for the carton die of the above project.
3. Draw the picture of a STE/ RTE/ FSE carton and label the various parts of
it in your practical record book.
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1. Collect samples for different styles of cartons.
2. Prepare a carton for the given product.
3. Collect samples for special packages like a blister pack, a shrink wrapper,
a bubble wrap etc.
4. Prepare a set up box for a Necklace.
5. Collect ten types of packages made of different materials.
TE Questions
1. Illustrate the various functions of packaging.
2. Write briefly about the different types of packaging materials you have
studied.
3. What is a packaging die? How is it prepared?
4. Describe the purpose of design for packaging.
5. Describe the scope of packaging industry.
6. What are the different styles of cartons?
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Unit - 5
BASIC ENGINEERING
Introduction
An understanding of simple electric, electronic, mechanical and pneumatic
components provides the background necessary to explore more complex
system of components used in various equipment and machineries used in the
printing industry.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• distinguishes between Alternating current and Direct current.
• understands the functions of Motors and Transformers.
• identifies Basic Electronic Circuit components.
• recognises Mechanical components.
• recognises Hydraulics and Pneumatics.
• recognises Mechanical, Electrical, Electronic and Pneumatic parts of a
printing machine.
Alternating current and Direct current
Alternating current and Direct current: Alternating current (AC) is an electric
current in which the flow of electric charge periodically reverses direction,
whereas in direct current (DC) the flow of electric charge is only in one direction.
AC is the form in which electric power is delivered to businesses and residences.
The usual wave form of AC in most electric power circuit is a sine wave. In
certain applications, different wave forms are used, such as triangular or square
waves. The rate at which the electric current changes its direction per second
is called frequency and it is denoted in Hertz. The electric supply that we get
at our home is usually 230 volts and its frequency is 50 Hz.
Direct current (DC) is the unidirectional flow of electric charge. DC is produced
by sources such as batteries, power supplies, thermocouples, solar cells, or
dynamos. DC may flow in a
conductor such as a wire, but can
also flow through semi
conductors, insulators, or even
through a vacuum as in electron
or ion beams. The electric
current flows in a constant
direction, distinguishing it from
AC.
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DC may be obtained from an AC supply by use of a rectifier, which contains

electronic elements that allow current to flow only in one direction. DC may
be converted into AC with an inverter or a motor-generator set. DC is used to
charge batteries and as power supply for electronic systems.
Motors and Transformers
Electric motors are machines which convert electrical energy into mechanical
energy. There are two types of electric motors - AC motors & DC motors.
Both AC and DC motors serve the same function but they are powered,
constructed and controlled differently. The most basic difference is the power
source. AC motors are powered from alternating current while DC motors are
powered from direct current, such as batteries, DC power supplies, or an AC-
to-DC power converter. DC wound field motors are constructed with brushes
and a commutator, which add to the maintenance, limit the speed and usually
reduce the life expectancy of brushed DC motors.
AC induction motors do not use brushes. They have long life expectancies.
The final basic difference is speed control. The speed of a DC motor is
controlled by varying the armature winding’s current while the speed of an AC
motor is controlled by varying the frequency, which is commonly done with
an adjustable frequency drive control.
Transformers are basically very simple static (or stationary) electro-magnetic
passive electrical devices that work on the principle of Faraday’s law of
induction by converting electrical energy from one value to another.
The transformer does this by linking together two or more electrical circuit
using a common oscillating magnetic circuit which is produced by the
transformer itself. A transformer operates on the principles of ‘electromagnetic
induction’, in the form of mutual induction.
Mutual induction is the process by which a coil of wire magnetically induces a
voltage into another coil located in close proximity to it. Then we can say that
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transformers work in the ‘magnetic domain’, and transformers get their name
from the fact that they ‘transform’ one voltage or current level into another.
Transformers are capable of either increasing or decreasing the voltage and
current levels of their supply, without modifying its frequency, or the amount
of electrical power being transferred from one winding to another via the
magnetic circuit. There are basically two types of transformers:
1. Step-up transformer:- a step-
up transformer is one whose
secondary voltage is greater than
its primary voltage. The number
of turns on the secondary winding
of a step-up transformer is greater
than the number of turns on its
primary winding.
2. Step-down transformer:- it is
the opposite of the above, i.e., one
whose primary voltage is greater
than its secondary voltage. Step-
down transformers are used to
step down high voltages i.e., from 11000 V to 220 V and from 220 V to 10, 12,
20 or 24 Volts etc. The number of turns on the primary winding of a step-up
transformer is greater than the number of turns on its secondary winding.
A single phase voltage transformer basically consists of two electrical coils of
wire, one called the ‘primary winding’ which takes power and another called
the ‘secondary winding’ which delivers power.
These two coils are not in electrical contact with each other but are instead
wrapped together around a common closed magnetic iron circuit called the
‘core’. This soft iron core is not solid but made up of individual laminations
connected together to help reduce the core’s losses.
The two coil windings are electrically isolated from each other but are
magnetically linked through the common core allowing electrical power to be
transferred from one coil to the other. When an electric current passed through
the primary winding, a magnetic field is developed which induces a voltage
into the secondary winding as shown.
In brief, a transformer changes the voltage level (or current level) on its input
winding to another value on its output winding using a magnetic field. A
transformer consists of two electrically isolated coils and operates on Faraday’s
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principle of ‘mutual induction’, in which an EMF is induced in the transformer’s

secondary coil by the magnetic flux generated by the voltages and currents
flowing in the primary coil winding.
Basic Electronic Circuit Components
An electronic circuit is composed of individual electronic components, such
as resistors, capacitors, transistors, inductors, and diodes, Light Emitting
Diodes(LED), Integrated Circuit (IC) chips connected by conductive wires or
traces through which electric current can flow. The combination of components
and wires allows various simple and complex operations to be performed.
Interconnections between the components are done by photolithographic
techniques on a laminated substrate (a Printed Circuit Board or PCB) and solder
the components to these interconnections to create a finished circuit. Screen
printing technique is mainly employed in the production of PCBs.
Resistor: A resistor is an
electrical component that
limits or regulates the
flow of electrical current
in an electronic circuit.
Resistor values are often
indicated with colour
codes. Practically, all
resistors with a power
rating upto 1 watt are
marked with colour
bands. Standard unit of
resistance is Ohm ().
Capacitor: A capacitor is a passive electronic component used to make a time-
delay in a circuit. We can charge and discharge it just like a battery. It consists
of two conducting plates separated by an insulating material called the dielectric.
The standard unit of capacitance is the Farad (F).
Diode: Diode is an electronic device that restricts current flow chiefly to one
direction. A diode consists of two electrodes called the anode and the cathode.
Most diodes are made with semi-conductor materials such as silicon,
germanium, or selenium.
Diodes are sometimes used as rectifiers. A rectifier changes AC to DC. A
light emitting diode or LED is a component that gives light. It is used in an
electronic circuit to give a visual feedback.
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Transistor: A transistor is a device that regulates current or voltage flow and

acts as a switch or gate for electronic signals. A transistor amplifies, oscillates,
or switches the flow of current between two terminals. Transistors consist of
three layers of a semiconductor material, each capable of carrying a current.
The transistor’s three-layer structure contains an N-type semiconductor layer
sandwiched between P-type layers (a PNP configuration) or a P-type layer
between N-type layers (an NPN configuration).
Integrated circuit (IC): A device made of interconnected electronic components
such as transistors, resistors, and capacitors, that are etched or imprinted onto
a tiny slice of a semiconducting material such as silicon or germanium. An IC
can function as an amplifier, oscillator, timer, counter, computer memory, micro
processor etc.
Mechanical components
Gears:- A gear is a rotating machine part having cut teeth which mesh with
teeth in another part to transmit or receive force and motion. Main types of
gears seen on a printing machine are the following:
1) Spur gear: Spur gears are the most common type of gears and have straight
teeth and are parallel to the axis of the wheel. The advantages of spur
gears are their simplicity in design, economy of manufacture and mainte-
nance. Spur gears are known as slow speed gears. These gears are com-
paratively noisy.
2) Helical gear: Helical gears have their teeth cut at an angle to the face of
the gear. Their teeth are inclined to the axis of the shafts in the form of a
helix, hence the name helical gears. These gears are usually used as high
speed gears. It can take higher loads than similarly sized spur gears. the
motion of helical gears is smoother and quieter than the motion of spur
gears.
3) Bevel gear: Bevel gears are gears where the axes of the two shafts inter-
sect and the tooth-bearing faces of the gears themselves are conically
shaped. Bevel gears are most often mounted on shafts that are 90o apart,
but can be designed to work at other angles as well. The teeth on bevel
gears can be straight or spiral.
4) Worm gear: Worm gears are used when large gear reductions are needed.
It is a gear arrangement in which a worm (which is a gear in the form of a
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screw) meshes with a worm gear (which is similar in appearance to a spur

gear). The two elements are also called the worm screw and worm wheel.
Shaft:- A shaft is a rotating machine element, usually circular in cross section,
which is used to transmit power from one part to another, or from a machine
which produces power to a machine which absorbs power. The various parts
such as pulleys and gears are mounted on it.
Levers:- A lever is a rigid body capable of rotating on a point on itself. A lever

amplifies an input force to provide a greater output force, which is said to
provide leverage.
Cams:- A cam is a rotating or sliding piece in a mechanical
linkage used especially in transforming rotary motion into
linear motion or vice versa. A cam follower is a machine
part that moves up and down in contact with a cam on a
rotating shaft.
Chain and sprocket:- Chain drive is a way of transmitting mechanical power
from one place to another. A sprocket is a wheel with teeth that mesh with a
chain.
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Nut and bolt:- A nut is a type of fastener with a threaded hole. Nuts are almost
always used opposite a mating bolt to fasten a stack of parts together. A bolt is
a form of threaded fastener with an external male thread.
Pulleys:- This is used to transmit drive from one to another. There are different
types according to the shape of belts on it such as flat, grooved, teethed,etc.
The diameter, width and number of grooves in a pulley depend on the load it
has to transmit.
Bearings :- Bearings are supporting elements for shaft, cylinders, etc. They
need intermittent oil lubrication at desired quanity. There are different types
of bearings such as brush bearing, ball bearing, roller bearing, and needle
bearing.
Hydraulics and Pneumatics
Hydraulics deals with the mechanical properties of liquids or fluids. Hydraulics
is used for the generation, control and transmission of power by the use of
pressurised liquids. A hydraulic drive system consists of three parts, the
generator (hydraulic pump), driven by an electric motor, a combustion engine;
valves, filters, piping etc. (to guide and control the system); and the actuator
(hydraulic motor or hydraulic cylinder) to drive the machinery.
Pneumatics is a branch of engineering that makes use of gas or pressurised air.
Pneumatic systems are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed
inert gases. Their principle of operation is similar to that of the hydraulic
power systems. With pneumatics, air is usually pumped into a receiver using
a compressor. Energy produced by pneumatic systems are more flexible, less
costly, more reliable, and less dangerous than some electric motors.
Mechanical, Electrical, Electronic and Pneumatic parts
of a printing machine
Mechanical parts of an offset machine are :
Gears, cams and followers, chain and sprockets, side frames, plate, blanket
and impression cylinders, pulleys, shafts, lever, bearings, nuts and bolts,
washers, etc.
Electrical parts of an offset machine are :
Motors (AC & DC), transformers (step up & step down), electro magnets,
relays, switches, etc.
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Electronic parts of an offset machine are :

Printed circuit boards (PCBs), IC chips, transistors, resistors, capacitors, diodes,
LEDs, no sheet detector, sensors, counter etc.
Pneumatic parts of an offset machine are :
Compressors for paper feeding, transferring and delivery
Hydraulic parts of an offset machine are:
Oil and grease pumping system.
Additional Information: Pascal’s law is the basis of hydraulic drive

systems. As the pressure in the system is the same, the force that
the fluid gives to the surroundings is therefore equal to pressure x
area. In such a way, a small piston feels a small force and a large
piston feels a large force.
1. List out the different mechanical parts in an offset machine.
1. Collect various electronic components like resistors, capacitors, diodes,
transistors, IC chips.
2. Prepare a chart of various kinds of mechanical, electrical, electronic and
pneumatic parts of an offset machine.
3. Collect any four types of gears from your old toys.
4. Identify various types of DC and AC motors used in your home or printing lab.
TE Questions
1. How does the working of a DC motor differ from that of an AC motor?
2. What are the different types of gears used in the construction of an offset
machine.
3. Draw the diagram of any two types of gears that you see on a cutting
machine.
4. How does a step up transformer differ from a step down transformer?
Identify the type of transformer that you see on an 11KV line near your
home.
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Unit - 6
ENGINEERING GRAPHICS
Introduction
It is a graphical language that communicates ideas and information from one
mind to another. One of the best ways to communicate one’s ideas is through
some form of picture or drawing. This is especially true for an engineer. The
purpose of this unit is to give you the basics of engineering sketching and
drawing. We will treat “sketching” and “drawing” as one. “Sketching” generally
means freehand drawing. “Drawing” usually means using drawing instruments,
from compasses to computers to bring precision to the drawings.
Learning Outcomes
The learner:
• recognises letteting, numbering, dimensioning.
• applies principles of geometrical constructions.
• constructs basic shapes such as square, rectangle, circle, ellipse, etc.
• understands about projections of points, lines and planes.
• draws basic section views, auxillary views and ismetric views.
DRAWING INSTRUMENTS
Drawing Instruments are used to prepare drawings accurately and easily. The
accuracy and quality of drawing depends on the accuracy and quality of drawing
instruments. The following are the commonly used materials and tools in
engineering drawing.
Basic Tools and materials
• Drawing board, Drawing paper, pencil, eraser, Drawing pins/ tape, Clips,
Duster.
• T-Square and Set Square, Mini drafter, Scales, Dividers and Protractor.
• Compass, French curves and Templates
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T-SQUARE PROTRACTOR
SET SQUARE
450 Set square 600 Set square

COMPASS
FRENCH CURVE Drafting machine
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A drafting machine is a device which is mounted to the drawing board. It has

rulers whose angles can be precisely adjusted with a controlling mechanism.
There are two main types of apparatus: an arm-type parallelogram apparatus
based on a hinged arm; and a track-type apparatus which moves on a rail
mounted to the top of the drawing board. Small drafting machines (mini drafters)
are commonly used.
Rulers
Rulers also called Architect’s scale used in technical
drawing are usually made of polystyrene. It is available
in two types according to the design of their edge as
(1) Straight edge and grooved edge.
LETTERING AND DIMENSIONING
Writing of titles, dimensions, notes and other
important particulars on a drawing is called lettering. An architect’s scale
Lettering can be done in different ways such as hand (Rulers)
lettering, mechanical lettering etc. Mechanical lettering can be done using
typewriter or computer.
Dimension is a numerical value expressed in appropriate units of measurement

and marked on a drawing with lines, symbols and notes. The dimension without
any unit is considered in ‘mm’. The elements of dimensioning are projection
line or extension line, dimension line, leader line and arrowheads. Projection
line is a thin, dark, solid line that extends from a point on the drawing to which
a dimension refers. A dimension line is a thin line that shows where a
measurement begins and where it ends. The dimension line should have a
break in it for the dimension numbers. Dimension line should be at least 10mm
from the lines of the drawing. Leader lines are thin lines drawn from a note or
a dimension to the place where it applies. Arrowheads are used at the ends of
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the dimension lines. They show where a dimension begins and ends.
POINTS TO BE CONSIDERED IN DIMENSIONING
• Each drawing shall use the same unit for all dimensions.
• Long extension line should be avoided.
• Do not cross a dimension line with another line.
• Each feature of the object shall be dimensioned only once on a drawing.
• All dimensions which are necessary to define an object or component
must be clearly marked on the drawing.
• Dimension lines are placed outside the drawings except in special cases
where marking inside the drawing is readable.
• In general, dimensions should be placed outside the view outline.
• Do not use a centre line or a line of the drawing as the centre line.
FREEHAND SKETCHING
Freehand sketch is a drawing made without the help of drawing instruments.
The important uses of freehand sketching are:
• It is used to convey the thoughts and ideas to the workers.
• It is used to present the ideas of the designer to the management.
• It is used for showing different layouts of the drawing.
• It is used in the production of temporary fixtures.
• It is also used to convey information regarding repair or modification
needed in an existing structure or machine.
COMPARISON BETWEEN FREE HAND SKETCHING AND INSTRUMENTAL
DRAWING
Free hand sketching Instrumental drawing
Drawing made without the use of Drawing made with the use of
drawing instrument drawing instrument
It is not drawn to actual scale It is drawn to actual scale
It is not a perfect drawing It is a perfect drawing with uniform
line thickness
It is used for temporary figures/ It gives exact details of object to be
fixtures manufactured
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LINES
In engineering drawing, different types of lines are used to describe different
objects. The following are some of the commonly used lines.
1. Outline
They are drawn in the outer edge of an object.
This is a thick line drawn continuously without
any break. They are also called object lines.
2. Dotted lines
This line is drawn to indicate certain inner or hidden edge surface of an object.
It is drawn with a break at regular intervals. The dotted line is drawn with 2
mm length at 1mm intervals.
3. Centre line
This line indicates the centre point of circles and symmetric features. It is
drawn using long and short lines
respectively. The long line is six or
eight times longer than the smaller lines which are present in between the long
ones.
4. Extension & Dimension line
Dimension line indicates the size of an object. The arrow
heads are drawn on either ends of this line. Gap at the
centre can be used to indicate the dimensional value.
5. Section line or hatching line
This line is drawn to
indicate the cut section
of an object. These lines
are drawn at an angle of
400. The spacing between the lines is approximately one to 15mm. These lines
are drawn lighter than the object lines.
6. Pointer line
A light bend line with an
arrow head pointing an
object is known as a
pointer line.
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7. Short break line

This line is drawn to indicate unequal borders
and a small break in a structure.
8. Long break line
This line is drawn to indicate a large break
in a structure. It is drawn with zig zag line
GEOMETRICAL DRAWING
INTRODUCTION
The drawing of object views involves plane geometric constructions. It is
necessary to have a good knowledge of plane geometry. Preparation of
engineering drawings involve number of geometrical constructions. Hence it
is necessary to study geometrical drawing. Geometrical constructions relating
to straight lines, circles, arcs of circles, Triangle, rectangle, square, regular
polygons and conic sections are illustrated in this chapter.
POINT
A point represents a location in space or on a drawing and generally represented
by a very small circle or a small dot.
LINE
A line is the shortest distance between two points.
Types of lines :
STRAIGHT LINE
PARALLEL LINES
CURVED LINES
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• Let the given straight line or arc be AB.

• With A and B as centers and radius greater than half of AB, draw arcs
intersecting each other at M and N respectively.
• Join M and N which bisect the given line or arc.
To draw a perpendicular line to a given line from a given point with in it
• Let P be the given point on a given line AB.

• With P as centre, draw an arc cutting AB at M by taking any suitable
radius.
• With same radius, mark two equal divisions on the arc MN and NR re-
spectively.
• With centers N and R and of any suitable radius draw arcs to intersect at
a point 0. Draw a line OP through 0 and P, the line OP is the required
perpendicular line.
Dividing a line into equal parts
Dividing a line into number of equal parts by using dividers is not very accurate.
A satisfactory method is given below.
R
5
4
3
2
• If the line PQ is to be divided into six equal parts.

• Draw a line PR inclined at any convenient acute angle to PQ.
• Make six equal divisions along PR at any convenient length starting from
P.
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Reference Book
• Join Q and 6. Draw lines parallel to Q6 through the division points l, 2, 3,

4 and 5 cutting
• PQ at I’, 2’, 3’, 4’, and 5'.
• Points l’, 2’, 3’, 4’ and5' are the division points dividing PQ into equal
parts.
ANGLES
An angle is the inclination between two intersecting lines.
Types of Angles
Right angle: Angle equal to 90° is called right angle.
Acute angle: Angle less than 90° is called acute angle.
Obtuse angle: Angle greater than 90° is called obtuse angle.
Complementary angle:
Complementary angle are those angles which together form90°, the angles
AOC and BOC are complementary angles. The angle AOC is also said to be
the complement angle of BOC and vice-versa.
Supplementary angles: supplementary angles are those when two angles
together make 180°.
Bisecting a given angle between two given lines
148
• Let the given angle be AOB between two given lines OA and OR
• With 0 as centre and with any convenient radius, draw an arc cutting OA
at C and OB at D.
• Now with C and D as centre and at any convenient radius draw arcs to
intersect each other at P. Draw a line through 0and P, which bisects the
given angle AO.
TRIANGLES
A Triangle is a plane figure bounded by three straight lines containing three
angles. The sum of the three interior angles is 180o
• The sum of all the angles of a triangle is always 180°.

• The side on which it is supposed to stand is called its base and the angles
at the base are known as base angles.
• The point where the other two sides meet is called a vertex and the angle
at the vertex is called a vertical angle.
• The line drawn from the vertex and perpendicular to the base is called an
altitude.
• The line joining the angular point of a triangle to the middle point of the
opposite of an angular point is called the Median.
TYPES OF TRIANGLES
i) Equilateral Triangle: It is that in which all the three sides are equal and
the three angles are equal.
ii) Isosceles Triangle: It is that in which two sides as well as the angle oppo-
site to them are equal.
Ill) Scalene Triangle: It has no sides or angle equal. The altitude may either
be within or outside the triangle.
iv) Right angled Triangle: It is that in which one angle is equal to 90° and the
side opposite to the right angle is called hypotenuse.
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Reference Book
v) Acute angled triangle: It is that in which all the angles are acute ie. Less
than 90°.
vi) Obtuse angled Triangle: It is that in which one of its angles is obtuse and
the other two angles are acute.
Drawing an equilateral triangle (given the length of one side)
Let AB be the given length of one side of an equilateral triangle.
Draw a triangle with T-square and set-square only

Draw a line AB of given length by means of drafter.
Set the drafter at 30°-60° and draw a line AN through A making
an angle of 60° with AB.
Similarly through B, draw a line BN making the same angle
with BA there by intersecting the first line at C.
Join AC and BC. Then ABC is the required equilateral triangle.
With the help of compass
Draw a given line AE. With A and B as centers and radius
equal to AB, draw as intersecting each other etc.
Join AC and BC. Then ABC is the required equilateral
triangle.
SQUARE
Square is the quadrilateral in which all the sides are equal and the angles are at
right angles. Draw a square- given the length of one side:
150
Let AB be the length of one side of square.

(a) With set square only: Draw a line AB by means of a T-Square through A
and B draw vertical line AM and BN Draw two lines AC and BD inclined
at 45° to AB and BA, there by cutting BN at C and AM at D. Join C with
D. Then ABCD is the required square.
(b) With the help of compass:-Draw a given line AB. At A draw a line AM
perpendicular to AB with A as centre and radius AB, draw an arc cutting
AM at D. With B and D as centers and having same radius ie. AB, draw
arcs intersecting each other at C. Join BC and CD. Then ABCD is the
required square.
Draw a circle inscribed in a square:
Draw a straight line AB.
Draw vertical lines AM and BN from A and B.
With A and B as the centers draw arcs radius of AB, these arcs cuts AM at C
and BN at D. Join CD.
Draw two diagonals AD and BC. These two diagonals
intersecting at O. Draw a vertical line fromO to the
midpoint of line AB. Draw a circle with O as centre
and radius of OP.
RECTANGLE
Rectangle is the quadrilateral in which the opposite
sides are equal and all the angles are at right angles.
Activity:- Draw a rectangle of length 60mm and breath 30mm.as per the
procedure.
Procedure:
• Draw a straight line AB equal to 60mm
• From A draw vertical line AM.
• With A as centre and radius of 30mm draw an arc cutting AM at D.
• With D as centre and radius of 60mm draw an arc.
• With B as centre and radius of 30mm draw another arc.
• These 2 arcs intersects each other at C. Join BC and CD.
• Then rectangle ABCD is obtained
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Reference Book
POLYGON
A polygon may be defined as a plane figure bounded by straight lines. It is a
plane figure bounded by more than four straight lines and containing more
than four angles.
Types of polygon
If all the sides and angles of a polygon are equal it is called a Regular polygon,
but if all the sides and angles are unequal, then it is called an Irregular polygon.
• Regular polygon can be inscribed in or circumscribed around a circle
• The polygons are named according to the number of their sides and angles.
PENTAGON
Pentagon is that which has five equal sides and angles
Activity: Draw a pentagon of a given side (say a 35mm side)
• Draw a line AB equal to 35mm. Bisect it at K and
• Draw KD perpendicular to it.
• Cut of KM=AB. Join BM and produce it to N so that MN=half of AB.
• With D as centre and radius equal to AB. draw
an arc EC.
• With A and B as centers and having same radius
cut the previous arc at E and C.
• Join BC, CD, DE and EA. Then ABCDE is the
required Pentagon.
HEXAGON
Hexagon is that which has six equal sides and angles. Draw
a hexagon of given side (say 35mm side)
• Draw a Line AB equal to 35mm.
• With A and Bas centers and radius of 35mm, draw arcs intersecting at 0.
• With 0 as the centre and having 35mm radius, draw the segment of a circle.
• With AB as radius, cut the segment at C, D, E and F.
• Join BC, CD, DE, EF and FA.Then ABCDEF is the required regular
hexagon.
152
CONIC SECTIONS
Conic section are the curves obtained by the intersection of a right circular
cone by a plane at different angles. Ellipse, parabola, and hyperbola are the
curves thus obtained and hence are called the conic sections or conics.
Draw an ellipse of major axis 80 mm and minor axis 50mm in concentric

circles method
l) Draw AB (80mm) and CD (50mm) the major and minor axes perpendicu-
lar to each other cutting at O.
2) With O as centre, draw two concentric circles of diameter 80 mm and
50mm as shown
3) Draw radial lines OE’,E, OF’, F etc. at convenient angular intervals of
say 30°.
4) From points E, F etc. on the major axis circle, draw lines perpendicular
to the major axis AB. From points El FI etc. on the minor axis circle,
draw lines parallel to the major axis. The intersect is of perpendicular and
parallel lines from points on the same radial line will fix a point on the
required ellipse.
(5) Draw a graceful curve through these points to define the ellipse.
Draw an ellipse of major axis 70mm and minor axis 45mm in concentric circle
method.
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Reference Book
ORTHOGRAPHIC PROJECTION
Orthographic projection is one method of projection used in engineering
drawing in which the objects are projected on imaginary planes. This means
we make the object become 2D. The difference between Orthographic
Projection and any other drawing method is that we use several 2D views of
the object instead of a single view.
In orthographic projection the object is placed at infinite distance from the
observer. The image formed on the picture plane is orthographic projection.
The word orthographic means to draw at right angles.
P- PLAN,
Side view (EE) Front view(E)
E- ELEVATION,
Top view (P)
EE- END ELEVATION
Basics of Orthographic Projection
Orthographic Projection involves us seeing an object in 2D. To do this we
need to look at 90 degrees to the face of an object. The planes of projection are
extended beyond the line of intersection to form four quadrants. The position
of objects in any one these four quadrants are as follows
1. First horizontal plane(HP) in front of vertical plane(VP)
2. Second quadrant-Above HP and behind VP
3. Third quadrant-Below HP and behind VP
4. Fourth quadrant; Below HP and in front of VP
ORTHOGRAPHIC VIEWS
Orthographic views are obtained from orthographic projection. The front, top
and side views are called as orthographic views. In orthographic projection,
the picture planes are called as planes of projection and the perpendicular line
are called as project lines or projectors. When we draw an Orthographic view
of the front of an object it is called ELEVATION. When we draw an
Orthographic view of the top of an object it is called PLAN. When we draw an
Orthographic view of one side of an object it is called an END ELEVATION.
154
TYPES OF ORTHOGRAPHIC PROJECTION

Usually there are 4 types of orthographic projections
1) First angle projection
2) Second angle projection
3) Third angle projection
4) Fourth angle projection
In engineering drawing we prefer only the first angle projection.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN FIRST ANGLE AND THIRD ANGLE

PROJECTION
First angle projection Third angle projection
The object is placed in the first The object is placed in the third
quadrant quadrant
The object lies between the observer The plane of projection lies between
and the plane of projection. the observer and the object
In this method, when the views are In this method, when the views are
drawn in their relative position, the drawn in their relative position, the
plan comes below the elevation. The plan comes above the elevation. The
left side view is drawn in the right side left side view is drawn in the left side
of elevation. of elevation.
The plane of projection is assumed to The plane of projection is assumed to
be non transparent be transparent
Normally this projection is used in Normally this projection is used in
India and British countries USA
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Reference Book
Example 1
Draw the Elevation looking from the direction of arrow FV, plan and Right
side view, left side view for the pictorial view show in figure.
ISOMETRIC PROJECTION
The isometric projection of an object is a one plane view drawn with the object
so placed with respect to the plane of projection that all the three principal
axes appear to be inclined to each other at an equal angle of 1200
Isometric scale is used to measure the foreshortened length of dimensions of
any object to draw the isometric projection. The steps of construction of
isometric scale are given below
(i) Draw a horizontal line PQ. (ii) Draw the true lengths on a line PM inclined
at 45° to the horizontal line (say up to 70 mm) (iii) Draw another line PA at 30°
to the horizontal line.
(iv) Draw the vertical projection of all the points of true length from PM to PA.
(v) Complete the scale with the details as shown in the figure. The lengths
shown at the line PA are the isometric lengths to be used to draw the isometric
projection.
156
ISOMETRIC DRAWING
Exercise: Draw the isometric drawing of a rectangular prism of base 30 mm x
15 mm and the height 50 mm .
- Draw the isometric projection of a cube of side 50mm
• Draw the three isometric axes through point ‘A’.

• Mark AB = 15 mm, AD= 30 mm and AH =50 mm representing the three
sides of prism.
• Draw two vertical lines parallel to the line AH through points B and D.
• Similarly draw two more lines parallel to AB and AD through point H.
• Mark G and E the intersecting points.
• Draw lines parallel to GH and HE through points G and E intersecting
point is F.
• Draw lines parallel to AB & AD through points D and B respectively
intersecting at C.
• Join CB & CD with dash lines.
• Join F and C also with dash lines.
• Rub off the construction lines and complete the prism.
AUXILIARY VIEW
If a surface of an object is inclined to any of the planes of projection, the view
of the surface of that plane will not show its true shape and size. To overcome
this difficulty a view of the inclined surface is projected on an imaginary plane
parallel to this inclined surface. This imaginary plane is called Auxiliary plane
and the view obtained on it is called Auxiliary view.
SECTIONAL VIEWS
Interior details of an object cannot be shown on principal exterior views. In
such cases an imaginary cutting (sectioning) plane may be used to cut through
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Reference Book
the object so that the portion in front of the plane can be imagined to be removed
so as to expose inner details.
The sectional view shows and elaborates the internal construction of a machine,
so that the drawing shows the components and parts that a machine consists
of. The view can be the section of either Top view , Front view or Side view.
Actually the sectional view is an “anatomy” study of a machine. Designers use
these view to analyse the constructional details and to modify the design of a
machine. They are the projected views (either Auxiliary or Orthographic) which
show a cross section of the source object along the specified cut plane. There
are different types of sectional views such as (1) Full Sectional view. (2) Half
Sectional view , (3) Partial/ Broken Sectional view, (4) Revolved Sectional
view, (5) Offset sectional view and (6) Removed sectional view.
DEVELOPMENT OF SURFACES
The knowledge of development of surfaces is used in the engineering
applications such as sheet metal works, automobile body building, packing
industry etc. The surface of an object which are opened out and laid on a flat
plane is called the development of surfaces of that object.
DEVELPOMENT OF CYLINDER
Cylinder is wrapped around a paper. When the paper is opened, it is rectangle

in size.
Length = circumference of cylinder
Breadth = Height of cylinder
Generally, parallel line method is used for development of cubes, prisms,
cylinder etc.
158
DEVELOPMENT OF HEXAGONAL PYRAMID

Pyramid is developed as follows:
Draw an arc of radius OA – o’a’. Divide the arc into 6 equal sectors so that
each sector is equal to distance x
TE QUESTIONS
1. Draw a bisecting line for given straight line AB of length 120 mm.
2. Draw a bisection line for given straight line PQ of length 60 mm
3. Draw a perpendicular line to a given straight line AB of length l10 mm
from a given point 0 A0=40mm.
4. Divide the given straight line AB length of 120 mm into seven equal
parts.
5. Divide the given straight line PQ of length 70 mm into five equal parts.
6. Draw an arc of 40 mm radius touching the two given straight lines [AB =
80mm, AC = 70 mm] at right angles to each other.
7. Draw an equilateral triangle ABC for given side. Side AB 40 mm.
8. Draw an Isosceles Triangle ABC for given data. AB = 70mm, AC =
BC=55mm.
9. Draw a square for given length of one side [Side AB =60 mm].
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Reference Book
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Prust Z. A. : Graphic Communications, Edition 5 : The Printed Image,The

Goodheart-Willcox Company, Inc.
2. J. Michael Adams, Printing Technology,Edition 5 : Delmer Publishers
Inc.
3. Adams, Faux, Rieber : Printing Technology. Edition 3: Delmer Publish-
ers Inc.
4. Helmut Kipphan : Handbook of Print Media : Springer-Verlag Berlin
Heidelberg.
5. C. S Misra. : Technology of Offset Printing : Anupam Prakasan.
6. Viswanath Chakravarthy : A Hand Book for Printing & Packaging Tech-
nology. : Galgotic Publications Pvt. Ltd.
7. C. S Misra. : Printing Technology for Students : Anupam Prakasan.
8. Kenneth F. Hird, Charles E Finley : Offset Lithography Technology. Edi-
tion 4 : The Goodheart-Willcox Company, Inc.
9. Dr. Prakash Shetty : Printing Material Science : M J Publishers Chennai.
10. Richard D. Waner : Introduction to Security Printing : GATF USA.
11. Marianne Rosner, Klin Chuk : Packaging Design : Willy Inc. USA.
12. P I Varghese : Engineering Graphics wih Autocad.: VIP Publishers Thrissur.
13. C. S Misra. : Printing Inks & Paper : Anupam Prakasan.
14. www.osha.gov
15. www.epa.gov
16. www.printwiki.org
17. www.fineprintsschool.com
18. www.pffc-online.com/mag/paper_roll_tack_printing
160

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Vocational Higher Secondary

Graphic Design &

State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT),

About the Course ............................................................................. 5

Packaging is an integral part of printing Industry. The printing and packaging

3.1.8 Types of Ink

3.3.2 Cylinder and roller pressure

3.5.4 Problems due to blanket and rollers

3.6.11 Cylinder preparation methods

Module 4 - Binding and Packaging

Office stationery, Manifold, Account book binding, Exercise note book

Typography and packaging design

Emergence of wood based paper and increased mechanisation- 19 th

Mineral paper is made from pulverised limestone particles held by a binding

Conventional paper sizes

Foolscap 13.5” X 17”

GSM below 150 - Paper

Length in meter breadth in meter x GSM

Estimating Paper Quantity

Storage of paper / Warehousing

Ink - Ingredients, Properties and Manufacturing

Tack:- Tack or stickiness is a property of ink that must be controlled in order

allowing the printed product to be handled without spreading before it is fully

Alcohol dampening solution:- Iso Propyl Alcohol (IPA) is added to conventional

Successive or single sheet feeding:-

image from the plate cylinder

Alcohol dampening system:- Alcohol dampening system recirculate the

3) Slide the new cover over the roller.

Roller pressure settings

3) Drop the form rollers to the on position.

Four units of an Offset Machine

3) Correct paper stock, plus make ready and waste sheets.

Make sure you have properly

Specification (Spec) :- A typical spec includes the quantity to be printed, the

Job ticket / work order

Filtration system:- Filtration and ventilation systems are commonly found in

Web offset printing papers

• Antistatic equipment such as discharge electrodes and ionic blowers re-

• Allow the machine to run on standard working condition.

Remedies:- Add driers as suggested by the manufacturer, add gum or binding

• Incorrect fountain solution.

Blanket and Roller Problems

Gray Balance Patch : Gray balance is measured by overprinting screen tints

Colourimeter: It is a colour mesaurement device that measures and compares

In two roller system the

Plate making process

fig. 17.6, 7 IIIrd edn

Liquid Photo Polymer Sheet Photo Polymer

Gravure printing unit

Screen Printing Process

Resists chemical action and corrosion

An indirect photographic stencil method involves six steps:

Automation in screen printing

Fire hazards:- Printing involves flammable materials which create significant

Safety measures for operating a cutting machine

Logos of recyclable and recycled paper:- Paper products

Board covered Cut Flush Binding

Adhesives used in binding

Cord sewing (Sawn-in-sewing) : It is done