Sustainability
Carbon footprint: a record we chose to keep
A record kept on our own initiative, beyond any obligation, with an internationally recognised methodology and full documentation.
Read →Articles and technical guides
Technical knowledge
for print buyers.
File preparation guidelines and a short briefing on the European framework that concerns paper and packaging.
Manufacturers
Contract printing for manufacturers: from artwork to finished sheet
Print only or print and coating, printed to your cutting die, with food-grade inks and delivery across Europe.
Read →Pharmaceutical
Pharmaceutical leaflet printing: what to expect
Thin 40–60 g/m² paper, strict version and pharmacode checks, traceability for your quality team and delivery across Europe.
Read →Print design
Paginating multi-page print: page counts, spine and creep
Why the page count is a multiple of four, saddle stitch or perfect binding, how pages pair up, what creep is, how to calculate the spine and how to deliver the file.
Read →Colour
Halftone screening and CMYK: how tones are printed in offset
How halftone screening creates tones, what lpi means, the angles of the four inks, the rosette, moiré, dot gain and stochastic screening.
Read →Print design
Paper sizes A4, A3, A5: the ISO 216 system explained
Why A4 is 210 × 297 mm, every A-series size, the B and C series, DL, SRA sizes for production and the tolerances of the standard.
Read →Paper
Paper weight and thickness: what gsm really means
Grammage, caliper in microns and bulk: why two 100 gsm papers are not the same thickness, and how to work out the weight of a piece and the spine of a book.
Read →Paper
Paper grain direction: what it is and why it matters
Long grain, short grain, where it affects folding, binding and dimensional stability, and how it is identified.
Read →Print design
Brochure fold types: a practical guide
Half, roll, Z, gate, double parallel, accordion and cross folds, plus 8-, 12- and 16-page signatures: A4 panel widths, creasing and file set-up.
Read →Commercial print
Paper placemats for restaurants: paper, sizes and quantities
Choice of paper, common sizes, colours and quantities for placemats in restaurants and catering.
Read →Food packaging
Inks and coatings in food packaging: what food grade means
Migration, the European framework and documentation. Why suitability for food is a property of the whole process.
Read →Colour
Soft proofs and contract proofs
What each kind of proof is used to check, and when a binding colour reference is needed before going to press.
Read →Paper
How to choose paper for a print job
Coated or uncoated, weight, bulk, opacity and grain direction. The criteria for choosing the right paper.
Read →Colour
CMYK or Pantone: when a spot colour is needed
Process colour or a spot ink: what determines colour accuracy, consistency between reprints and the cost of the job.
Read →Regulations
EUDR: the deforestation regulation and paper
The European regulation on deforestation-free products also covers paper. What it means for paper packaging and printed matter.
Read →Regulations
PPWR: the new European framework for packaging
The European regulation on packaging and packaging waste, and how it concerns printed paper and board packaging.
Read →File preparation
Preparing files for offset printing
PDF format, bleed, colour, black and overprint, images, fonts and die lines. Everything a file needs to go into production without corrections.
Read →Send us your job specification.
Dimensions, quantity, substrate, colours. We reply with a technical proposal and a quotation.