The printing form is a central element in the printing process; it contains the image to be printed, i.e. the information that is transferred to paper during the printing process. The type, manufacture and function of the printing form vary depending on the printing process. However, it forms the basis for the reproduction of text and images in print.
Four types of printing forms
Printing forms can be divided into four main categories, which correspond to the classic printing processes: relief printing, intaglio printing, planographic printing and gravure printing. In relief printing (e.g. letterpress printing), the printing elements are raised on the form. In intaglio printing, such as rotogravure printing, they are engraved into the form. In planographic printing, such as offset printing, chemical separation of water-loving and grease-loving areas on a flat printing plate is used. In transfer printing, which is best known from screen printing, the printing form is located on a fine fabric whose printing areas are ink-permeable and is printed through the fabric using a squeegee.
Depending on the process, printing forms are made of metal, polymer, rubber or fabric. Today, production is computer-assisted, for example using the CTP (computer-to-plate) process, in which the printing form is exposed directly from digital data without the need for film. In industrial production, printing forms must not only be highly precise, but also durable and stable in order to deliver consistently good printing results throughout the entire print run.
The printing form is therefore at the heart of the printing process. In the pre-press stage, it is produced from the design file and adapted to the requirements of the respective printing process – traditionally, this was the task of the ‘printing form or printing template manufacturer’, a profession that has been absorbed into the profession of digital and print media designer.
					
													
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							This year we once again created proofs for Fogra certification and sent them to Munich-Aschheim for testing. With these proof prints, which we print according to three different proof standards and on three different papers, we point out that we not only deliver excellent proof quality through internal quality controls and checks, but that the quality of our proofs is also measured and confirmed by external experts. We have now had test prints certified by Fogra for the 12th time. We have also been “Spot-cert” certified for the display of  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							In this short image video we – the Proof GmbH – introduce us and our work. Find out who we are and what drives us. What do you think of our short film?
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							Anyone who has reinstalled or updated their i1 Profiler app in the last few weeks has been confronted with disturbing news: X-Rite announced directly in the start window that it would no longer support its enormously popular i1Display and i1Pro2 devices. Users of the i1Pro 2 devices and i1iO 2 tables, which are extremely popular in printing and colour management, will be particularly hard hit by the announcement: An investment of €6,000 is quickly consigned to the electronic scrap heap. But what can you do if you own such a  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							Over the last few months, we at Proof.de have been thinking about further improving our already very good colour measurement technology in terms of speed and measurement precision. Relatively quickly it became clear that only two devices would come into question: The KonicaMinolta MYIRO-9, the successor of the former FD-9, or the X-Rite ISIS 2 XL.  The starting point: Since we at Proof GmbH have 5 proofing devices, the calibration of targets for profile optimisation is a time-critical undertaking for us. Therefore, we had been looking around for an upgrade of  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							Digimarc is a digital watermark that can be used to embed information in images, videos or other media. Digimarc watermarks are invisible to the human eye, but remain recognisable to special software or devices. Digimarc is becoming increasingly popular in the packaging sector in particular, as this technology allows the digits of the EAN barcode and more to be applied invisibly to all areas of the packaging. Digimarc and EAN barcode at the supermarket checkout When scanning at the checkout, the checkout staff do not have to search for the  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							From now on, it’s much easier and faster: in the Proof Shop, you can call up and reorder entire orders or individual proofs directly from your order history. This saves you from having to re-enter every detail and gives you the assurance that all settings will be exactly the same as last time. With just a few clicks, your proofs are reordered – reliably, easily and in no time at all. What exactly is new? You can find your order history in your customer account. There are two new options  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							After Eddy Hagen pointed out in this posts, that there were some major colour deviations between the brand new PANTONE Solid Coated Guide 2023 and the previous version especially for the PANTONE 2635 C, I was curious to lookup the same colours in the new PANTONE Color Bridge Coated Guide of 2023 and compare the colours with the previous version. I measured a dE00 of 8,15 between the two colours that Eddy mentioned, which is really far apart from how accurate PANTONE colours should match between the different PANTONE guides.  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							Whether it’s a large global corporation or a small company, the following often applies to designs or redesigns today: we develop everything for digital first. 
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							In recent years, various problems have arisen with our previous proof paper supplier. On the one hand, we sometimes had to wait more than three months for paper deliveries; on the other hand, we sometimes had significant problems with batch-to-batch discrepancies, surface defects and much more. After lengthy deliberations, we decided in December to replace all the paper. We therefore received pallets of new paper at the turn of the year, which we are now gradually incorporating into our production. There will be no hard cut, but the new papers  … read more
						
					 
							
									
										
				
									
													
								 
							
							Even almost 9 years after the introduction of the successor colour space PSOCoatedV3, ISOCoatedV2 / FOGRA39 is still the most widespread colour space in Europe. We at Proof GmbH count around 200 jobs from time to time for the German Printing and Media Industries Federation, among others. In the last count, proofs in ISOCoatedV2 accounted for around 68% of all proof jobs at our company. This is a clear sign of the continued widespread use of the colour space. ISOCoatedV2: From the classic colour space to the beacon of the  … read more