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ARTWORK

An artwork file contains all the mandatory information, barcodes, pack copy required for your design. It should be on the correct cutter profile and can be shared for review/approval to teams in the supply chain. Once artwork files are approved they can then progress to colour separation and print ready files.

ASSET LIBRARY

A library of your assets held centrally which allows you accessibility, transparency and coordination to share with your partners.

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BARCODE

A machine-readable symbol. The ratio of widths of bars to spaces contains the information. Barcodes can come in various forms such as EAN and ITF. Each printing press will have their own requirements for size and position of barcodes.

BAR WIDTH REDUCTION (BWR)

Reduction of the bars on the barcode to allow for the pressure of the printing press.

BLEED

The printed area beyond the cut edge. Ensuring printed areas extend completely to the edge of the finished packaging. Extra ink is added beyond the cut edge to allow for tolerances when die cutting.

BRAND GUIDELINES

A document that contains the ‘rules’ which dictate how your brand should be represented with a focus on fonts, colour, layout and tone of voice.

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CMYK

Acronym for Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black, these are process colours, the standard ink colours used in printing. Spot colours can be made using a mix of CMYK. Any imagery on pack will be a mixture of CMYK. Colours can be monitored using a GMG scanner and related software so standard colours can be re-produced.

COLOUR SEPARATION

Separation of artwork into layers which represent the colours in the file. The way the colours interact with one another and the print sequence on press will affect how the file is colour separated.

CYAN

One of the 4 colour process inks. Transmits blue/green light.

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DISPRO

When a flexo plate is mounted, the plate is stretched and the resulting printed image appears stretched out. Dispro factor is the percentage the artwork is reduced in length to offset this effect.

DOT GAIN

A characteristic of printing that causes dots to print larger than they should when ink encounters the substrate. At repro the file will be adjusted to compensate for this. Again this information would be sought from the printers press so that files can be adjusted accordingly.

DOTS PER INCH (DPI)

The number of dots of colour in an inch. This information should be included on a printer’s specification. Files containing images should have a minimum 300DPI, anything lower than this and the image will be low resolution and appear pixelated.

DRY OFFSET

Used on substrates which are already formed for example yoghurt pots and cans. Wet on wet inks are used. Instead of gripping colours together they are gapped to avoid contamination of inks.

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ENCAPSULATED POSTSCRIPT (EPS) FORMAT

A file format for transferring files.

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FIR

Food Information Regulation. Guidance on information that packaging must provide to comply with European Food Information. For example, ingredients, allergens, text height and best before information.

FLEXOGRAPHY

A method of printing using raised image printing plates. Usually on flexible substrates. When producing designs an understanding of the print process should be noted for its capabilities and restrictions ensuring the creative is fit for print.

FONT

A group or type of one style and size. Printers, processes and regulations can all impact the minimum and maximum requirements for different types of font on packaging.

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GRAVURE

High speed, high quality, long run printing method which uses engraved metal cylinders which can reproduce fine detail on pack. Cylinders can last for 100s of print runs.

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ILLUSTRATOR

Part of the Adobe creative suite. This is the industry standard programme for building digital files and sharing files with printers. Files can be outlined which doesn’t allow amendments to be made to the content or live so that all elements can be moved or altered. Print ready files are usually supplied as outlined AI files.

INK FREE AREAS

Certain areas on pack need to remain free of ink and varnishes. These are usually indicated on the cutter profiles. Areas where best before information is applied by ink jetting, or glue flaps are usually left ink and varnish free to ensure inks are visible and glue adheres.

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JOB STRAP

Data which is usually on the base of the artwork which contains project information.

JPEG

Jpeg stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group and is an image file format which allows you to send high quality images at a compressed resolution.

JUSTIFICATION

Alignment of type at both left and right margins.

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KEARNING

Moving letters closer or further away.

KEYLINES

Frames used to define the edges of a picture or copy which can give definition or allow colours to be gripped to one another.

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LINES PER INCH

Lines of dots in an inch.

LITHO

A common form of printing for card, paper and labels. Aluminium printing plates are used and various substrates can be printed on.

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MAGENTA

One of the 4 colour process inks. It is a purplish – red in colour.

MOCK UPS

A representation of how a product can look before final production. Mock ups can be made to exact size and weight and used for a variety of purposes.

MIS REGISTERATION

When layering individual colours over one another to form the image many different factors can cause them to misalign and the press can fall out of register. Overlapping colours can reduce mis-registeration.

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OPAQUE INKS

A dense coverage of ink with no show through.

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PANTONE COLOURS

Pre-mixed ink colours described by their allotted numbers for example PMS 130. They are widely used in printing, design and fashion allowing different manufacturers in different locations to work to a standardised colour. Most of the pantone colours (spot colours) can be simulated using a mix of CMYK. Brand logos are usually a specific pantone colour to allow for consistency across a brand.

PORTABLE DOCUMENT FILE (PDF), ADOBE

The standard content approval format. Not to be used for colour on screen. A versatile format that can be annotated if required.

PRINT SPECIFICATION

A document which contains the unique information for a printing press. The information needs to be gathered before a print ready file can be produced. Each printer will have their own printing specification. Whilst there are common cross overs in processes, specific information still needs to be obtained for the file to be accurate.

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REGISTER

Fitting of two or more colours on top of each other in exact alignment.

REPRO

Once the artwork has been approved the studio can progress to repro which is the finished reproduction. The information required by the printer is built into the file, the design is colour separated, imagery is retouched and colour targets can be output.

RETOUCHING

The reworking of an image for a particular print process to ensure clean, quality printing.

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SCREEN ANGLES

The direction of dots as a result of screen positioning. A set of angles often used are Black 45O, Magenta 75O, Yellow 90O, Cyan 105O.

SPOT COLOURS

When there is a need to match a particular colour exactly the use of a spot colour is utilized. This maintains consistency across the brand and throughout the print run. It removes the risk of variations by using a mixture of CMYK.

STEPPING

Taking a single image and stepping it up to view multiple times. This allows printers to print multiple copies at the same time.

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TINT

A percentage of ink put down to allow for a shade of a colour produced using a screen and not solid dots.

TRANSPARENT INKS

Ink which shows elements behind coming through. Used on cans to make the ink appear metallic.

TRAPPING

Overlapping of colours to compensate for mis-registeration in printing.

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UV VARNISH

A varnish which is dried by UV light. Varnishes can be gloss, silk or matt in appearance.

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VIGNETTE

A gradual shade of colour which runs from dark to light.

VECTOR IMAGE

An image that can be scaled up or down infinitely without losing quality.

VERSION CONTROL

Contained on the artwork file and highlights how many times the artwork has been changed.

VISUAL APPROVAL (VA)

A user-friendly, market leading cloud solution for Brand Managers. VA centralises assets, streamlines approvals and uncomplicates Brand processes.

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WETPROOFING

A small run of printed proofs which uses real inks and the correct substrate. Accurate for colour.

Design to Print Brand Terms

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