Even in the days when craftsmen did everything by hand, they had to mark their products. Such brand names on goods were necessary so that everyone knew who exactly made this or that thing. Today, even large manufacturers still follow this tradition, but use pad printing, which has already been put into production, for marking their own products. This provides many brands with recognition, and quite cheaply.
What is this?
Pad printing is an economical modern way of applying an inscription or drawing on various surfaces using special equipment. Most often, pad printing is used in the manufacture of souvenirs, where the images should be small and clear. The maximum drawing or writing size for this method is 8cm x 6cm, which is ideal for labeling bottles, Christmas decorations, ashtrays, pens, and other stationery items.
The surface for drawing a picture can be any, the clarity of the image will depend only on the correctly selected material of the roller and the composition of the paint.
History of Appearance
Initially, artisans had to apply their initials or logos by hand, until the French printer Decalsier invented a copper plate with a gelatin swab for this. Of course, its wear was very high, and the method gained real popularity only in 1965, when an engineer from Germany stopped the choice of material for rubber tampons. It was from this moment that the production of special equipment for pad printing began. And it became widespread in 1971. At this time, a well-known Swiss watch manufacturer placed a large order for equipment.
Modern technology
Today, pad printing is not the only way to apply logos on various surfaces, but only this method combines speed and quality.
The image to be transferred to a permanent place is first applied on a cliche by photoengraving, creating depressions on the surface. After that, paint gets into the recesses, the excess of which is removed with a doctor blade. Then a tampon is lowered in the cliche, which transfers the image directly to the product. Tampons are most often made of silicone, since this material practically does not absorb paint into itself and makes the image as clear as possible.
Modern pad printing is an open or closed method of applying paint. They differ in the maximum allowable area of the applied pattern, the cost and size of the print run.
Varieties of cliches
Pad printing cliches can be made frommetals or photopolymers. The latest models are further divided into water-washable and alcohol-washable ones (they give the best print quality). The basis for photopolymer cliches is also made of metal, but 1-2 layers of photosensitive material are additionally applied to it. Such clichés can rarely give a really clear image at the output, but due to their cheapness they are used quite often. The additional placement of the raster grid improves their work.
Metal cliches can be steel or alucorex material. In any case, they are rigid and can only apply a line image, but it will certainly be clear. There is no need to use screen for these stamps.
Steel plates are used very rarely due to high cost, but they can withstand up to a million prints. Their acquisition will be profitable only when printing really large print runs.
Stamps for printing must be made for each image separately.
Pad printing ink
The pad printing ink itself contains a special solvent that quickly evaporates during application and provides the material with the necessary viscosity. Also in the composition there is a dye directly in the form of a powder or liquid, various plasticizers and surfactants, as well as a binder. This role can be played by:
- acrylic;
- vinyl;
- polyurethane;
- epoxy.
Pad printing on pens and other plasticsurfaces are most often carried out with one-component paints, as they dry quickly and can be matte or glossy.
Two-component paints provide for the addition of a catalyst to the main composition, which makes the solution suitable for just 1 working day (8-10 hours). That is, at a slow speed of work, part of the mixture can simply deteriorate and cause losses to the printing house. Print quality is only achieved with the correct dilution ratios. These inks are ideal for printing on glass, metal, ceramics and other difficult surfaces.
Varieties of tampons
The same swabs can be used to print completely different images. To make the drawing as clear as possible, it is necessary to select the largest possible size of this element. The form must necessarily be such that the application is carried out by rolling. This is necessary to minimize the ingress of air under the swab and distortion of the pattern.
There are round, cylindrical and rectangular tampons with a semicircular working side. The direct printing of the image occurs due to only the middle of the swab.
Depending on the amount of oil in the composition of the tampon itself, it can be soft or hard. Rigidity provides clarity and durability, but soft print surfaces can be used on fragile products, complex shapes, or soft materials such as rubber or leather.
Benefitspad printing
- The main plus is the durability of the print. The solvent in the composition slightly corrodes the material of the product itself, allowing the paint to bond with the material.
- The lines drawn are exactly the same as the original image, and the lines in the drawing can be as thin as one-tenth of a millimeter.
- The flexibility of the tampon allows you to apply the image with high quality even on curved surfaces.
- And, of course, a low price when printing a circulation of 300 items. The larger the circulation, the greater the benefit.
