Further Questions from the Categorisation Task

What is PAD printing ? 
What qualifies Mass production ?
What is bespoke printing ? 
How are paper shop bags produced ?
How do you print on a napkin ?
How much does it cost to print a pound note ?
How do you foil in industry ?

What is PAD printing ? 

Pad printing (also called tampography) is a printing process that can transfer a 2-D image onto a 3-D object. This is accomplished using an indirect offset (gravure) printing process that involves an image being transferred from the cliché via a silicone pad onto a substrate. Pad printing is used for printing on otherwise difficult to print on products in many industries including medical, automotive, promotional, apparel, and electronic objects, as well as appliances, sports equipment and toys. It can also be used to deposit functional materials such asconductive inks, adhesives, dyes and lubricants.

Physical changes within the ink film both on the cliché and on the pad allow it to leave the etched image area in favor of adhering to the pad, and to subsequently release from the pad in favor of adhering to the substrate.

The unique properties of the silicone pad enable it to pick the image up from a flat plane and transfer it to a variety of surfaces, such as flat, cylindrical, spherical, compound angles, textures, concave, or convex surfaces.

The process of PAD printing

1. From the home position, the sealed ink cup (an inverted cup containing ink) sits over the etched artwork area of the printing plate, covering the image and filling it with ink.
2. The sealed ink cup moves away from the etched artwork area, taking all excess ink and exposing the etched image, which is filled with ink. The top layer of ink becomes tacky as soon as it is exposed to the air; that is how the ink adheres to the transfer pad and later to the substrate.
3. The transfer pad presses down onto the printing plate momentarily. As the pad is compressed, it pushes air outward and causes the ink to lift (transfer) from the etched artwork area onto the pad.
4. As the transfer pad lifts away, the tacky ink film inside the etched artwork area is picked up on the pad. A small amount of ink remains in the printing plate.
5. As the transfer pad moves forward, the ink cup also moves to cover the etched artwork area on the printing plate. The ink cup again fills the etched artwork image on the plate with ink in preparation for the next cycle.
6. The transfer pad compresses down onto the substrate, transferring the ink layer picked up from the printing plate to the substrate surface. Then, it lifts off the substrate and returns to the home position, thus completing one print cycle.

What qualifies Mass production ?

Mass production is the production of large amounts of standardized products, including and especially on assembly lines. With job production and batch production it is one of the three main production methods.

Mass Production involves making many copies of products, very quickly, using assembly line techniques to send partially complete products to workers who each work on an individual step, rather than having a worker work on a whole product from start to finish.

Mass production is capital intensive and energy intensive, as it uses a high proportion of machinery and energy in relation to workers. It is also usually automated while total expenditure per unit of product is decreased. However, the machinery that is needed to set up a mass production line (such as robots and machine presses) is so expensive that there must be some assurance that the product is to be successful to attain profits.

What is bespoke printing ? 

http://www.blog.blushpublishing.co.uk/2011/02/edge-painted-business-cards/

http://www.avenuelitho.com/services/business/stationery/ (both above also)

From my understanding bespoke printing is any kind of print that can't be done on a normal basis. A lot are for special finishing processes or things that need extra time or specialist equipment.

How are paper shop bags produced ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Qc5CGfToLA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkldUUgqTyw

How do you print on a napkin ?

It is possible to transfer a design onto a paper napkin by printing it on an inkjet printer. First, however, the napkin must be ironed on to a sheet of freezer paper. The freezer paper, when heated, adheres the napkin to itself and provides a firmer substrate so that the napkin can be put through the printer. This procedure takes about a half hour per napkin and is fairly easy to execute.

How much does it cost to print a pound note ?

1.Since it is competing with other "central banking organisations" for the business of note printing locally and internationally, the Bank of England does not offer any details on the cost of production of banknotes. Suffice to say that it is currently appropriately priced to suit the British (Treasury) Government.
If you were to print a banknote yourself, it may cost you 10 to 15 years in prison for forgery. 

2.According to the Bank of England, it only costs a few pence to produce five, ten, twenty, or fifty pound notes.

3.From today's perspective, it is commonly accepted that a piece of paper that costs a few pence to produce is worth five, ten, twenty or fifty pounds. - http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/default.aspx

How do you foil in industry ?

Hot Stamping- Hot stamping is a dry printing method of lithography in which predried ink or foils are transferred to a surface at high temperatures.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7haaSQJrrdI