Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Evolution And Rise Of Printing Services

By Gary Smith

When it comes to disseminating information to a large number of people, no other medium is more sought after than print. Over the years the printing services sector has grown by leaps and bounds and has evolved to its present form of a diversified industry. Today it can fulfil almost any requirement of the customers related to printing and its supplementary requirements.

Large volume printing services through relief printing technology started during the 1400's when the world's very first printing press was invented by Gutenberg. A slight elevation of the printed image from the base, like in a rubber stamp, is a key characteristic of relief printing. Relief printing is scarcely in use these days, though there are still some cases where it is used.

The industry has seen major changes in the printing techniques used, and these changes were usually propelled by progress in technology. Modern printing techniques are quite diverse and have a range of uses. Most customers are in fact dazed by the abundance of printing choices available to them.

Offset printing is a popular printing method preferred by most printers nowadays. This technique uses a restricted amount of ink to print the image on metal plates first and then it transfers it onto paper. This type of printing is very inexpensive and quick, and it is mostly preferred when large quantities of prints are required.

Other printing techniques that have come up with advancements in technology are electrostatic printing, which is akin to photocopying, and thermal printing, which uses a system of selective heating of layered thermal paper.

However, digital printing is the latest printing method that is drawing a lot of attention. As is evident from its name, it includes image development and manipulation on a computer, and then this computer generated image is finally printed after analysis. But this quick and trustworthy technique works best in situations where only a small number of prints is required. As the printer can customize each print in this technique, it can be used for computer form printing, where documents such as receipts or bills can be printed for different customers, with each having an identical format but different contents.

Another significant development in printing has dawned with the arrival of the internet. Printing companies have their commercial websites that customers can visit from the comfort of their homes or offices and register orders after seeing online printing samples.

Technological advancements have always brought about important positive changes in printing techniques and the quality of the prints. The great news is that this trend of progress is going to continue in the future too, bringing positive advancements to enhance performance and lower costs.

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