In printing, the term Collate refers to the gathering and arranging of individual sheets or other printed components into a pre-determined sequence. Basically, Collating creates consistent, logical sets from multiple parts.

What is Print-Ready Artwork and Why is it so Important? Print-ready artwork refers to a design file that has been formatted to meet the specifications for professional printing. It includes all the necessary elements such as high-resolution...

The top 20 Printing Terms that are discussed in the world of printing defined here for you.

When delving into the world of printing, it's crucial to comprehend the fundamentals of paper stocks. The weight, finish, and composition of the paper contribute significantly to the overall aesthetics and durability of the final product.

What is Synthetic Paper? Synthetic paper is an umbrella term encompassing an array of products that emulate the look, feel, and often the performance of traditional paper. However, what sets synthetic paper apart is its composition – it isn't...

In the dynamic world of printing, innovation plays a pivotal role in enhancing the quality and longevity of various materials. Laminated printing is a technique that has emerged as a game-changer, offering a wide range of advantages for both...

What is Promotional Printing? As the name suggests Promotional Print is custom created to promote and advertise your business, product or service. This product range is made up of a large and diverse group of printed products, ranging from flyers...

World Book Day is a global event celebrated on 23rd April every year, to promote the love of reading and the importance of books. The day is marked by various events, book fairs, and reading sessions, which bring together people from all walks of...

Blogs are individual entries that form a blog like episodes of a TV show, or entries in a journal or diary. Blogging is a great way to establish yourself in your areas you are an expert in. It can also be an effective tool to drive traffic to...

Are you wanting to publish your book and have no clue where to start? We are here to help walk you through the steps of self-publishing your book. Self-publishing can seem overwhelming when you first begin, however Formax can help you throughout...

A tri-fold brochure–also known as a letter-fold brochure–is constructed by folding an 8.5” x 11”, 8.5” x 14”, 11” x 17” or 11” x 25.5” sheet of paper twice. Direct mail brochure campaigns commonly feature a tri-fold brochure....

In the United States, and other parts of North America, standard paper sizes are based on inch measurements. For example, the three most popular US paper sizes are 8.5" x 11" (Letter), 8.5" x 14" (Legal), and 11" x 17" (Tabloid/Ledger).

In reference to paper, the term Caliper is used to indicate the thickness of a single sheet. Caliper is only a measurement of a paper's thickness, not its weight. In the US, a paper's caliper is expressed in thousandths of an inch. For...

In the commercial printing industry, Perforating refers to a procedure that creates a series of small punctures in paper or cardstock, usually along a straight line, to allow a portion of the printed piece to be easily detached by hand. A...

Color Image vs Grayscale Image In the realm of commercial printing, the term Grayscale refers to a technique for creating images, such as photographs or designs, using different percentages of black ink to create varying shades of gray....

Endsheets, also known as Endpapers, are paper sheets affixed to the inside front cover and the inside back cover of a hardcover book. Even though endsheets are placed within the book, they are not considered part of the book's main text pages....

Because the Union Label is generally printed small in size, it can resemble a small insect or "bug" on the finished product. The red box at the bottom shows an enlarged rendition of this Union Bug...

The flaps of a dust jacket wrap around the book's cover to hold the jacket in place A Dust Jacket, also known as a Book Jacket or Dust Wrapper, is a printed paper overlay that wraps around the cover of a...

An example of a Union Label or "Bug" imprinted on Union-produced printing (enlarged for clarity) A Union Printer is a commercial printer whose employees are represented by a labor union. All printing...

A Sombrero Hole refers to a type of hole that is punched or die-cut into a product's packaging to allow the product to hang from a display hook. A sombrero hole gets its name because it resembles the silhouette of a sombrero, a style...

Sequential Numbering, also known as Consecutive Numbering, refers to the printing of ascending or descending identification numbers so that each printed unit receives its own unique number.

4-Color Process is the most widely used method for printing full-color images. All commercial printers use the 4-Color Process method for projects that contain multi-colored designs or photographs. This includes books, catalogs, manuals,...

A printing press using ultraviolet light to rapidly cure the ink UV Printing refers to a commercial printing process that uses ultraviolet curing technology. Also known as Ultraviolet Printing, the UV Printing process involves special...

Saddle-Stitching may sound like an odd name for a book binding process that places wire staples through sheets of paper, but in the printing industry Stapling is commonly referred to as Stitching. Also, the collated sheets are draped over a...

In the print industry, a Flood Coat refers to any coating that covers the entire surface of a paper sheet or other substrate. As the name implies, Flood Coating is a term associated with coatings applied in liquid form.

It is extremely common for books, brochures, and other print projects to be created from sheets of paper that have printing on both sides. Head-to-Head and Head-to-Foot are terms used to describe the relative orientation of the printing on the...

In offset printing, the pages of books are commonly printed on large sheets of paper, with multiple pages printed on each side of these sheets. Known as signatures, these large sheets will be folded down and trimmed after they are printed. The...

In the world of printing, a Physical Mock-Up refers to a representative sample that is created prior to production. Physical mock-ups are used to help evaluate the look, feel and function of an item before any actual printing takes place.

On certain book projects, the pages of the book are printed on large sheets of paper. Known as Signatures, these sheets have multiple pages printed on each side.

In the printing industry, the term "Self Cover" is used to specify a book or booklet that uses the exact same paper for its cover as it does for the interior pages. Conversely, the term "Plus Cover" is used to specify a book or booklet that uses...

An Accordion Fold refers to a document folding method that uses a series of alternating folds to create multiple panels of a similar size. The parallel pleats formed by the alternating folds resemble the expandable mid-section of an Accordion...

In the world of promotional printing, a Buck Slip refers to a small printed piece that contains a specific sales offer or marketing message. Sometimes called a buck insert or buck sheet, most buck slips are single, unfolded sheets that measure...

The term radius refers to the distance from the center of a circle to the perimeter of the circle (in other words, the radius is one half of a circle's diameter).

UV Coating is a tough clear-coat applied over printed matter. It is applied in liquid form, then exposed to Ultra-Violet (UV) light which bonds and dries it instantly-�hence its name "UV Coating." An example of a large logo created with the...

Comb Binding, also known as Cerlox binding or Surelox binding, makes use of a cylindrical plastic shape that has multiple curved tines along its length. This rigid plastic shape forms the book's spine and would resemble a hair comb if it were...

While formal definitions may conflict on specifics, there is one point everyone agrees on: a booklet is a "little book." But what exactly makes a book little? Typically, when a customer refers to their project as a booklet, it means that it is...

As its name implies, a Self-Mailer refers to any piece of direct mail that does not require an envelope. In lieu of the envelope, a self-mailer is designed so that address information and postage can be printed (or affixed) directly on it....

YUPO® is a "Tree Free" synthetic paper manufactured by the Yupo Corporation, the world's top producer of synthetic paper products

Tyvek® is a synthetic material developed by DuPont™. It is created in sheet form using high-density polyethylene fibers. These plastic fibers are bonded together using heat and pressure to form a smooth, printable surface. Tyvek is...

The printing world is full of terms. Some of these terms may be confusing to those new to printing. This is particularly true when it comes to terms that describe the size of a printed document, whether it be a business card, brochure, book,...

A set of six Flip Cards with sealed-edge gloss laminate and binding ring Flip Cards are durable cards, usually created as sets, which convey printed information in a simple and convenient format. Used most often for reference or instructional...

Door Hangers are a simple and cost-effective way to distribute a promotional message to a targeted geographic area A Door Hanger is a printed piece, usually rectangular in shape, that is created with a die-cut hole or hook that allows it to...

In printing, the term "soft touch" is often used as a generic reference to any finishing method that adds a velvety-soft feel to print materials. Unlike most design elements that appeal to the sense of sight, a soft touch finish allows a printed...

An example of a large display case used to hold multiple Rack Cards A Rack Card serves as a straightforward and budget-friendly promotional tool, typically printed in full color on one or both sides of sturdy cardstock. The standardized...

A Table Tent is a convenient, self-standing promotional unit created from printed and folded cardstock. As the name implies, table tents are designed to be placed on tables…as well as counters, desks, or any other horizontal...

Envelope Converting refers to the process of transforming paper into envelopes Envelope Converting refers to the process of creating envelopes from sheets or rolls of paper. The paper is "converted" into envelopes using several steps,...

A Perfecting Press is an offset printing press that applies ink to both sides of a sheet of paper during a single pass through the press. All web presses (roll-fed presses) are perfecting presses, because the paper only flows through the...

In the world of commercial print production, Duplex Printing refers to the printing of content on both sides of a sheet of paper. It is a term most often associated with projects produced on Digital printing presses (a related concept, called...

An NCR Form is a multi-part form constructed from carbonless copy paper (aka NCR paper). NCR Forms allow multiple copies of a handwritten or impact-printed document to be created simultaneously. NCR Corporation, a global leader in consumer...

Self-adhesive postage stamps are a common example of the Kiss Cutting method. The perimeter of each stamp is cut cleanly for easy removal, but the liner sheet remains uncut. Kiss cutting stands out as one of the most widely used techniques...

Finishing refers to value-added operations that are performed after the ink has been applied to the paper.

Die-Cutting adds interesting shapes and contours to decals Decals provide the ideal method for affixing an attention-getting logo, slogan, image, and/or promotional message to products, containers, print materials, and many other surfaces....

A commercial screen printing press. Shown as its automated arm squeegees ink through a woven screen. Screen Printing is a time-tested stenciling technique used to apply inked images to a wide variety of substrates. Using a stencil, or a...

Die-Cut Example: This creatively-designed promotional piece has a contoured edge as well as a uniquely patterned cut-out on the front cover In the realm of printing, a "Die" is a slender, razor-sharp steel blade meticulously shaped or...

The PUR Binding method adds tremendous flexibility and longevity to softcover books PUR Binding refers to a softcover book binding method that makes use of Polyurethane Reactive (PUR) adhesive. PUR Binding is a form of perfect binding,...

Formax Printing offers Wire-O Binding, which is also referred to as Twin Loop, Double-Loop, Double-O, Duo-Wire, or simply Wire Binding. This method is widely used to join the pages and cover of a bound document, offering similar benefits to...

This diagram of an open book illustrates the concept of page margins The Margins of a book refer to the blank spaces that surround the printed content of each page. Each page in the book will have a top margin, a bottom margin, an inner margin...

The Spines of hardcover books and perfect bound books are often printed upon, because these types of books usually have spines wide enough to display printed information The Spine of a book refers to the outside edge of the book where the...

Print-Ready is a term used to describe a file that has all the specifications necessary to produce high-resolution printed output, without requiring any additional alteration or intervention. In other words, a commercial printer can...

The Crop Marks placed at the corners of this artwork layout indicate where this business card (with bleed) will be trimmed after printing In printing, Crop Marks are thin lines placed at the corners of an image, page or artwork layout to...

PDF stands for Portable Document Format. It is a file format developed by Adobe Systems in 1993 to standardize and simplify the sharing of electronic documents. Prior to the PDF, document files could only be exchanged between computers...

This stack of paper has been Drilled with three holes In printing, the term "Drilling" refers to the process of creating round holes in paper using a rotating bit. Manual Punching vs Automated Drilling Unlike a manual punch, which...

A Proof is a close representation of how a piece will appear when printed A proof is a preliminary version of a printed piece. It provides a close representation of how the piece will appear when printed. Proofs are created to ensure that...

Diagram A: a Book with a Portrait orientation is taller than it is wide Prior to laying out the pages and cover, you will have to decide whether a Portrait or Landscape orientation best suits your book project. A Portrait orientation...

Product Data Sheets convey a lot of detailed information in a very concise format A Product Data Sheet is a printed document used to describe the characteristics and features of a product. It is a great tool for conveying information about an...

A Trade Printer provides printing to a resale partner, who then sells it to the end user A Trade Printer is a printing company that provides print materials to resellers at a wholesale rate. As a general rule, these resellers must be in a...

The front of this two-sided Sell Sheet uses colorful images along with a bulleted list of features and benefits A Sell Sheet is a printed document used for informational and promotional purposes. As its name implies, a Sell Sheet is...

Miniature Folding, or Mini Folding, is a specialized paper folding method that transforms a large sheet of paper into a very compact size. The miniature folding method is used when a great deal of printed information - such as...

A softcover book refers to a book that has its pages bound within a pliable paper cover (like a paperback novel, corporate annual report or magazine). This is opposed to a hardcover book, which has its pages bound inside a cover made from thick,...

In the printing industry, Scoring is the term used to describe the procedure of creating a precise crease in paper, facilitating smoother folding.

Top Illustrates Traditional Printing; Bottom Illustrates Reverse Printing In the printing industry, a Reverse refers to any text, logo or graphic that is produced using ink to form its outline, allowing the underlying paper color to form the...

An interesting use of gloss UV Coating to add creativity and elegance UV Coating is a tough clear-coat applied over printed materials to 1) protect against scratches, tears and fingerprints and 2) enhance the brilliance of the ink colors. ...

Aqueous Coating is a popular type of clear top coat applied to printed pieces, such as brochures and flyers. It helps protect the ink and paper against scuffs, abrasions and smudges. In addition to protection, Aqueous Coating enhances the...

Pre-Press Ensures Your Layout will Print as Intended Pre-press is a printing industry term for the activities that occur after a commercial printer receives an order and a corresponding graphics file from a client or graphic designer, but...

The C-Fold, also known as the Letter Fold, is the Most Common Method of Tri-Folding a Document A C-fold is a document folding method that uses two parallel folds to create six panels of roughly the same size - three panels on each side of the...

The Classic Z-Fold is Commonly Used for Letters, Flyers and Brochures A Z-fold is a document folding method that uses two parallel folds to create six panels of equal size - three panels on each side of the paper. The two folds are made...

Diagram A: The Gatefold method is used for invitations and brochures A Gatefold is a document folding method that uses two parallel folds to create six panels - three panels on each side of the paper. The left and right panels are roughly...

Variable Data Printing is a cost-effective way to create Personalized Marketing Pieces Variable Data Printing (VDP), sometimes called Variable Information Printing (VIP), is a printing method which allows the printed content to change within...

Click here to learn about different types of binding. Book Binding, also known as Book Bindery, is the process of assembling and securing written or printed pages within a cover. In most cases, the cover is thicker than the...

Example of an Image with High Resolution In printing, the term Resolution refers to the sharpness and detail of images. Higher resolution means more image detail. Lower resolution means less image detail. Generally speaking, resolution is...

Indicia Examples In the realm of direct mail, an Indicia (pronounced in-DEE-shuh) is an imprint on each mail piece that signifies the postage has been prepaid. A postal Indicia takes the place of a stamp or postage meter imprint and is...

In printing, terms like Two-Up, Three-Up, Four-Up, Multiple-Up etc. refer to the way artwork files and/or printing plates are designed, so that the printing press can apply more than one image to the paper at the same time. Example of an...

Illustration of proper and poor Ink Color Registration. In the world of printing, the term Register refers to the spatial relationship between two or more elements of a printed piece. Registration (or Register) relates to the importance of...

The term Digital refers to the digits 0 and 1, which provide the basis for the mathematical language computers use to create, process and store electronic images. Digital Printing is the process of transferring these stored images directly onto...

Offset Printing is a widely used commercial printing technique that produces consistent and high quality printed materials. As a general rule, this technique is used for production runs of 1,000 or more pieces. The offset printing method...

C1S is printing industry shorthand for "coated one side." Likewise, C2S means "coated two sides." These terms refer to coatings applied to paper by the paper manufacturer.

Example of a Presentation Folder with Full Color printing on the Front and Back Covers A Presentation Folder, sometimes referred to as a Pocket Folder, is a sturdy folder used to store and organize documents such as those distributed during a...

A Gang Run, also known as a Combination Run or Combo Run, is a term for printing multiple jobs in the same production run on a printing press. By printing similar jobs from a multitude of customers all at the same time, the cost of each job is...

Simply, CMYK stands for four ink colors - Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black. A printing press applies the four CMYK ink colors in successive layers. By overlapping these four ink colors in various concentrations, a huge number of other colors...

This mouse photo was Embossed for a 3D look and also to provide texture to the fur In the printing industry, Embossing refers to a method of pressing an image into paper or cardstock to create a three dimensional design. Text, logos and other...

In the printing industry, Lamination refers to the process of bonding a clear plastic film onto printed matter. It is most common to bond the film to both sides of the printed piece so that the piece is totally enclosed in plastic. Printed pieces...

Perfect Binding is a widely used soft cover book binding method. With this binding method, the pages and cover are glued together at the spine with a strong yet flexible thermal glue. The other three sides of the book are then trimmed as needed...

Spiral Binding and Coil Binding are interchangeable terms for the exact same book binding method. This popular method joins the pages and cover of a book using a durable plastic or metal coil that is shaped like a long spring. The coil is...

Terms like 4/4 , 4/1, 4/0 etc. are a sort of printing industry shorthand to express how many ink colors are applied to each side of a printed piece.

Some printing customers like to set up their own artwork files and I admire and welcome their desire to be a part of the creative process. However, we occasionally receive artwork files that have been designed with software that is not...

The Saddle Stitch method is most effective for binding booklets and publications with around 64 pages or less. Books with more pages may become bulky when folded and may not lie as flat as desired when Saddle Stitched. Also, whenever laying out a...

Of all the questions I am asked in a given week, questions about "Bleed" are definitely the most common. In printing, the term "Bleed" means that the ink coverage extends all the way to the edge of the paper. Examples of Ink Bleed on...

If you're unfamiliar with the term "Print On Demand," it simply means that a printer can create books or other materials for a customer whenever they're needed. This approach has become increasingly popular in recent years as more Print Buyers...