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How are boulevard banners printed? |
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Friday, 04 September 2009 14:01 |
Q: How are boulevard banners printed? What is the difference between digital and screen printing?
A: Screen printing vs. digital printing…be careful! For long term use banners (more than 3 years) screen printing is the way to go. For short term use banners or banners that require full color (256K photographic quality, full color images) use digital printing. The upside of digital is no screen/set up charge, small quantities, beautiful imagery. The downside is cost and UV longevity. Whereas with screen printing, the up side is longevity, larger quantities and cost, the down side is limited ink and fabric colors. More…
Digital printing is done on a machine that looks like a giant ink jet printer on white vinyl or canvas. 100% of the banner color comes from the inks. Digital inks have not been perfected for longevity. Screen printing is a mass production process that utilizes UV outdoor inks squeegeed directly onto colored awning canvas. While you are limited to canvas colors, they sky is the limit for ink colors. We use acrylic inks that are designed for long term outdoor use. Reds stay red, yellows stay yellow guaranteed. Some banner companies screen thermoplastic (T-shirt) inks that will fade quickly in time. If you are using a design that utilizes red or yellow ink, thermoplastic screen inks are not UV resistant.
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