Digital Vs. Litho
The growth of digital printing technology has brought with it technical advancements, options and exciting features to commercial printing.
With these advancements there has also been introduction of some confusion in the market and it is important to know the advantages and disadvantages of the new way of printing and compare it to the traditional offset lithography so that you can make and informed choice for your project.
It is important to note that offset lithography is the most common type of printing for large volume commercial work. In this process, the correct image is printed onto a plate and it is then offset or transferred from the plate to an elastic blanket and finally to the printing surface.
This process is based on the repulsion of oil and water and the image to be printed gets ink from rollers. The non-printing area around the image attracts water and stays ink-free.
Digital printing eliminates a lot of the mechanical steps outlined above for the offset printing. There is no need to make films and colour proof or manually stripping pieces together and making plates.
All this is done digitally in a breeze.
It is therefore important to examine the pros and cons of each method so as to know the one best suited for your project.
Advantages of Digital Printing
• Shorter turn around.
• Every print is the same. Accuracy is better achieved with fewer waste and discrepancies due to the elimination of the manual process.
• Low-cost small volume printing. As the unit cost of every quantity may be more than with offset printing, included set up costs in digital printing results in lower costs for some print processes.
• A Data Printing which is variable is a kind of digital printing which is customisable. Using a database or external file’s information, graphics and text can be modified on every piece without slowing down or stopping the press. For example, personalised letters can be printed with a different name and address on each letter. This type of printing is used primarily for direct marketing, customer relationship development and advertising.
Advantages of Offset or LITHO Printing
• High image quality.
• Works on a wide variety of printing surfaces including textured material and up to 450gsm (digital printing only usually allows up to 350gsm).
• The unit cost decreases as the quantity increases.
• Offers quality and cost-effectiveness in high volume jobs. Digital presses come very close to offset printing in terms of cost/benefit ratio for high quality work, but offset printing still leads in high volume production.
• Modern offset presses use computer-to-plate system of printing as opposed to the traditional computer-to-film system which increases printing quality by far.
To further clarify and help you in your decision making use the checklist below:
• Quantity: Offset printing comprises of a full cost load. Short runs may have a high unit cost but as the quantities increase, the offset printing unit cost decreases. Incredibly short runs with digital printing can cost a much more reasonable amount; while huge quantities are likely to have a lower unit cost.
• Printing medium: the options are increasing continually with the digital printing system, but offset printing still has the most flexibility. Whether it is on special paper, different finishes, unusual printing surfaces or just a unique size, offset printing can do it all.
• Colour: The use four-colour process printing is common in digital presses. If you require black ink or one or more coloured ink, offset printing may provide a more reasonable solution. If you require four-colour printing, digital may provide better solutions in cheaper up-front expense.
• Still on Colour: Offset printing will provide you excellent results if you plan on printing using the Pantone® Matching System as it uses actual Pantone® inks. Digital printing simulates the colour utilising a four-colour matching method, so some digital printers may give less precise colour matching.
• Turnaround: If you need it yesterday, digital printing offers the fastest output and delivery.
• Proofing: Digital provides precise proofs because what you see is an example of the real printing. Offset printing cannot offer accurate colour proofing as it is a very expensive task indeed.
• Customisation: Without question, digital printing offers the most affordable printing for customised marketing/advertising materials, direct mail pieces, letters and many other such materials.
Summary
Make sure you talk to your printer before submitting your work for printing after you have used the above information to make your choice.