Offset Printing Process

The process of offset printing:

Offset printing has been the most common form of commercial printing for the last sixty years. The most important element of the offset printing process is a plate manufactured from metalor polyster. This plate carries the copy of the image to be printed. The process of printing takes place as follows:

• The plate is chemically treated so that water may be absorbed only by the non-image areas of the plate.
• The plate is next attached to a plate cylinder, which rolls past the water roller. At this stage, the water on the water rollers is absorbed by the non-image areas of the plate, i.e. the areas not requiring ink.
• The cylinder next rolls over the ink roller. At this stage, the ink on the ink rollers sticks to the areas of the plate that are free of water.
• The rubber surface on the offset cylinder takes the ink from the plate cylinder and presses it onto the paper, as it is being rolled between the offset cylinder and the impression cylinder.

The above steps are repeated for each color of the ink present in the publication, to achieve a crisp and professional print. Though the system of offset printing involves a complex process, the entire system of is extremely efficient and robust in its overall performance and output.

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