Printing, the greatest invention in the mid-14th century. Invented in 1440 by Johannes Gutenberg, printing is the most useful invention for every profession. Since 1440, printing has taken drastic changes and almost every street has at least one online print shop. In this present era, there are different printing techniques:

• Offset Lithography 
• Flexography
• Digital Printing 
• Large Format
• Screen Printing 

• Table of Contents

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  Offset Lithography 

Offset lithography is mostly used for mass production printing. Printing plates made with aluminum are used for offset lithography.  Presentation folders printing is done with the help of offset lithography.

Advantages 

• The image quality produced by offset lithography is very high and consistent. 
• The production rate of offset lithography is high.
• It doesn’t take much time to produce qualified premium rack cards printing with the help of offset lithography which depicts that the production time is very less.  
• Offset lithography is a cost-effective process.

• Flexography 

Flexography is mainly used for uneven surfaces. Quick-drying, semi-liquid inks are two of the things used in flexography printing. Premium rack cards printing, packaging labels, and any continuous patterns like wallpaper and gift wraps.

Advantages 

• Long print runs can be done at low costs.
• The maintenance of flexography is very low. 
• Flexography is a simple and effortless technique 
• The production rate of flexography products is high. 

• Digital Printing 

As the name refers, digital printing is done digitally.  The design is printed on different items from a digital gadget. PDFs, canvas, photos are printed on different items like mugs, shirts, and many more. 

Advantages 

• Digital printing is very cost-effective 
• The speed of digital printing is very high when compared with other printing techniques. 
• The quality of digitally printed photos on products is also high.

• Large Format

Large format printing is used to print on larger surfaces.  Maps, charts, store displays, banners, and advertisements are printed using a large format printing technique.

Advantages 

• Large format printing gives long-lasting results.
• The large format printing technique is a low-cost technique.
• It uses different techniques to print unlike traditional materials making it more efficient in bulk printing. 

• Screen Printing

Using a mesh stencil to print a design with ink is called screen printing. The image is formed by leaving the blocked spaces impermeable.

Advantages 

• When compared, screen printing has higher quality than digital printing.
• Screen printed pictures are durable and can last for more time than required.
• Easy-to-use method. Can be used for the customization of products. 

While these are the traditional and most used techniques, 3D printing and LED UV are two other types that are efficient in energy saving. 

With these vast varieties of techniques, one can choose different options according to their requirements.  

James Montano