DIGITAL PRINTING
IN CALIFORNIA

DIGITAL PRINTING

At Custom Printing Inc., we understand that digital printing has limitations. We use our 45-years of offset expertise and cutting-edge equipment to assist our digital side of the business, so you won’t notice the difference. With Custom Printing Inc.’s digital printers, small quantities are produced quickly and economically.

The ability to print what’s really needed rather than ordering more just to get an offset print price-break is one of the ways we keep you on budget and on track.

Digital printing is an environmentally-friendly process to complete your eco-friendly project.

How Does Digital Printing Work?

Conventional printing makes use of wet ink, and transfers a print image via printing plates, but digital printing is much different. In digital print, an image is made ready for printing after using a complex group of formulas and numbers, which capture the print image in pixels. Then a digitized image is used to manage the transfer of toner, ink, and exposure so as to reproduce any image which you want to print. Most digital printers are either toner-based printers or inkjet printers, and the inkjet printer manages to produce an image by mapping tiny droplets of ink directly onto a paper surface. When toner is used, a fine, plastic-based powder produces dots that are even smaller than an inkjet printer, and which are transferred in a dry state onto a print surface.

What Are the Advantages of Digital Printing?

There are a number of advantages provided by digital printing, including the tremendous flexibility it provides. You can make any kind of changes to artwork all throughout your process, with no trouble whatsoever. You also have flexibility in choosing the print material you want to use for your project. Generally speaking, digital printing is much more cost-effective when your project involves a small volume of pieces, but it’s not quite as cost-effective when you’re running a large volume. When you need a really fast turnaround on your project, digital printing is definitely the process to choose, no matter how many pieces you intend to print.

What are the Disadvantages of Digital Printing?

One of the disadvantages of digital printing is that the color quality is not as good as it would be with offset. This is because digital printing uses a combination of just four colors, those being magenta, yellow, cyan, and black, to get as close as possible to any colors you’re using in your artwork. Offset lithography printing on the other hand, uses a color system which is capable of matching colors in your artwork with precision. One more disadvantage of digital printing is that the color doesn’t get absorbed by the paper like it would be in offset printing. Whenever print areas get folded or cut, it’s possible that cracks might be left in the ink, and this would degrade your image.

Why is Digital Printing Cheaper?

Because it’s a more efficient and faster process, digital printing can be much less expensive than traditional processes. With conventional options, there’s always a minimum amount that you are obliged to print, but with digital print methods, you can print exactly the number of pieces you want. It’s also much quicker to set up for digital prints, and that’s what makes it ideal for a low-volume, small print job.

Is Digital Printing Better Than Offset Printing?

All things considered, digital print methods are your best bet when you have a short run project which you need to complete, whereas a higher volume printing requirement might be better suited to offset. Both printing processes can produce professional quality materials, so the primary difference between the two is whether you have a low-volume project or a high volume of printed pieces which are necessary. Contact us today for either!

805.485.3700