A group of scientist at the Institute of Materials Research and Engineering in Singapore has discovered a way to produce high resolution images in full color without any ink.  They claim the resolution is about 100,000 per inch, which is the highest possible.   Currently the best possible resolution is about 10,000 dots per inch.

Instead of using ink or dye, the researchers used tiny metal disks that reflect light. The disks are arranged on a reflective surface and tiny movements of the particles cause light to be reflected.  Depending on the placement pattern of the disks, different light colors are reflected. Because the disks are so tiny, they can be placed very close together yielding a very high resolution.

The researchers cite stained glass as their inspiration.   Tiny metal pieces are mixed into the glass while it is molten.  When light passes through the glass the metal scatters it into different colors.

This technology is probably not going to be used in everyday applications.  Its high resolution and color clarity make it idea for use in anti-counterfeiting paper, reflective color prints and high-density optical data recording.

Although Accent Printing Solutions doesn’t offer this technology yet, we do have the ability to print almost anything from creating ad journals to printing posters  and any other nj printing services you need.

The Printing Industries of America, an advocacy organization, thinks so.  It can be a vital part of an integrated marketing campaign including both traditional print and digital elements.  The four elements listed below detail why print should be a part of your campaigns.

Print can be Personal

E-mail inboxes are cluttered everyday with marketing e-mails some if which may be filtered out as spam.  If your customer never sees your message, he or she can never respond to it.  Print gives you the option of personalizing your message to the viewer, through images, text or even color to make sure that your piece is noticed.

 Print Engages

A print marketing piece can grab the customer’s attention by appealing to more than one sense.  With a digital advertisement you are limited to sight and sound, but print can add so much more.  Engage the sense of touch with interesting textures or shapes.  Adding scent or a scratch and sniff element brings in the sense of smell.  Appealing to the sense of taste might be tricky, but it is possible with print.

 Print Delivers

According to a study performed by the US Postal Service, 38% of consumers surveyed said that they were interested in the direct mail print pieces delivered to their houses.  A study conducted by the Chief Marketing Officer Council found that direct mail offers from companies they already did business with were welcomed with 67% stating that they liked receiving these.  This translates into sales, too.  41% of loyalty program members ordered products through catalogs sent to them via mail.

 Print is Proven

It seems as if the digital world has a new way of reaching customers every day.  And the hype that follows makes it confusing to know where to focus your efforts.  Print, on the other hand, is a time-tested method of reaching your customers.

If you are looking for assistance in developing the print element of your marketing strategy, contact us for advice and guidance on document printing, calendar printing, or other printing services please contact us.

A German paint company, Alpina, did just that.  To showcase some of their paint colors, they have made a huge calendar from paper that takes up an entire wall.  Each month is a different color.  At the beginning of the month, you tear off the old month and you have not only a new month, but also an entirely new color for your wall.   To see a photo visit http://www.directdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/Alpina_Wall_Calendar.jpg

That calendar is large, but not as large as the calendar created to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of a school in Kharagpur, India.  Measuring 260 feet by 20 feet, it holds the record for the world’s largest wall calendar.  Each date features photos of the students who were born on that day.

The artist Oscar Diaz looked at the idea of a print calendar in an entirely different way.   His piece “Ink Calendar” uses capillary action to draw ink into a calendar embossed on paper.  As the day progresses, the date is “printed” by the ink.  It is precisely timed so that it takes an entire day for that day’s date to be filled in with ink.   You can see a photo of it at http://www.oscar-diaz.net/?p=1.

A calendar is the perfect way to put your company at the top of your customer’s mind every day.  At Accent Printing Solutions we can help you create something unique to ensure your print calendar is memorable.

The first paper meeting this definition was developed by the Chinese in the 2^nd century BC.  It’s considered to be one of the Four Great Inventions of China.  The rest of the world had to be content with papyrus and parchment, made from animal hides, until the 10^th century AD when Chinese paper spread through the Middle East to Spain and Portugal.  By the 13^th century AD it had spread to northern Europe and its development was furthered by the construction of water powered paper mills.  The development of the printing press around 1440 AD increased the demand for and use of paper by making books more readily available.

Although paper was in higher demand, it was still quite expensive.  It wasn’t until the Industrial Revolution and the creation of steam driven paper making machines that paper became more accessible and cheaper.

Today paper is inexpensive, readily available and widely used.  Even with the advent of digital media, there will always be a need for paper to carry messages through words and images.  If you have printing and graphics you want to put on paper, Accent Printing Solutions is your solution.

The color element of ink can be either a pigment or a dye. Pigments are are tiny, opaque bits of color suspended in a liquid. The pigment sits atop the paper or other printing material and binds with it, like paint on a wall. Pigment inks tend to be more expensive but they are more commonly used because the color is more durable than with dye based inks.

Dyes are colors that have an attraction to the printing material and want to combine with it, like dye coloring a piece of fabric or thread. Dye is dissolved in a liquid for application and this liquid soaks into the printing material. This can make it a less desirable ink due to bleeding and blurring. To avoid this, the solvent used may dry quickly or the drying speed is increased by air circulation or heat.

Regardless of the type of ink used, Accent Printing Solutions provides quality printing services. Let us provide complete print solutions for all your printing needs.

The four colors used in four color process printing are cyan (blue), magenta (red), yellow and black and is the process often referred to as CMYK, with K representing black which is used as the key to line up all the other colors.

The inks used are translucent. Layering them allows for creation of a range of colors using basic color principles. Cyan and yellow can produce shades of green, magenta and blue produce shades of purple, and magenta and yellow produce shades of orange. Black could be produced by combining the three other colors, but the result could be muddy and the amount of ink needed prohibitive. The addition of the black in allows for cleaner lines as less ink takes less time to dry reducing the risk of blurring.

Because the inks are being applied mechanically, there needs to be a way to control the saturation of color to produce lighter or darker tones of color. This is achieved by the halftone process. Tiny dots of color are placed close together, with bits of white from the paper showing between. The eye will perceive the dots as a solid color, but as a lighter tone due to the white showing through. The halftone process expands the range of colors produced greatly.

Whatever your print management needs, from print calendars to ad journals and beyond, let Accent Printing Solutions’ experienced staff put the four color process to work for you.

Ink was developed in several different cultures, at different times, and independent of each other. Without ink, we would have a much less complete record of history and would have to rely solely on objects to interpret the culture.

The Chinese were the first culture to develop ink, in the 18^th century BC. They were composed of a dye from plant, animal or mineral sources which was ground and mixed with water. This could be applied with a brush.

India ink dates back to the 4^th century BC and is still in use today, mainly for drawing. The pigment was initially from burnt bones, tar or pitch. Today the pigment comes from lampblack produced by burning lamp oil. The pigment is often mixed with gelatin or shellac to make the ink last longer.

European ink was developed in Rome in 400 AD. This ink mixed iron salts with tannins and a thickener. Later, Europeans used pigments from tree branches.

When Gutenberg invented the printing press in 1440 a new ink had to be developed which was thicker and would not smudge when used with the press. The ink that resulted was composed of soot for pigment, turpentine as a solvent and walnut oil to make the oil thicker so it would not smudge.

Today ink uses all sorts of pigments and almost any color can be printed. The technology used to convey the color and dry the ink is varied. Accent Printing Solutions complete print solutions utilize the best in printing and graphics technology to deliver your job.

The concept is pretty simple but the methods used to print are not. Using a computer program, some of which are available for free online, a model of the desired object is created. The program then “slices” the image into very thin sections. The printer is then instructed to print each slice, sequentially, on top of each other. The smaller the slices, the more detailed the piece can be. This is called additive manufacturing because it differs from traditional methods which remove material to create a model, called subtractive manufacturing.

The printing media are varied and include thermoplastics, metals, foil, paper and plaster and are determined by the type of printing. There are three main types of printing; molten polymer deposition, granular materials binding and photo-polymerization.

Fused deposition modeling is a type of molten polymer deposition. Objects are printed melting plastic or metal and depositing successive layers of material.

Granular materials binding works in a similar way, but the model is built in a granular bed which provides support as it is built. The most unique use of this technology is the CandyFab printer which uses melted sugar as its medium.

Photo-polymerization uses light to harden the materials. An example, digital light processing, prints in an entirely different way than other methods. Each layer of the object is created by exposing a vat of liquid polymer to selective UV light. The polymer exposed hardens and creates a layer of the object. The polymer is exposed again for the next layer which repeats until the model is complete.

If your printing needs are more two dimensional, Accent Printing Solutions can help. For complete printing services we are your print management partners.

Highlights of printing history include:

Woodblock printing 200 AD

Moveable type 1040

Printing press 1454

Lithography 1796

Offset printing 1875

Screen printing 1907

Phototypesetting 1960s

Laser printing 1969

3D printing 2003

Printing as we know it would not exist without all these and other inventions and innovations.  Accent Printing Solutions can put all these developments to work for you, from printing & graphics to printing management solutions.

NJ Printers Accent Printing Solutions sponsors 34th Annual Tot Trot

The beautiful weather was an indication of the success of the event.  Children and adults enjoyed games, face painting, a petting zoo and arts and crafts.  The day concluded with a races for kids ages 2 to 7.

Enjoying the petting zoo at Tot Trot sponsored by NJ Printers Accent Printing Solutions

Proceeds from this year’s event will benefit Family and Children’s Services in Elizabeth, NJ.

About Accent Printing Solutions

Accent Printing Solutions has been working with clients to communicate their message through creative design and printed material. By efficiently providing print solutions for our clients, exceeding expectations, and meeting aggressive deadlines, Accent Printing Solutions proves that we are dedicated to what’s most important–YOU. Contact Accent Printing Solutions if you need a corporate print management partner for complete print solutions.