DIGITAL PRINT AUSTRALIA

The digital print industry in Australia is diverse and competitive. There is no single “go to” company to use in every situation. Rather, it is important for the customer to understand what their priorities and needs are when trying to find the right digital printer in Australia for them. If you are looking to find a digital printer it makes sense to ask yourself a series of questions and the answers to these will determine what printer makes sense for you…

What quantity do you require?

The first thing to consider when looking for digital print in Australia is the scope of the job, which includes the quantity, and the dimensions of the item. If the job is a standard digital print size (e.g. DL, A5, A4, A3) there is no issue, but if the job needs to be larger, for example A2, only a few commercial printers have the machinery to print jobs that large digitally so you should ask if they have this equipment in-house. Similarly, if the quantity is small, any printer can handle the job, but if the quantity is 5000+ pieces it will make sense to use a larger digital printer.

How urgent is the job?

The next key driver is how urgent the job is. If the job is need the same day, one has little choice but go to the instant printer near you because it has been left too late for an online digital printer and unless you are prepared to pay a rush charge a specialty or full service printer will not be able to squeeze in the job. If you have at least a week, then really, all option are open as even an online printer should be able to deliver in a week if they are in your city. Some exceptions are true, for example if the job is very large or complex and includes significant finishing or embellishments, it may be difficult for an online printer to deliver on time.

Do you need to impress the client?

If you really want to make an impact with this particular piece, you will likely want to make the job unique in one or more ways. This process typically requires one-on-one attention, so a full service digital printer makes the most sense. Bespoke items typically require back and forth with the graphics and setup as well. Finally, additional embellishments like foiling, embossing, spot uv, and bookmaking services require more time.

Do you need any help with the graphics, artwork or design?

If you have graphic design and pre-press skills in house with digital print experience, it is fairly straightforward to provide PDF print ready graphic files complete with bleed. Bleed is the extra few millimetres of artwork used to go over the edge where the page is trimmed so any colour and graphics have no white line at the very edge of the page. In this case any printer can accept your files and print quickly if you do not require a proof or confirmation of the work your graphic designer produced. This is typically the “discount” you earn with online digital printers. Whereas, if you are not certain and want your work checked or want the “pre-press” work done for you then go with a full service print provider.

Is this a one-off job or will it need repeating?

Finally, if the job is a one-off and is unlikely to be repeated, use the criteria above as any printer can do the job…but, if this is the first time doing a job that is going to be done repetitively, even if there will be slight changes, then consider a full service printer where you negotiate with them to get a better price based on the fact that this job will be repeated. Everyone printer is looking for repeat work as the risk of not delivering on expectations is reduced significantly and the internal costs associated with getting to know the customer and their needs is spread over several jobs. This allows the printer to reduce the “set-up” charges that are typically built into the price to cover the account manager’s time and effort.

HP Indigo digital press

Our state of the art HP Indigo digital press will transform the way you think about printing forever. With the ability to print up to 7 colours, including pantone colours, white, ultra-violet fluorescing inks and with the ability to print onto the widest range of papers in the market, we will have the answer for your next project. The HP Indigo digital press allows true ink printing onto not only common coated papers but almost every uncoated, textured, metallic and synthetic paper that previously was only available through offset printing processes. Unlike dry toner digital printing which most copy shops use, the HP Indigo uses a liquid ink that allows unrivalled quality and because it’s ink it can get right into the texture of the paper. All of this means your marketing booklet, invite or portfolio just look better and people want to hold onto it, and that is what its all about.

Although nearly all digital printing machines these days offer what they call offset quality, this generally refers to the resolution of the printing dots and not the look or feel of it. Most digital printing presses use toner and being a small powder that is essentially baked on to the sheet, it generally produces a more shiny result with less of the original paper or base substrate visible or ‘feel-able’ through the toner. Toner has its place as it can be more economical in larger quantities, for some mail-outs or onto smaller items that cannot be printed on otherwise, but in general, our customers seem to prefer the feel and look of Indigo digital and that is why we have invested so heavily in the technology.

We currently run two HP Indigo presses which allows us switch work between them to ensure that we never miss a deadline or have issues with machine maintenance. We also run an entirely flexible production workflow that means that it is almost unheard of for us to not be able to fit your work in, no matter how urgent it may be or how many processes may be required. This flexibility means that we aim to produce proofs same day in most cases and sometimes within minutes which means you can rest assured your work will not be negatively impacted by the rush.

Laser printing

Although not our mainstay for digital production we do have multiple laser based machines which serve a valuable function in our print mix. Laser printing uses a dry toner which in general does not produce quality that is considered to be as good as an Indigo but its technology allows for direct printing onto a formed envelope right down to 90mm x 90mm and up to a massive B3 in full colour and even white ink which is perfect for that black envelope. Being digital we can also personalise every single envelope from a database meaning labels are a thing of the past.

Email or call us to discuss your next project or even to get our advice on how to best bring your creative to life or just to talk about how we can improve your printing experience.