Printers Jibberish.. The 'B's

Backbone. Alternate term for Spine.

Back up. To print on the second side of a sheet already printed on one side. Such printing is called a backup.

Banding. Method of packaging printed pieces using paper, rubber, or fiberglass bands.

Base negative. Negative made from copy pasted to mounting board, not overlays.

Basic size. The one standard size of each grade of paper used to calculate basis weight.

Basis weight. Weight in pounds of a ream of paper cut to the basic size for its grade.

Baud rate. Number of bits of information transmitted per second from one digital device to another.

Benday. Alternate term for Screen tint.

Bind. To fasten sheets or signatures and adhere covers with glue, wire, thread, or by other means.

Binder's board. Very stiff paper board used to make covers of case bound books.

Bindery. Print shop department or separate business that does trimming, folding, binding, and other finishing tasks.

Black Printer The plate during the prepress printing process that is used with the cyan, magenta and yellow printers to enhance the contrast and to emphasize the neutral tones and detail in the final reproduction shadow areas.

Blanket. Thick rubber sheet that transfers ink from plate to paper on an offset press.

Blanket cylinder. Cylinder of a press on which the blanket is mounted.

Bleed. Printing that extends to the edge of a sheet or page after trimming.

Blind emboss. To emboss without added ink or foil the embossed image.

Blow up. To enlarge photographically. Such an enlargement is called a blowup.

Blueline. Prepress, photographic proof where all colors show as blue image on white paper.

Board. Alternate term for Mechanical.

Board paper. Grade of paper commonly used for file folders, display, and post cards.

Bond paper. Grade of paper commonly used for writing, printing, and photocopying.

Bookbinder. Alternate term for Trade bindery.

Book paper. Grade of paper suitable for books, magazines, and general printing needs.

Brightness. Characteristic of paper referring to how much light it reflects.

Bristol. Type of board paper used for post cards, business cards, and other heavy-use products.

Broken carton. Less than one full carton of paper.

Broker. Agent who supplies printing from many printing companies.

Bulk. Thickness of paper, expressed in thousandths of an inch or pages per inch (ppi).

Bulk pack. To pack printed pieces in boxes without prior wrapping in bundles.

Burn. In photography, to give extra exposure to a specific area of a print. In lithography, to expose a blueline proof or printing plate with light.

Burnisb. To smooth and seal by rubbing elements. adhered to a mechanical.

Burst perfect bind. To bind by forcing glue into notches in spines of signatures, and then adhering a paper cover.

Butt. To join without overlapping or space between.

Butt fit. Ink colors overlapped only a hairline so they appear perfectly butted.

Buyout. Subcontracted service.

Printhutter #1 in the Hills

Had a well deserved trip into the hills with a few colleagues recently. Left Print Hut early on the Friday, cheers Neil P for covering and caught several trains ending up in Sheffield for the night before getting into Edale on the Saturday. Was a well deserved break after the record breaking months we experienced throughout November through to March. Here is one or two shots thought I would share.
Frank Golden
Plenty of print for everyone

Frank Golden
Printhuteer #1
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Printhuteers in the hills
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On top on it for once.

Brand - take it seriously

Have spend with weekend reading a few articles of various aspects of business. Here is a slice of quality reading looking at your Brand so thought I would share it with you all
Frank Golden
Printhuteer#1
Print Hut! Plenty of print for everyone!

Sad but true - life can be tough for SMEs. They share the same challenges as large companies, but with limited financial muscle or human resources. They have to punch above their weight. And that's where marketing comes in. The problem is, marketing budgets can be tight and, in smaller companies, the same person frequently has split responsibilities for both sales and marketing - often without formal marketing expertise. For that reason, I am going to concentrate on some very simple concepts that can really make all the difference for an SME.
"PR publicity stunts can be remarkably cost effective"

Creating a 'brand'
Lesson number one: a brand is not just a logo.
Lesson number two: branding is not just for large companies.
For marketing professionals, branding is all about perception; the perceptions people have about a company or its products. Products (and companies) are like people. They have personalities. If that sounds pretentious, let me give an example:
Volskwagen and Skoda are part of the same business and under the skin of the cars they share many of the same components. VW has evolved a brand personality that is around quality and performance whereas Skoda has evolved a value proposition, with the obvious benefits and drawbacks associated with this. Neither is right or wrong, they are just different as a result of being targeted at different sectors of the market, each with their own profit pool.
I have chosen to use a ‘big company’ example simply because all readers will recognise the brands. But can small companies really create a brand? Well, a lady called Anita Roddick once had a small shop selling body oils and fragrances. She also had a brand built on a very strong value system that was just right for the times. The rest is history.
The benefits of a brand are significant. A lot of small businesses find themselves competing on price, yet people are willing to pay more for a brand if they have an affinity with it. For example, Waitrose has a loyal customer base that chooses to pay more for some of their foodstuffs than other retailers’ customers. People choose Norton anti-virus software in spite of there being free solutions that can be downloaded. A good endorsement for Norton’s brand marketing.
Once you have a brand, invest in it, nurture it as you would a child. It then becomes possible to enter new markets on the strength of the brand. Richard Branson's empire is a perfect example.
So how might this apply to, say, a small plumbing business? First, the company should identify and promote its core values - such as 'reliability ', always sticking to the quote, turning up on time, cleaning up properly at the end of the job, phoning back a week later to ensure the customer is satisfied. A perfect brand name for this company would be something like 'No Hassle Plumbing'. Taking a leaf out of Richard Banson's book, over time they might expand into 'No Hassle Air Conditioning', 'No Hassle Electrics' etc.
The four 'A' approach
Ask yourself four things:
Awareness - how do people hear about my brand?
Association - what things do they associate with my brand, as opposed to that of my competitors?
Advantage - what are the merits of my brand over my competitors' brands?
Affinity - does my brand/company have a 'personality' of its own that makes people feel affection for it?
As to Awareness, it is not necessary to resort to expensive advertising. PR publicity stunts can be remarkably cost effective - editors need stories. A local baker launching a new cake is no story. Baking a giant cake and giving it to the local Children's Hospital is.
The web is another outstandingly cost effective way of gaining awareness, whatever size the company.
Price vs value
Marketeers often refer to the four Ps, or the Marketing Mix
Product
Pricing
Promotion
Place
Smaller companies seem to have most difficulty addressing price. The problem stems from adopting a cost-plus strategy: "My product costs X. I need to make a profit, so I will charge X + Y". I often find people who consistently under-price themselves this way.
Price should not only have a simple arithmetic relationship with cost. You can try to sell your products/services for whatever price you choose; even giving them away (you would probably be surprised with the results if you did!). The secret is to understand your buyers’ values and charge what you are worth. If you should over-price, you will quickly learn and can take appropriate action. Once under priced, it is difficult to raise the bar. Under-pricing results in the whole business engine suffering a vicious circle. When working to tight margins, there is a greater risk of things going wrong and then insufficient margin to remedy problems - quality suffers and reputation is destroyed.
There are many other topics I could cover, but space prevents me. To find a layman's guide to such things as the Marketing Mix, PR, Market Research, Branding and so on, I strongly recommend the Chartered Institute of Marketing's knowledge hub.

A perspective on Business Marketing
Bill Simcox

Print is it cleaning up its act then?

Well this is a very contentious issue. Lets be honest folks shall we!!! IT IS DISCUSTING!! Millions of Tonnes of waste, millions of sq miles of virgin forest being systematically felled and burnt, factories and mills spuing out toxic waste into the skies and oceans as well as global landfill issues from the World corportation's insatible appetite for junk mail....well Frank Golden, Printhuteer #1 takes time out to look at what can be acheived with a little bit thought, process and possibly a tiny winy bit of extra cash................First up, whats all this talk about FSC and what is it? Here's a brief overview then

The Forestry Stewardship Council.

Founded in 1993, FSC is an independent, non-governmental, non-profit organisation established to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests. Over 100 million hectares of forest in 79 countries worldwide are certified to FSC standards, representing the equivalent of 7% of the world’s productive forests.

Products carrying the well-known FSC chain of custody logo are independently certified by FSC-accredited assessment bodies such as SGS United Kingdom Ltd to assure consumers that they come from forests that are managed to meet the social, economic and ecological needs of present and future generations.

The FSC logo enables certified organisations to demonstrate their commitment to environmental sustainability and increases their credibility with customers, business partners and investors.
Frank Golden
Printhuteer#1
Plenty of print for everyone!

Printers jibberish. All the 'As'

Abrasion Resistance

The resistance to scratching or scuffing of a surface of paper

Accordion Fold

A type of paper folding in which each fold of a brochure runs in the opposite direction to the previous fold of the brochure creating an accordion affect

Acetate

A clear or translucent plastic sheet material of a variety of colors used as an overlay usually

Additive Colors

In photographic reproduction the primary colors of red, green, and blue which are mixed to form all other colors. Also known as RGB

Aerate

This refers to a process whereby air is blown onto paper sheets to separate the sheets

Agate

Type size of 5 ½ points

Airbrush

A compressed air tool that dispenses a fine mist of ink; used in illustration and photo retouching software to create effects

Amberlith

Was used in laying film and stripping. Red-orange acetate used for masking mechanicals when photographing for plates. The Amberlith area appears black to the camera, and prints clear on the resulting film. Not used much anymore

Anodized Plate

In lithography, a plate manufactured with a barrier of aluminum oxide, which prevents chemical reactions that break down the plate; it provides optimum press performance and can carry very small dot %'s

Antique Finish

Paper with a rough surface

Antiskinning Agent

An antioxidant agent used to prevent inks from skinning over in the can or on press

Aqueous Coating

Water soluble coating that protects ink and enables quick handling of piece. Comes in gloss, satin, and dull-Usually done in-line

Aqueous Plate

Water soluble plate coatings, which are less toxic and less polluting which enables quick handling of paper and high level of gloss

Art Work

Any materials or images which are prepared for graphic reproduction and can be produced manually or by software

Art-Lined Envelope

An envelope that is lined with fine paper; can be colored patterned or foiled

Artwork

All illustrated material, photo and charts etc., that is prepare for reproduction which can be produced manually or by software

The Printers Language uncovered

You know everything there is to know about your business. Yet, when it comes to dealing with the printers you're probably not clued up on the intricate details. This can be to your disadvantage. Whether you work in the publishing industry, or you're setting up your own business and keen to spew out as many brochures and catalogues in record time, you'll probably have to deal with the printers on a fairly regular basis. Like every other industry, the Printing industry has its very own language and terms. Perhaps familiarizing yourself with few printing terms will stand you in good stead.

Arm yourself with Print Hut's glossary over the comming weeks so that when the Printing experts bombard you with their "secret code", you'll be able to decode their "gibberish".
Will dig out some every week for the next few months.
Frank Golden
Printhuteer #1
Plenty of Print for Everyone

March Figures for Print Hut!

Ok chaps, finished the month on £51,000.00 or there abouts. Lots of new businesses seeing the benefit of an Ultra Wholesale Print fascilitator! The usual mix of high and low volumes, though it is evident that we are now seeing repeat orders from our first quarter which is always great to see. Hawthorn software are about to deliver the final draught of our new software entitled 'Conker!'. This will bring all areas of the business together at last, avoiding duplication of administration, whilst delivering an immediate window into how well Print Hut are performing month on month. The year end is also upon us and looking like a 38% increase in business. Well done Printhuteers!
Frank
Printhuteer #1