THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN DIGITAL PRINTING AND OFFSET PRINTING

We are one of the leading printers in Offset printing, but not all of the jobs are done by offset printing technique. After all the calculation of the costs, we will consider which is best for your project and budget.

Below will be the Pros and Cons of Offset Printing and Digital Printing. After thorough review of this article, you will definitely have a deep understanding of the Printing Options.

	OFFSET PRINTING	DIGITAL PRINTING
QUALITY	Allows the widest range of color re-production. Bright florescence, Pantones®, metallic, foils and varnishes can all be produced using this method of printing. Allows the most accurate color re-production and consistency	Color consistency is poor, Pantone® colors, metallic inks, foils or varnishes cannot be reproduced.
	In general, offset printing is regarded as being of higher quality; however, digital printing has made strides in respect to quality and two copies of the same design – one via offset printing, the other via digital printing – may appear identical to the untrained eye
SET UP	Since offset printing uses plates, every print job has to be made into a plate, and the press has to be individually set up for each individual job. This process costs money and adds an upfront fee to your print job regardless of quantity, which is called fixed set-up cost. For example, for a book with 100 pages printed full colors, we will produce a set of plates for the whole printing and it cost 200usd. So that if we print with offset printing, even you print 1 book or 1,000 books, you still have to pay for the fixed set up cost, and in this example it is 200 usd.	Since digital printing does not use plates, no setup fees are involved so you pay a flat price per piece.
COST	Offset presses can print so rapidly your offset price per piece is not static, it diminishes with quantity. Thus, for large runs offset printing becomes far more economical than digital printing because your setup fee is absorbed by the diminished price per piece.	For short runs, digital printing negates a setup fee so it can be far more economical than offset printing.
SIZE	A wide variety paper weights, size and textures. Our printing machines currently can offer the maximum size of 79 x 108 cm (1 color) and 70 x 100 (4 colors)	Weight of paper is more limited. Our Digital Printers can offer the maximum size of 32 x 100 cm.

We usually take of order from small to big ones; 20 units or 200,000 units). We can help give advice which is the best option for your printing and budget.

The rapid development of global industry has made huge impact on the environment. Hanoi Printing has always been conscious of the environmental impact of commercial printing. To protect our green house, we, as a leading printer, suggest all of our customers who are doing business with us to print with the most friendly environment materials.

We print colors, and think green.

We will provide the FSC paper sources for printing projects. By complying with FSC Principles and Criteria, we will contribute to the effectiveness of the forest management. FSC's forest management standards expand protection of water quality, prohibit harvest of rare old-growth forest, prevent loss of natural forest cover and prohibit highly hazardous chemicals, which are all unique aspects of the system.

One way that helps us to reduce to carbon footprint and bad impact on the environment is to offer our customers to use soy-based inks for your print projects. In comparison to traditional inks, soy-based inks are naturally low in volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and their usage can lower the emissions that cause air pollution.

Hanoi Printing has always been conscious of the environmental impact of commercial printing.
One way that helps us to reduce to carbon footprint and bad impact on the environment is to offer our customers to use soy-based inks for your print projects. In comparison to traditional inks, soy-based inks are naturally low in volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and their usage can lower the emissions that cause air pollution.

There are some basic advantages of SOY INK:


Soy Ink is Renewable: Soy ink relies on a compound that can be grown and replenished indefinitely — soy oil

Soy is Less Costly to Grow Than Other Alternatives: Soy beans require relatively small amounts of irrigation and fertilizers. Not only are these low costs an advantage for farmers, but they also minimize the load on the environment.

Soy Ink is Biodegradable: Because soy ink is based on naturally grown soy oil, it can degrade more than four times faster than petroleum-based inks. This simply means that the full life cycle of soy ink is shorter and the total load on the environment is far less.

Less Soy Ink is Required for the Same Amount of Print Outs: soy ink lasts longer for the same amount of printing, cutting down on the total amount of printer ink. Less ink produced, used, and thrown away is always positive for the environment

Soy Ink is Easier to Remove When Recycled: Soy ink is much easier to remove than the equivalent petroleum-based products. Not only does this mean that the resulting recycled paper is higher quality, but it even helps lower the costs of the entire recycling process

Some of our products with Soy- based ink

Soy-based ink is an excellent alternative to petroleum or oil-based inks. Not only is this ink great for the environment and your eco-friendly business agenda, but it can actually be used to produce brighter, more vibrant colors.

Offset printing is the most commonly used printing method today. Over 40% of all print jobs are carried out using offset printing.

WHAT IS OFFSET PRINTING?

Offset printing (also called Offset Lithography), is a printing technique in which the images on a metal plate are transferred to a rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. The printing surface, usually paper, does not come into direct contact with the metal plates. This help prolongs the plate life. Instead, the flexible rubber conforms readily to the print media surface, allowing the process to be used effectively on rough-surfaced media such as canvas, cloth or wood.

HOW DOES IT WORK?

Offset printing works in a simple manner. It uses three cylinders to transfer the image onto the substrate. 

The first cylinder: Plate Cylinder

The second cylinder: Rubber Blanket Cylinder

The third cylinder: Impression Cylinder

The first cylinder is mounted with the printing plate. The image on the printing plate is ‘right’ reading or written with the right side up. The first cylinder is inked and the image transferred or offset onto the second cylinder, which is mounted with a rubber blanket. The image on the second cylinder is thus reversed or becomes ‘wrong’ reading. Finally the image is transferred from the blanket cylinder onto the third cylinder or the substrate. The substrate is mounted on the third cylinder also known as the impression cylinder. The image once again is reversed and becomes ‘right’ reading or right side up in the final printed version.

CLASSIFICATION?

There are two types of offset printing machines in common use for publication today: Sheet-fed offset printing and Web offset printing

In sheet-fed offset printing, individual pages of paper are fed into the machine. The pages can be pre-cut to the final publication size or trimmed after printing. Sheet-fed offset printing is popular for small and medium-sized fixed jobs such as limited-edition books

Sheet-fed offset printing machine

Hanoi Printing’s most noticeable sheet-fed printing machines are the Mitsubishi Diamond 3FR-12 colors  and the Mitsubishi 3FR-8 colors which offer the maximum size of 72 x 102 cm for color printing. 

In web offset printing, larger, higher-speed machines are used. These are fed with large rolls of paper and the individual pages are separated and trimmed afterwards. Web offset printing is more cost-effective for high-volume publications whose content changes often, such as metropolitan newspapers.

Web-offset printing machine

For this type of printer, we own 2 City Line Web Presses originated from Germany which provide capacity to 45,000 sheets/hours. 

PROS AND CONS?

Pros?

Offset printing is usually used for high-volume printing such as with magazines, books, newspapers, brochures, and stationery. While it does add some steps in the process, for massive orders, it makes financial sense for several reasons.

The ink, which fades and then runs out in direct printing methods, is actually controllable with offset printing. The operator can twist some screw keys to adjust the amount of ink flow on the fountain roller. This minimizes the creation of wasted prints with insufficient contrast. The printing plates themselves are easy and fast to make with today’s technology. And the plates each have the potential to run a million impressions or more.

It costs less to produce high quality printing when it is done with offset printing methods. Additionally, the image quality is consistently good as the rubber blanket, on the printing plate, fits itself to the texture of the printing surface, leaving a clean and detailed image every time.

Cons?

The disadvantages are fewer, but they include the tediousness and cost associated with the production of the printing plates and setup. The printing plates are made of anodized aluminum, making them vulnerable to chemical oxidation, so they need some extra care and maintenance. 

But all in all, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages with offset printing, at least when it comes to high-volume printing jobs.


Some pictures of our printed products:

In our modern life, things seem to be much easier to download an ebook, a document and manage them in in a strict order in your own folder. People can read online everyday, it is the century of the Internet. But why printed book will never die?

Books have physical beauty! Yes, they do. There's something about holding a book in your hand and the visceral act of physically turning a page that,and which sometimes can't be matched with pixels on a screen. They can be your gifts giving, presents to your friends, parents, children and lovers. 

The books in a built-in bookshelf can reveal who you are. Your favorite books define you, and digital versions don't seem to impart connections that are quite as deep.  "People who need to possess the physical copy of a book, not merely an electronic version, believe that the objects themselves are sacred,"- (Author Joe Queenan, in a Wall Street Journal)



OUR PRINTED BOOKS 

We offer high quality, mediated poster printing service. Our printed Posters size are varied: 24 x 36’’ posters, 24 x 18 inch posters and smaller like A4, A3.
Our Maximum size to print  at the moment is 72 x 102 cm.

The types of paper we use are varied. Art Paper, Cardboard, Coated/Uncoated Paper, Gloss/Matte paper, Offset paper , Wood-free paper,Silk paper, or other types with FSC certificates.

We can run printing from small to enormous quantities at competitive price. Our MOQ ranges from 100-500 pcs upon products details. With the system of European and Japan machineries, we will bring you the advanced quality and assurance

PACKING AND SHIPPING
Packing	Each book shrink wrapped. Books packed in cartons. Identity and GTIN Label on each carton. Export Quality Pallets - ISPM 15 certified wood
Shipping time	7-40      days (by Sea) , 2-7 days (by Air)
Shipping agents & Logistics	Cooperation with shipping agents and logistics organizations with comprehensive expertise in all major industries and extensive experience in offering value added logistics services, Hanoi Printing can provide you with the perfect balance between price and performance.