Gravure | 5 Facts

Gravure & Rotogravure Printing

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1. Typical gravure printed products include:

• Food packaging
• Wall paper
• Wrapping paper
• Furniture laminates
• Paneling 
• Greeting cards
• Magazines 

2. Gravure printing is characteristically used for long run, high quality printing producing a sharp, fine image. 

3. The number of gravure printing plants in the U.S. is significantly lower than other printing processes. This is due, in part, to the cost of presses and components. While a lithographic press will cost in the range of $100,000 the cost of gravure press will be in the range of $1 million. 

4. The process is the reverse of relief printing, in which the image is raised from the surface of the plate. The printer forms the image by cutting into the plate by hand or by using acids or other chemicals to etch the plate along the lines of the desired image. 

5. Varying the depth of the depressions provides tonal gradations in the printed image. A negative image is etched into the surface of a copper printing cylinder in tiny cells and dots of various sizes and various depths. These constitute the type characters and artwork with its tonal gradations.

Sources:

"Gravure Printing." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web. 14 Oct. 2015. <http://www.britannica.com/topic/gravure-printing>.

"Gravure Printing." Printing Process Descriptions: Environment and Printing: The Printers' National Environmental Assistance Center: PNEAC: The Environmental Information Website for the Printing Industry. PNEAC. Web. 14 Oct. 2015. <http://www.pneac.org/printprocesses/gravure/>.