Flatbed Printing Questions

[jfiscus]

I am working on a project for a friend, and for his introductory pieces he needs a few one-off printed pieces.
What he needs is the box for his product printed with a flatbed printer so that it can be folded up and glued into a useable box.

I assume some of you have experience with this...
What are some of the issues that I need to know before I plan the layout of this piece?
What is the maximum print area/piece size?
How high-quality of a print can you achieve?
How do I get material samples to choose which material?

Who can do just a few (2-4) of these for the first shipment?
We are located in Northern KY and would prefer a KY company, but any American company will work.

 

[10sacer]

We do these all the time on a wide variety of corrugated.

Let's see... first he needs to determine what his final product material would be - better to print and fold on what you will ultimately be using rather than something else just for prototyping.

Most guys have a 48"x96" flatbed - that will be determined by whomever you choose to do the printing.
Before you settle on a vendor you will need to determine if their ink is going to crack when you score and fold the corrugated material or if the material itself is subject to fracturing along the score/fold lines. Kraft white may work better than bleach white or chemi coated.

You will probably achieve a much higher quality print than what you will ultimately get off a box printing device for your production run - unless you go litho and decal the thing. (thats how most of your larger run displays are done).

To get material - you call your local corrugated supplier like Ferguson Box or similar and see if they can get you some samples. or better yet - you partner with an existing display company who has experience doing this.

Almost anyone around you can do small sample runs for you.

Sean

 

[jfiscus]

We do these all the time on a wide variety of corrugated.

Let's see... first he needs to determine what his final product material would be - better to print and fold on what you will ultimately be using rather than something else just for prototyping.

Most guys have a 48"x96" flatbed - that will be determined by whomever you choose to do the printing.
Before you settle on a vendor you will need to determine if their ink is going to crack when you score and fold the corrugated material or if the material itself is subject to fracturing along the score/fold lines. Kraft white may work better than bleach white or chemi coated.

You will probably achieve a much higher quality print than what you will ultimately get off a box printing device for your production run - unless you go litho and decal the thing. (thats how most of your larger run displays are done).

To get material - you call your local corrugated supplier like Ferguson Box or similar and see if they can get you some samples. or better yet - you partner with an existing display company who has experience doing this.

Almost anyone around you can do small sample runs for you.

Sean

Thanks, that is the info I need, except who is around me to call?
I've done a lot of different types of printing for many years, but never had a need for direct flatbed printing so I have no contact at a company that does that.

 

[10sacer]

What city are you in in Kentucky?

 

[10sacer]

There will be about 50 guys in Cincinnati who can help you.
Just do a Google search for wide format printing or something like that.

or search for signs and graphics