iSO certification
We pride ourselves on our reputation for producing high quality products. We choose to be iSO certified for colour management every 6 months to ensure we can produce high quality and consistent colour accuracy for you. For the technical jargon on our certification, keep reading!
IBS Design Resources has been certified to iSO 12647-2 & iSO 12647-8 for the following scope:
- ISO 12647-2: Process control for the production of half-tone colour separations, proof and production prints with Offset Lithographic Processes.
- ISO 12647-8: Process control for the production of half-tone colour separations, proof and production prints, including validation print processes working directly from digital data.
This certification is subject to periodic surveillance and 6 monthly re-assessment.
Sustainable Green Printing
Sustainable Green Print (SGP) is the industry's environmental certification program run by Printing Industries Association of Australia. Based on iSO14001 framework, SGP is tailored to meet the needs of business and the demands of customers by managing environmental expectations and responsibilities.
As apart of this certification we comply with key environmental laws, manage environmental risks, document actions and undertake internal audits to manage our Environmental Management System (EMS).
Our Level 1 certification is focused on waste, recycling, storage and handling. It covers: record keeping; compliance; cleaner production practices and waste management, along with an Environmental Management System, which is our pathway to sustainability.
Waterless offset printing
To understand waterless offset printing, we first need to understand conventional or ‘wet-offset’ printing.
Conventional or ‘Wet Offset’ - How others manufacture
Wet-offset printing requires two different fluids–ink and water–to transfer an image from plate to paper. It uses an aluminum plate with a surface that is specially grained to attract water. An image is formed on the plate in a polymer coating that attracts ink and resists water. During printing, the background of the plate is wetted with water making it ink-resistant, then ink is applied. The polymer image area resists the water and so remains attractive to ink. Working with two fluids, each with very different properties, is a complex process. In order to stabilize this two-fluid process, a range of chemicals called ‘fountain solution’ is added to the water used in offset printing. Surfactants, detergents, wetting agents, acids, gums, and alcohols are all added to the water to make it react more consistently with offset inks and make the process more manageable.
Waterless Printing - How IBS manufacture
Waterless printing eliminates the need for water or other chemicals in the printing process by using a special printing plate that has only two surface properties: ink-resistant and ink-attractive. By working with only one fluid, ink ,as opposed to two fundamentally different fluids, ink and water, the printing process is greatly simplified and some very unique benefits realised.
Greener
The obvious benefit of eliminating fountain solution from the printing process, is that there is no water consumed.
Cleaner
High-speed printing using wet offset generates waste. Fountain solution that is exposed to inks, solvents, and paper debris carries some of the material back to the circulation tank that supplies the fluid to the press. After about a week of production, the fountain solution is contaminated and is generally disposed of as industrial wastewater. So, in addition to not using large quantities of clean water, waterless printing also doesn’t generate any industrial wastewater.
More Efficient
Because the printing press does not have be brought to a condition of chemical balance between two fluids, waterless generally starts up and reaches stable color faster than wet offset. This results in lower start-up paper waste for print jobs. Also, the single-fluid waterless process is more stable than wet offset, so color stays more consistent throughout the press run. This reduces running waste, where the press operator may need to discard sheets during the run for color variation.
A Sharper Image
Waterless printing reproduces a better, sharper, and more consistent dot than wet offset. Additionally, waterless prints with lower dot gain than wet offset, allowing higher ink densities to be printed without the color getting muddy. The combination of sharper dots and higher ink density creates higher print contrast. Finally, due to the higher stability and lower inherent dot gain of waterless, finer screen rulings can be used, allowing higher-resolution, and more photo-realistic printing.
Smarter
Better for the environment, more efficient press operation, brighter, sharper, more consistent color - simply a better choice.
APPA member
IBS are proud supplier members of the Australasian Promotional Product Association (APPA), the only professional trade association specifically for the promotional products and promotional marketing industry in the Australasian region.
APPA promotes the development, integrity, professionalism and creativity of the advertising and marketing of promotional products. They ensure good business practices and the highest industry and community standards, and that’s something we’re proud to be apart of.
PIAA member
As print forms the core of our business, we couldn’t be prouder to support The Printing Industries Association of Australia (PIAA). The PIAA is the leadership and support organisation for all businesses in the print, packaging, graphic design and media technology industry in Australia. They work to support and promote an evolving industry, and to help their members become more sustainable.