Technical specifications for preparing materials for large-format printing

1. General information

The specifications define the technical parameters and the preparation of materials for printing. Adherence to it will help to satisfy the customer’s expectations in terms of service and the quality of the product made, while at the same time enabling production standards to be met.

The DTP department of the printing house verifies the correctness of the submitted materials each time; however, it does not guarantee that all errors and inconsistencies in relation to this specification will be noticed.

In order to avoid the most common mistakes and to properly prepare materials for large-format printing, we encourage you to use the mock-ups available on our website www.studiokolor.com.pl/en/downloads

2. Mode of submission of digital material

FTP server. Digital materials should be submitted using FTP. Details for accessing the server (host / username / password) can be obtained from the account manager serving your company.

Electronic mail. Files can also be sent by email to your account manager. The maximum size of transmitted data is 20 MB.

Dropbox / WeTransfer. Complete details should be emailed to your account manager.

3. File formats accepted

PDF/X-1a:2001 or PDF 1.3 / PDF 1.4 must not have layers and JPEG 2000 compression

TIF. Flattened file saved with LZW or ZIP compression

JPG. File saved with maximum quality and standard format option.

4. Production file parameters

The names of supplied files should not contain diacritical marks.

All graphic elements must be prepared in CMYK colour space with 8 bit per channel.

For 16 or 32 bits, errors may occur for which the printing house is not responsible.

Graphic elements and photos prepared in another colour space, e.g. RGB or containing an embedded profile, are automatically converted to CMYK using the ICC Iso coated v2 profile.

Additional colours, specified in the order, should be marked in the file.

Colour matching to a proof or a given PANTONE / RAL sample or other sampler is subject to surcharge. All additional colours not specified as colour matches in the order will be automatically converted and printed from CMYK process colours.

The printing house is not responsible for colour discrepancies resulting from automatic colour conversion.

Prints from earlier editions are not contract prints and can only be a reference for the printer.

For a natural black shade, use a combination of all process colours C=60% / M=60% / Y=60% / K=100%.

Files should not contain the overprint attribute (OVERPRINT) unless this option has been intentionally applied for a specific effect. The Company is not responsible for errors and discrepancies caused by left overprints, especially when the overprint attribute is given to white graphic elements.

Files for print, both sides of which have a size of up to 5 m, should be prepared on a scale of 1:1.

Files prepared in PDF format, where one of the edges exceeds 5 m, must be prepared at a scale of 1:10 with a tenfold increase in resolution.

Please ensure that the materials supplied are of the correct resolution. The table below shows the minimum resolution for which print quality will be best. If a lower resolution is used, print quality may be degraded.

5. Layout

Net format. The graphics should be enlarged on each side by a bleed:
– 5 mm for banners and nets
– 3 mm for works cut to net format, e.g. papers, foils, PVC etc.
– 14 mm for prints with a 14×3 mm flat strip on the circumference

The bleed must be an extension of the graphic and must not remain white.

In PDF files, the net print area (the target size of the job) should be set as a TrimBox area.

Safe area. All important graphics, such as logos and text, should be kept away from the edges of the page:
– 6 cm for banners, nets and textile printouts
– 4 cm for flags and winders
– 2 cm for other materials

For prints bound with a tunnel, the safe area is 6 cm + tunnel dimension counted flat.

Graphics designed for roll-up printing. They should, as a standard, include a 10 cm allowance at the bottom of the graphic required for stable mounting of the print in the system.

Cutting and milling to shape. In addition to files for printing, files with cutting lines must be supplied as vectors only. It is recommended that the vector is a single line, consisting of as few nodes as possible.

Print splitting. Works whose shorter side exceeds the dimension of the width of the available material are automatically divided into vertical or horizontal parts. Splitting is always made with economy in mind. At the express request of the customer included in the order, it is possible to perform splitting according to a custom scheme. Splitting other than the most economic is subject to surcharge.

Prints consisting of several designs. Files that are to form a single unit after being printed, cut or milled must absolutely contain the appropriate bleed mentioned above. The degree of complexity of the project must be communicated to the account manager. Failure to do so may result in an inaccurate fit of the parts due to, among other things, not using the correct bleed size in the files.

Prints with selectively applied white colour. In addition to the production file, a separate vector file with a layer that will be printed in white must be provided.

The orientation of the graphic (HORIZONTAL / VERTICAL) must be the same as the dimensions given in the order. This is very important for maintaining the correct way of framing on each side of the graphic, e.g. the punching of eyelets, the making of a tunnel, the mounting of other accessories. By default, the first dimension given is always the width and the second the height of the graphic.

Files for printing winders and flags should be prepared in rectangular form. Additionally, it is recommended to send a jpg preview in order to verify the arrangement of the graphics on the template.