gravure printing Gravure printing, an image is acid-etched on the surface of a metal cylinder—one cylinder for each color—in a pattern of cells. The cells are recessed into the cylinder, unlike relief printing or letterpress where the printing image is raised or like offset printing, in which the image is level with the plate. The cylinder is etched with cells of different depths. These cells hold the ink that is transferred to the substrate. The dimensions of the cells must be precise because the deeper cells produce more intensive color than shallow cells. The cells are filled with ink, and the non-printing portions of the plate or cylinder are wiped or scraped free of ink. Then paper or another substrate is pressed against the inked cylinder on a rotary press, and the image is transferred directly to the paper, unlike in offset printing, which uses an interim cylinder. The engraved cylinder sits partially immersed in the ink fountain, where it picks up ink to fill its recessed cells on each rotation of the press.
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Jacci Howard Bear. LifeWire.com. 21 Jan 2018. Web.
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