A printed book demands a lot of attention as well as quality check in order to come out with the best quality printed book. This is what the customer interested in printing the books will best for that inside look at the printer who is interested in delivering quality.
Pre-Press Quality Control
Before the printing even begins, there are several quality checks that should be performed in the pre-press stage:
- File Review – This means that the printer will go through the files that the customers submits for printing in order to check for such things as size, orientation, resolution, bleed and margin, and other important elements in the picture that might be missing. This does assist in detecting mistakes before they become severe.
- Proofreading – A proofreader will read through the whole article and full layout to be able to notice shinning and other types of errors such as widows and orphans. The notion that proofs may be iterative may be particularly valuable to those working within the context of organizational communication who may need to submit their documents through several drafts.
- Proofs – Printers make their first copies as Bluelines so that they can present other requirements like color, number of pages, edges and binds before final prints run. This “test drive” helps identify problems before they occur again in long run jobs.
- Collections – Printers set up equipment archetypes and ascertain standardized components to deal with variations across presses and jobs. They are used in showing color accurate that is prior to a large-scale production.
Press Checks
The printing press operators add another layer of inspection by monitoring quality during the printing process:
- Engineering – The plates are biased, the position of images is set and the controlling features are pre-set according to your instructions before production. This assists in maintaining the quality right from the first printed sheet of paper.
There is always a check on, for instance, alignment and color during the printing process where adjustments are made periodically to avoid cumulative changes over the course of a long run.
- Press Checks – The printers set certain amounts of time aside to review the printed sheets for quality and make sure that the printer meets your exact specifications before proceeding.
- Random Sample Check – Another level of assurance includes the review of samples randomly collected at any time during the entire print run so as ensure that there are no deviations that may have occurred on the way.
Post-Press Quality Control
After printing, there are final quality assurance steps:
After a printed sheet has been produced, it is visually inspected by quality control employees in order to determine if the sheet is damaged, scratched or smeared before going on to subsequent steps in the binding process. Also non-conforming prints may be returned.
- Binding Review – While trimming, folding, stitching, as well as glue binding phases of book formation, several workers ensure they detect mistakes as the books are being formed; this involves ensuring that some of the booklet pages are in the right order and that formed books are of the correct size.
- Final Random Testing – A few completed and sewn or otherwise joined hard cover bound books are tested on a random basis to simulate personally turning pages, examining the cover, the spine, the printed material and the opening and closing functions.
- Customer Approval – Most full quantity print runs will not be shipped until the printer has offered a “pilot run” of printed books for you to scrutinize and examine. Your structured sign off ensures that the quality levels already delivered meet the agreed upon standards.
In essence, working with a professional printer is partly about building in checks and safeguards at every stage of production – including the submission of digital files, proofing, binding, and delivery of finished books – to ensure that mistakes do not happen and that, where they do, customers get as many error-free copies as they need to meet required quality targets. It does mean, however, that although variations can still happened and are seen occasionally in such printed pieces, a very strict quality process will minimize that risk for you while also offering you confirmation.
Request printers to explain their quality control measures to the last detail, and run test prints and pilots on your book to satisfy yourself whether their system can provide efficient service in the printing of your book.