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Home » Sticker Blog » What is Screen Printing? What does Screen Print mean?

What is Screen Printing? What does Screen Print mean?

21/09/2023

To answer the question “What is Screen Printing?” we have asked our team of highly experienced screen printers.

 

Below is a basic overview of the production process involved in screen printing stickers and signs:

  • Once all the artwork is approved for your sticker or signage design, our studio break the image into layers or colours
  • Each colour requires it’s own screen to be produced. The studio produce a film for each of the individual colours.
  • The films have what is known as a positive image i.e. the image we want to appear on the screenprinted stickers or signs at the end of the printing process.
  • Meanwhile in the workshop, the screen printing team flood coat a large mesh screen with a light sensitive emulsion.
  • Once the light sensitive emulsion is dried, the films (made by the studio) are overlaid on the screen and they are then exposed to UV light. The UV light then sets the emulsion where the film image didn’t appear.
  • The screens are then washed, to remove any areas of emulsion that aren’t set by the UV light, the result is a negative image on the screen.
  • Once this process has been repeated with all the films (i.e. all the colour layers required to screen print the design) the process of printing can begin.
  • The next stage is to push a single pantone colour matched UV stable ink through the mesh onto the self adhesive vinyl, Correx or Foamex.
  • When the ink reaches the vinyl / Correx / Foamex the image has returned to being positive as it has gone through the negative image on the screen.
  • The print media with the single layer of ink is then dried and the process is repeated with each screen, to build up the colours and create the overall finished image.
  • Once printed with each colour / layer, the stickers are dried for the final time and taken to the finishing department for cutting to shape and packing ready to be delivered.

If you’d like any prices or further information for screenprinted Signs or stickers please contact our team on 01347 823230.