Verify the Consistency of Your Ink

An article in the Printing Industries Association of Southern California's “Weekly Update” newsletter offers some advice for printers striving to produce consistent, high-quality printing. Controlling the variables in the raw materials used in the production process, the story notes, is the key challenge.

The two raw materials with the greatest potential for inconsistencies are paper and ink. Inconsistencies in ink from batch to batch can include differences in ink tack, viscosity, tinctorial strength and water pickup.

Differences in ink properties will cause differences in print reproduction characteristics that will not match the color management profile. Ink tack affects the wet trapping properties and tonal value reproduction values on the printed sheet. Inconsistencies in ink tack will cause difficulty achieving a color match, resulting in longer makereadies and higher waste.

To verify the consistency of the ink tack from batch to batch, the ink must be tested in an ink lab with an inkometer. Lab testing of ink should be performed with each new batch or can be done on a random basis. Other ink testing that is commonly performed in an ink lab include viscosity, tinctorial strength and water pickup.

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