Glossary of Printing & Packaging Terminology — Essential Knowledge for Procurement Staff

Pre-press Stage Terminology

Bleed: A safety margin extending outward from the edges of the design file, typically 3mm, to prevent white edges from appearing after die-cutting misalignment.

Registration: The technology for precise positioning of each color plate in multi-color printing. A registration deviation of ≤0.2mm is considered qualified; exceeding 0.3mm will result in ghosting.

Proofing: producing samples before mass production to confirm color, craftsmanship, and structure. Common types include digital proofing, traditional proofing, and 3D proofing.

Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ): The smallest number of units a supplier accepts for an order. In the packaging box industry, digital printing allows a minimum order of 10 units, while traditional offset printing typically requires 1,000–3,000 units.

Printing Stage Terminology

Four-color (CMYK): Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black—the four standard colors are overlaid for printing. Suitable for color photos, gradients, and multi-color patterns. Cannot reproduce special colors such as metallic or fluorescent colors.

Spot color: pre-mixed specific color ink, such as Pantone color numbers. Spot color printing features stable and highly saturated color, suitable for brand colors and logo single-color printing.

Offset printing: A lithographic printing method based on the principle that oil and water are immiscible, and the mainstream method for mass production printing. Suitable for color boxes, gift boxes, and instruction manuals exceeding 1,000 sheets.

Digital printing: No plate-making required, electronic files are directly output to the substrate. Suitable for small-batch customization (10-500 pieces), supports variable data printing, such as labels with different serial numbers.

Spot color + four-color combination printing: First use four-color printing for the base color and patterns, then apply spot color for brand colors or metallic colors, commonly seen in premium gift boxes.

Post-Press Finishing Terminology

Lamination: Applying a plastic film to the surface of printed materials, available in glossy and matte finishes. Glossy film enhances color saturation, while matte film conveys a premium texture. Lamination provides water resistance and scratch protection, but laminated products are not recyclable and require separate processing.

Hot foil stamping: transfers metallic foil onto the substrate surface through heat and pressure. Commonly used foils include gold, silver, red-gold, and other colors, applied for logos, brand names, and decorative lines.

Spot UV: Apply UV varnish to designated areas, then cure with ultraviolet light to create a glossy, raised effect. Commonly used on logos and patterns to produce localized shine, creating contrast against a matte background.

Embossing: A process that uses dies to create a raised three-dimensional effect on paper, divided into standard embossing and dimensional embossing (multi-level relief). Embossing does not require ink, as the raised effect is achieved through the deformation of the paper itself.

Die-cutting: uses a die to cut out the box shape outline and crease lines. Die-cutting precision of ±0.3mm is the common industry standard.

Box gluing: folding and bonding the die-cut and creased cardboard into shape. It is divided into machine box gluing and manual box gluing. Machine box gluing has high efficiency but is only suitable for standard box types.

Delivery Phase Terminology

Proofing cycle: The time from placing the order to receiving the samples is 1-2 days for digital printing and 3-5 days for offset printing.

Production Cycle: The time from sample confirmation to completion of production for bulk orders is 7-15 days for standard orders.

Packaging method: Bulk, partition lining, individual plastic sealing, outer corrugated carton. Gift packaging and high-value products require individual plastic sealing.

Color deviation: the difference between the printed color and the standard color. The industry generally considers ΔE≤3 as acceptable. ΔE≤2 is suitable for strict brand color control.

Procurement Communication Keywords

When communicating with suppliers, clarifying the following elements can reduce rework by 80%: box structure, dimensions (L × W × H mm), paper material (grammage + material), printing method (four-color/spot color), surface finishing (lamination/foil stamping/UV/embossing), minimum order quantity, delivery time, whether samples are required, and whether logo vector files are needed.

Key Points to Avoid Pitfalls

Do not use "sticker" as a formal term—the professional name is self-adhesive label. When a designer sends a file referred to as a "sticker," it is most likely a self-adhesive label or a roll label.

Do not confuse "printing" with "desktop printing"—printing refers to batch industrial production (offset/digital/flexographic printing), while desktop printing refers to small-batch output in office scenarios.

Do not confuse "paper box" with "carton"—paper box usually refers to small-sized premium packaging (color box, gift box), while carton refers to transport outer packaging (corrugated box).