Glossary

The PRINTING United Alliance Glossary serves as an excellent industry terminology resource. It is the language by which we all communicate. Without it, universal understanding would be impossible.

To keep our constituents well informed about changes to the increasingly complex industry terminology, PRINTING United Alliance has developed this glossary of terms. Definitions are for general reference only. Usage may vary between companies, individuals, or national and country customs. The information presented is as accurate as the authors and editors can ascertain and PRINTING United Alliance assumes no responsibility for the use of information presented herein.
  • Flammability
    The capability of a material to support combustion, ranging from extremely easy to ignite to self-extinguishing.
  • Flammable (inflammable)
    Capable of catching fire easily and burning rapidly; having flash point below 37.8°C (100°F).
  • Flammable liquid
    A liquid having a flash point below 37.8 degrees C (100 degrees F), except that this term does not include any liquid mixture having one or more components with a flash point at or above 37.8 degrees C which make up 99% or more of the total volume of the mixture.
  • Flammable solid
    A solid, other than an explosive, that can cause fire through friction, absorption of mixture, spontaneous chemical change, or retained heat from manufacturing or processing, or that can be readily ignited, and when ignited, will continue to burn or be consumed after removal of the source of ignition.
  • Fleet marking
    A pressure sensitive decal that is applied to a commercial vehicle to promote a company or its products.
  • Flow-mark
    Excessive waviness in linear printed surface of ink or in a plastic material.
  • Formability
    The act of thermoforming without affecting the strength, flexibility or clarity of the material.
  • Format
    (1) The layout and physical appearance or arrangement of characters such as shape, size, type, and overall design of printed matter. (2) Characteristic identifying size of printer, media, or graphic, according to width of media roll, printer’s print area, or graphic. Medium Format is generally taken to be between 11"—24" in width; Large Format (Wide Format) larger than 24" in width, and Grand Format larger than 72" in width.
  • Free shrink (thermal shrinkage)
    The irreversible and rapid reduction in linear dimension of a plastic film exposed to given temperatures, expressed as a percentage of the original dimension. Also designated as unrestrained linear thermal shrinkage.
  • Fumaric resin
    Synthetic hard resin formed by the reaction of fumaric acid and rosin.
  • Gamma
    (1) A measure of contrast in photographic images; (2) Mathematical curve representing both contrast and brightness of an image.
  • Gamma correction
    A non-linear tonal correction, editing an image gamma curve.
  • Gamma curve
    The shape of a line connecting the input and output values responsible for generating an image.
  • Gamut mapping
    Plotting the color of an image into the CIE color space.
  • Gas chromatography
    An analytical instrumental method of determining the composition of volatile solvents and oils.
  • Ghost image
    (1) Ink stains on screen mesh that were not removed during screen cleaning and reclaiming; (2) an image that remains on a substrate after chemically removed or washed.
  • Gluing machine
    A mechanical device for applying adhesive to a substrate.
  • Grammage
    The weight of a square meter of paper, expressed in grams per meter squared (g/m2).
  • Grand format or superwide
    72" or greater width digital print machines or media. Their printing process was usually driven by air, but recent machines may piezo-print directly on a substrate.
  • High performance plastic
    A plastic suitable for product designs requiring stability above 175°C (347°F).
  • Inks and Matched Component Systems

    Matched Components

    Solvent and UV curable inks will generally have about the same life span for a vehicle or fleet application, when you use a matched over laminate protection system. The company 3M does make inks for solvent, latex and UV curable inkjet printers that are known as MCS, or Matched Component System inks. When products are manufactured using 3M media, inks and over laminates, they are then eligible to be covered under the 3M™ MCS™ Warranty for up to 5 years of coverage. You can look up the specifics of the program at the 3M graphics site. And yes, there are clients that specify jobs that must be covered by this program, so you must have all of the necessary ingredients to be able to bid on these projects. [[{"fid":"1003","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-default"}}]]
  • Jordan machine
    A conical rotor and housing that mechanically bruises the pulp causing fibrillation and hydration while serving to produce a more uniform mixture of water, fibers, and other additives improving sheet formation in papermaking; better known by its nickname beater.
  • Lap marks
    The slight ridge produced by overlapping of colors, found especially in glass decorating where screen printed films are thicker than in usual commercial screen printing.
  • Large-format
    A printer, media, or print 24" or greater in width.
  • Latent image
    Invisible image on exposed film that has not been developed.