• Glossary

Technical Terms C

Cover template

Within screen printing different template are used. One version is the cover template. This description results from the fact that only the meshes, that are supposed to print (printing image), stay open. The rest will be covered. As a first step,the motif or its contours will be drawed on the paper. Here too fine details should be avoided because thi smay result in difficulties during painting on. This is follwed by the application oft he image on the tissue with the help of a brush. In order to cover those parts which do not belong to the subject or which are not printed, the drawing has to  placed with a little distance under the sieve.

Conditions resistance

The term "coating channel" refers to a channel, where the printing paste can be taken up and spread. It is filled and pulled through the sieve. These tools are usually manufactured  from aluminium or stainless steel. The end caps can normally be removed,  to facilitate the cleaning. When applying the coating it is of particular importance that the edge of the channel does not bear any contaminations. Alternatively the term “emulsion channel“ is used.

CMYK

The letters CMYK stand for cyan, magenta, yellow and key (black, contrast)  which forms the technical basis for modern four-colour printing. In contrast to the RGB-color space, CMYK  is also known as subtractive color mixing which is why the back is needed to access the spot colour black.

Calibration

The process of adjusting a device or process to match certain criteria. This is usually done by measuring the devices’ deviation from standard values and then, during operation of the device, applying values to compensate the deviation. In prepress, in particular, calibration is the fine-tuning of scanners, monitors, printers, and imagesetters in order to increase the accuracy of their output.