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Article: Where ink meets paper; even more than metal plates, blankets bear the brunt of the dynamic forces in offset printing. (includes survey some of the current blanket products, by company)
- Article from:
- Graphic Arts Monthly
- Article date:
- March 1, 1990
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. (US). This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Where Ink Meets Paper
Blankets are the most vulnerable part of the offset printing process. The place where the image is transferred, where ink meets paper, and where water is left behind, blankets must endure many times the impressions that plates do--without wearing out.
The increasing speed of web presses has added to the pressure. Web wraps are far more hazardous to the life of a blanket at 2,000 fpm than before. "Blankets don't die from natural causes, they get murdered," quips Jack Greco of Reeves Brothers, pointing to web breaks and smashes as the leading culprits. The edge of the blanket at the gap obviously meets more stress, and the suppliers ...