Pad Printing Process

Inside a Pad Printer

Inside most pad printing machines, there are three main functional parts: the Plate, the Printing Pad and an Ink Delivery System.

Print Plate

Though we will simply use the term “plate” here, the printing plate is also known as a “cliche” – a term that’s easy to remember, as it refers to something that keeps repeating itself!

The printing plate is a cylindrical steel drum rotating around an axle. This plate is etched extremely finely, resulting in a printed ink layer with a standard depth of 25 microns, or .001 inch, making it an optimum process for small precision instruments, where every micron counts.

The material used to create this type of Printing Plate directly affects the clarity and definition of the print impression. It also affects how many prints can be run off of one plate; a softer plate will create fewer clear prints before degrading in quality. For these reasons, Stainless Steel is the material of choice for creating the most precise impressions, and is most commonly used for rotational printing.

In some cases, different plastic polymers are used for printing plates. These plates are intended for short production runs, since the relatively soft surface is far less durable than steel.

Preparing a Pad Printing Machine

Printing Pad

The pad used for Rotational printing is a cylinder of soft silicone which rotates in the opposite direction from the plate. Various options of silicone hardness, or durometer, are available depending upon the individual project requirements.

Silicone Pads & Drums for Printing

The flexible yet durable properties of silicone rubber are the key to printing on three-dimensional or non-uniform surfaces.

HARDNESS - Silicone is available in a range of durometer (relative hardness/softness), and different chemical formulations, which the experienced printer chooses based on the special requirements of each project.

SHAPE - Printing pads used for Rotational Pad Printing are cylindrical drums that rotate around an axis.

For other types of Pad Printing, pads are found in variations based on either square or cone shapes. The pads come in a huge range of sizes to work with the size of the final printed product, as well as the size and configuration of the printing equipment itself. More than ONE1 pad can be used to print on an object, depending on its shape.