Paper & Board: Techniques & Processes
Design & Technology: AQA GCSE, topic 2.8.1
Specialist Techniques
The use of production aids helps the designer and manufacturer produce accurate and high-quality materials and products every time.
The use of production aids
- The use of production aids helps the designer and manufacturer produce accurate and high-quality materials and products every time.
- Templates and CAD/CAM can allow for accurate shape-cutting or continuous production that has consistent patterns e.g. gift wrapper based products.
Tools, equipment and processes
- Tools and equipment have been invented to speed up the process of producing paper-based products and allow for products to be produced identically.
- Production aids such as rulers and self-cutting printers eliminate errors and increase the quality of paper and board based production.
Measuring
- Rulers can be on the margins of the cutting area to help accurately cut paper and boards.
- Plotting machines can remember registration marks which then enable for fast and accurate cutting.
- Protractors and dividers can be used to measure angles and reproduce lines.
- Set squares can help to make a paper square or to create two two-dimensional shapes.
Scoring and cutting
- Scoring the paper and board can be done using creasing tools.
- Laser cutters or die cutter can create perforated edges for accurate and easy folding.
- Packaging benefits from this as it is a slow process to accurately produce crease lines every time.
Scoring and cutting cont.
- Clean cutting of paper and boards can be done through craft knives and paper trimmers. They offer speed and precision that many end users can benefit from.
- Craft knives are versatile and can produce many different types of creases and cuts.
- However, die cutters offer better speed and precision but have high set up costs and tooling costs.
Commercial Processes
Commercial processes offer companies a distinct advantage as they can produce items and products quickly and accurately whilst also reducing unit costs in the long run.
Commercial processes
- Commercial processes offer companies a distinct advantage as they can produce items and products quickly and accurately whilst also reducing unit costs in the long run.
- Unit costs are the cost of producing a single item.
Offset lithography
- This is a process where ink is applied usually in four or more stages.
- Offset lithography applies the colour in four stages of colour.
- It applies dots in each area that requires it eventually forming the picture or graphic that is intended to print.
Offset lithography cont.
- Registration marks are produced at the bottom of the piece where colour testing and accuracy of prints can enable high-quality prints every time.
- Due to the similar processes used, fabric printing uses near enough identical processes when producing a large amount of fabric based prints.
Colours
- The colours used in offset lithography are CMYK:
- C stands for cyan (blue).
- M stands for magenta (pink/purple palette).
- Y stands for yellow.
- K stands for key which (refers to black).
Die cutting
- Die cutting is a technique that allows for paper to be cut and creased accurately in large amounts.
- Using sharp blades that are put into a base material such as ply allow for an evenly distributed and heavy cut which can cut through a material perforate at the same time.
- Die cutting uses a stamping motion to evenly cut, crease and perforate.
Test yourself on Paper & Board: Techniques & Processes
Which cutting tool offers better speed and precision than craft knives and paper trimmers?