Around town printing

_We recommend saving your artwork as a .PDF. You may also send the file in the following types: jpg, jpeg, psd, tif, tiff, eps, ai, and png.

We prefer that you send .PDF and .EPS files with outlined fonts. These files are easier to handle and will likely speed up your turn-around. Remember to add crop marks and flatten your files before uploading.

Files may be supplied on compact disc or sent via email to info@aroundtownprinting.com.

_When exporting from any program such as Indesign or Illustrator, use these settings to make sure your .PDF files export correctly.

Export settings for .PDF files:

Adobe PDF Preset is set to: Press Quality
Compatibility is set to: Acrobat 4 (PDF 1.3)
Compress Text and Line Art is set to: Off

No. We are specifically set up to process one side at a time, and this requires that each side of a job must be on a separate file. Not separating files will cause delays and you might have to send the files again. Remember to separate the pages of your .pdf files as well.

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_A copy of the artwork representing the finished product. It is used for review and approval. Here at 4over we offer two types of proof.

1. PDF proof. PDF proof is an electronic proof. We charge $5.00 to send the proof via email.

2. Epson Proof. Is a printed proof, which also called hard copy proof it is a 80%-85% match with the final printed product and it is sent through mail for the customer to approve before the job is printed. The person in charge of sending the proofs to the customer is the person who is processing the orders.

_The measurement of output quality expressed in pixels (dots) per inch on a computer monitor or dots per inch on printed media. For example, a monitor displaying a resolution of 800 by 600 refers to a screen capable of displaying 800 pixels in each of 600 lines, which translates into a total of 480,000 pixels displayed on the screen. When referring to printed media, a 300 dpi (dots per inch) printer for example, is capable of outputting 300 dots in a one-inch line, which means that it has the ability of printing 90,000 distinct dots per square inch (300 x 300).

We only accept files that are 300 DPI.

_The smallest unit of a digitized image created by a digital device, such as a computer, camera, or scanner. Pixel is short for "picture element." The more pixels per inch the better the resolution. On computer monitors, the display is divided into rows and columns containing thousands or millions of pixels. Each pixel is composed of three dots representing the three color channels of red, green, and blue light that are necessary for creating a color image on computer monitors and television screens. Because of their small size, the pixels appear to merge, simulating a continuous tone image, but when magnified they appear to be tiny square blocks of light, as shown in the illustration.

_All files must be built CMYK, the primary colors used in 4-color printing. CMYK are used to reproduce full color on the printed sheet. CMYK also called PROCESS COLOR

C: Cyan (Blue)
M: Magenta (Red)
Y: Yellow
K: Key (Black)

__The additive primary colors, red, green and blue, used to display color in video monitors. Printing with a file in RGB color mode will produce a washed out appearance. Around Town Printing does not check files for RGB. That responsibility falls to the customer before submission of the files.

_ Rich black is an ink mixture of solid black, 100% K, with additional CMY ink values. This results in a darker tone than black ink alone. If you print black alone as 100% K, the resulting black may not be as dark as you might like. 100% K on screen

We recommend using: C 60 M 40 Y 40 K 100
This will give you a deep, dark, rich black.

_Lines printed in the margin of sheet that indicates to the cutter and bindery where the finished product should be trimmed. They are also used to show what part of a photo should be used and what part should be cropped off.

_Bleed must extend further than the cut line. Using one of our templates can help you visualize this. Please keep all text and anything you do not want cut at least .125" away from the cut line.

__ Raster based artwork such as photos, or flattened artwork (from Adobe Photoshop) are made up of tiny squares (pixels) and depending on your resolution and/or final output size desired, the file could have a low quality end result. Any raster elements you wish to use should have a high enough resolution (DPI) before considering them for your large format product.

Vector based artwork such as illustrations or clip-art style elements (from Adobe Illustrator) is made with mathematical calculations, and can be scaled up to any size without losing quality.

Keep in mind that any effects used in Adobe Illustrator are raster based and have transparency - this greatly adds to file size and you must have correct settings in your "Document Raster Effects Settings" to ensure best output for these effects. If you're doing a photo-quality print on a 36" x 48" poster, and leave the raster effects settings at default 72 DPI - you may see tiny squares in your drop shadows, as opposed to a smooth shadow.

_Here are the required resolutions for banners/signs/posters:

- 48”x36” size (24”x36” finished size), your resolution should be 276 dpi
- 36”x24” size (18”x24” finished size), your resolution should be 300 dpi
- 24”x18” size (12”x18” finished size), your resolution should be 300 dpi

_All large scale products will be shipped using UPS, and due to some restrictions set forth by UPS we have had to take measures to ensure competitive shipping rates. All banners eight feet and under on their shortest side will be rolled and shipped in mailing tubes. This provides the best quality to our customers. All banners ordered over eight feet on their shortest side will be folded and shipped in a square box. If you are ordering a banner over eight feet on the shortest side and would like to request that your banner not be folded please contact our customer service department. We will need to setup special shipping arrangements for you.

All Rigid / KoroKard orders will be boxed and shipped according to their size.

_2-step H-Stake: Typically used for 24" x 18" and smaller. For signs larger than 24" x 18" we recommend using 2 separate H-Stakes.

_This depends on what the final output size will be, and its viewing distance.

Please reference our Scale & Resolution Example Chart and Letter Visibility Chart below:

Letter Visibility Chart
Letter Height Max Impact     Distance Max Readable      Distance
3 inch                                     30 feet                                 100 feet
4 inch                                     40 feet                                 150 feet
6 inch                                     60 feet                                 200 feet
8 inch                                     80 feet                                 350 feet
9 inch                                     90 feet                                 400 feet
10 inch                                   100 feet                               450 feet
12 inch                                   120 feet                               525 feet
15 inch                                   150 feet                               630 feet
18 inch                                   180 feet                               750 feet
24 inch                                   240 feet                               1000 feet
30 inch                                   300 feet                               1250 feet
36 inch                                   360 feet                               1500 feet
42 inch                                   420 feet                               1750 feet
48 inch                                   480 feet                               2000 feet
54 inch                                   540 feet                               2250 feet
60 inch                                   600 feet                               2500 feet

This is based on dark text on a plain white background in clear weather conditions. There is an approximate 10% variance when using various color combinations.

_Borders are an issue because all substrates will vary from batch to batch making exact cuts very difficult. We recommend that you do not design your file with a border. If you do we will not reprint an order with borders of varying widths. If you absolutely must have a border make it at least 2 inches in thickness, however Grand4mat still does not recommend borders.

_7mil Cling - no bleed, no crops - make your artwork exactly the size you are ordering.

8mil - no bleed, no crops - make your artwork exactly the size you are ordering.

10mil - no bleed, no crops - make your artwork exactly the size you are ordering.

Coroplast - ensure you have .5" on all sides of your artwork, do not add crops.

Foamboard - ensure you have .5" on all sides of your artwork, do not add crops.

13oz Vinyl - no bleed, no crops - make your artwork exactly the size you are ordering. We suggest you keep any important text / artwork 2 inches inward from the edge of your artwork as to avoid any elements being cut off / hemmed over.

Korokards - ensure you have .5" on each side of your artwork, do not add crops.

Magnets - ensure you have .5" on all sides of your artwork, do not add crops.

10mil banner for Economy Collapsible Banner Stand : 0.5" bleed on all sides, no crops - make your artwork exactly 25" x 61" to be cut down to 24" x 60", with grommets in the corners.

13oz. banner for Economy Collapsible Banner Stand - 0.5" bleed on all sides, no crops - make your artwork exactly 25" x 61" to be cut down to 24" x 60", with grommets in the corners.

10mil Premium Indoor Banner 33"x80" with Retractable Stand - 0.5" bleed on all sides, no crops - make your artwork exactly 34" x 81" to be cut down to 33" x 80"

Coroplast/KoroKards - Due to the nature of Coroplast, most of your light colors and/or pastels are more susceptible to streaks, fingerprints, smudges, and smears. Cyan and Light Cyan are often an issue as the ink does not penetrate the substrate heavy enough to cover some of these smudges or fingerprints. When setting up your files, try to avoid large areas of solid light colors and gradients. If you must have a large area of solid color, try to keep your T.A.C. (Total Area Coverage) above 150 if possible. This means that when you add up all of the CMYK values, your total will add up to 150(%) out of a full 400% build. i.e. Rich Black T.A.C. is 240% C-60 M-40 Y-40 K-100.

Foamboard - Foamboard does not have as many issues as Coroplast, but on occasion smudges and fingerprints do happen. We still recommend you maintain your T.A.C. to be 150% and above. Foamboard is somewhat pourous when compared to Coroplast and Magnets, on most light colors you might see a more absorbed look when printing with Foamboard. Additionally, the Foamboard is not as bright white as the Coroplast or Magnets, visibly it is a couple points lower on the brightness scale.

Magnets - Our magnetic substrate is especially prone to fingerprints and scratches. If you follow the T.A.C. as mentioned above in the Coroplast portion of this FAQ, you should be fine.

_No. Even the smallest transparency issue will cause problems with a printed file. It is always best to flatten any file you send to Grand4mat. Outline fonts and ensure that your file is in CMYK mode for best results. ATP considers flattening transparency part of basic file setup and will not check for this issue. If you are uncertain how to flatten transparencies in your file or if you would like us to explain how to check for transparency problems please contact us prior to submitting an order.

_When using arrows on a double sided sign, special care will need to be taken with the direction of the arrows.

If you want the arrows on both sides of the sign to point the same direction when the sign is printed the arrows need to be setup in opposite directions on the production files. It's complicated, we know.

See the example illustration to the left.

_The mixture of clay materials that are applied to paper to improve the smoothness of the paper's surface and improve ink holdout during the printing process. Examples are Aqueous coating (AQ) and UV coating. UV coating adds a gloss finish to the product and also improves the vibrancy of the printed colors. Spot-UV can be applied to selected portions of the piece, while keeping the rest a matte finish.

See detailed info about our various finishes.

_Folding: The process of bending printed sheets in a specific area. Folding is one of our popular bindery jobs.

4-Panel Roll Fold, Accordion Fold, Double Gate Fold, Double Parallel Fold, French Fold (quarter fold), Gate Fold, Half Fold, Half-Tri Fold, Tri Fold, and Z Fold.

Click HERE to view our detailed folding descriptions.

_Our rounded corner magnets have a 1" radius.

_Landscape printing refers to design/printing a page so that when positioned for reading the width is greater than the height.

_Many things can cause banding. Banding can be caused by the program that it is exported from, such as Indesign or Corel. Also, too many gradient steps, for example going from a very light color to a dark color, in a small area will cause banding.

To prevent this, check your digital files before sending. If you use a gradient, make sure it has enough room for a smooth transition.

_When using a blue in your design, always make sure to leave at least a 30% difference in your Cyan and Magenta values.

Blue is close to purple in the CMYK spectrum. Remember, use a low amount of magenta whenever using high amounts of cyan to avoid purple.

Example: C-100 M-70 Y-0 k-0

_A preset model that acts as a structure for setting up a similar product. Here at Around Town Printing we have lot of templates, for each product. Templates can be requested by simply emailing us at info@aroundtownprinting.com.

_ Our Certified Templates are a great tool to create artwork that can be printed faster, easier, and more accurately. If you are using Illustrator, you can use our specialized EPS templates. If you are using something other then Illustrator, download the JPG version. Here is what each of the lines mean inside the template:

Here is how an 8.5x11 brochure template looks:

These templates will help you identify where the cut line, bleed line, and safety line, are located along with other information so you can design your art correctly.

_Some of our templates are labeled as OUT and IN. This means that there is some folding involved with the template. OUT means the FRONT of the job and IN means the BACK.

Here is an example of the fold-over business card template:

As you can see, OUT is the FRONT of the job and after folding, will be facing outward. You can also see the rotation of the job. The front must be positioned upside down so it can fold correctly.

_Absolutely, your artwork MUST be setup according to what color T-Shirt your order will be printed on. For White T-Shirts, the background color must be C-0 M-0 Y-0 K-0 for the white to knockout.

In other words if you want a logo printed on a white shirt and your art file contains the logo with a black background, or any background color other than C-0 M-0 Y-0 K-0 the background will print.

For Black T-Shirts, the background color must be C-100 M-100 Y-100 K-100 for black to knockout.

In other words if you want a logo printed on a black shirt and your art file contains the logo with a white background, or any background color other than C-100 M-100 Y-100 K-100 the background will print.

Request a t-shirt template.

T-Shirt art files do not need bleed or crop marks or any other printer marks, including registration marks, or color bars. Please submit your files at exactly 11"x8.5".

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Mugs are printed using CMYK digital printing. Acceptable files types at the moment are .pdf, .jpg, and .eps files._

The print area is 8.5x3 for the 11oz. Mug and 9x4 for the 15oz. Mug. It is then centered and wrapped around the mug.

_As you can see, the print area (GREEN) will be printed on the Mug. Anything outside that area (RED) will not be printed. Remember, the print area for the 11oz. Mug is 8.5x3 while the print area for the 15oz. Mug is 9x4.

Above is an example of offset position for Mugs. As you can see, you can achieve a left, center, or right print by positioning the logo or artwork accordingly on the 8.5x3 document size.

Please do not send your artwork with bleed, crop marks or any other printer marks, including registration marks, or color bars.

For White Mugs, the background color must be C-0 M-0 Y-0 K-0. White color for White Mugs will be ignored. 


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It is required that there be 1/16" overbleed and color wrap around onto the back of the envelope to allow for movement throughout the bindery process. If the envelope has bleed on the face or print on any flap, it is required that the artwork be placed on a Certified Envelope Template. Contact us to request a template.

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_To ensure the pagination is correct, the pages should be provided as single pages, not as spreads. As a standard, all elements, text and images that are not intended to bleed off need to be at least 0.25" from the cut line for safety. Artwork should be provided with at least 0.25" bleed around. Custom booklet orders are available by clicking on Get a Quote.

_A specific shape like circle, star, etc (any designs that cannot be done by a straight cut) which is cut by a metal blade. Door hangers are a popular product which requires die cutting. We can accomodate shape sizes 13" x 10" and smaller, larger sizes must be sent out to other binderies.

_Ink-jet is a printing technology in which liquid ink is sprayed through tiny nozzles onto the paper in a pattern of dots, forming the image on the paper. Jobs with AQ or UV coating cannot be ink jet printed.

Off-set printing is the transfer of an inked image from a plate to a blanket cylinder, which in turn transfers the image to the printing material as it passes between the blanket and the impression cylinder and pressure is applied. Also referred to as offset lithography. Here at 4over use offset printing.

_Using a machine to die cut the corners of forms, cards and books to create a rounded corner. We offer 1/4" and 1/8" radius round corners to all of our customers. The image to the left shows the two different radiuses for comparison.

Corners can be cut on all for corners or on two corners only (top left and bottom right).

_We offer 2 types of foil, Silver and Gold. Each order can only have one type of foil, Gold or Silver. You can't order a Foil Worx job with Gold foil on the front and Silver foil on the back. Foil mask files are set up just like our Spot UV mask files. The file can only be black and white. Black in the areas you want the foil and white in the areas you do not want the foil. If you order a Foil Worx job with Spot UV, you must provide separate mask files for the Foil (foil mask) and UV (spuv mask), in that case up to 6 files will need to be provided.

However, please keep in mind that the Foil and UV can't overlap. Also please avoid using small / fine text or fonts for foil objects. For best results, please make sure that foil coverage is less than 50% of the artwork area

Also, be aware that there may be up to 1/16" shift on the placement of the foil. Keep this in mind if you are trying to align foil with other printed artwork on the card.

Please see images above to see what mask files should look like.

_When designing plastic cards, it is important to keep in mind that the frosted and clear plastic cards are transparent. Also, all plastic cards come with round corners at no extra charge!

The clear cards are completely transparent, the frosted cards are semi-transparent and cannot be seen through easily and the opaque white plastic cards are solid white and not transparent at all. Keep this in mind when designing your plastic cards, it will affect how your design will print. Only the white cards can be printed on both sides.

Since there is no white ink in CMYK, it is important to keep in mind that the frosted and clear plastic cards are transparent.  You will notice in the picture below that the white area in the clear cards (right) and the frosted cards (center) has no ink and will show the transparent material it's printed on. In this case, the clear cards and frosted cards white area show up with no ink on the printed piece. Also, keep in mind that all colors that are printed on clear cards or frosted cards will be transparent as well.

With the clear plastic cards, there might be a small percentage that may have light scratches. This issue originates from the manufacturer and is due to the material and handling. To help compensate for this, we run overs of the clear plastic cards to help meet the required quantity.

Clear plastic cards will come with a thin protective layer on one side that can be peeled off. This is to prevent the cards from scratching during packaging and shipping.