By Brittany Willes, contributing editor
PostPress

“We wanted to invoke a feeling of warmth and comfort,” stated Patrick Choquet, president of Gravure Choquet, when speaking of the inspiration for Gravure Choquet’s annual calendar.

The company, which has been producing its promotional calendar for the past five years, has routinely incorporated circular designs. For 2018, as winter temperatures reached record lows, the calendar’s design consisting of rings of foil in rich, warm colors – red, orange, copper – encircling a tranquil-looking sun before reaching out in a seemingly ever-expanding circle certainly sparks feelings of warmth and serenity.

Along with the company’s tradition of using circular designs, the 2018 calendar also took inspiration from another source – childhood. Gravure Choquet utilized drawing techniques often used by children. “We created drawings using wax pencils and then layered over those drawings with black paint,” he said.

Once the initial design concept was finalized, designer François Martin created a line drawing using multiple colors as a way to represent to the printing industry, just as it uses hot foil stamping to provide multiple aesthetic possibilities, such as matte, satin and shiny metallic colors, as well as crisp details and vibrant shades.

“It’s not possible to show these elements in the same way with something like digital inkjet technology, where the colors are mainly limited to gold and silver,” remarked Choquet. “We wanted to show off the striking effects that can be created with hot stamping.”

Along with hot stamping, a blind debossing pass also was incorporated into the production pass in order to make the foiling stand out at the junction (crossing) of the foil and deboss lines.

Of course, before the debossing could be done, several other steps in the production process had to be completed first. During production, the calendar underwent 12 separate passes. First, solid white foil was stamped in the center of the piece – the foundation for the sun. In the second pass, lines of foil were stamped in a rainbow pattern at 45° angles to add a special foil effect when the calendar is handled in the light. Black, red, pink and orange foil were laid out in the next few passes, with the seventh pass being of copper brown foil stamped along the top and bottom of the calendar.

To add a bit of rigidity, the calendar was mounted on a 14 pt. cover stock that was black matte laminated with soft-touch finish. The stock that formed the back side of the calendar received the blind embossing which would lead to a deboss effect on the front. After the embossing of the back side, a layer of satin silver foil was applied. Finally, the double sheets were compressed to remove any waving before final assembly.

All of the foiling for the calendar was performed on Thomson platen presses, the foil itself provided by Kurz Transfer Products and Crown Roll Leaf, while the embossing was done using a Sheridan press. The copper dies used for the embossing as well as the hot stamping dies were engraved in the company’s in-house engraving facility. For each of the eight foiling and embossing passes, each pass was set up at the same time as a way to ensure perfect registration.

Despite the straightforward process of the foil stamping, producing the calendar was not without its challenges. According to Choquet, because the area that needed to be embossed was fairly large, it created stress on the stock – which creates waving.

“Having that look of waving on the calendar was simply not acceptable,” he stated. In order to eliminate the waving, the calendar was double mounted using spray adhesive before pressing each calendar using compressible rubber mats. Although this pressing meant adding another step in the production process, the results cannot be denied. Choquet’s 2018 calendar is a beautiful example of the great effects of the otherwise simple process of foil stamping.

The company’s efforts to create a memorable promotional calendar did not go unnoticed in 2018.

“We had excellent comments from customers all year,” said Choquet. “We generated a lot of new projects as a result.”

The calendar also was recognized in the 2018 FSEA Gold Leaf Awards, claiming a Gold Award for “Best Use of Foil and Embossing – Calendar.” Additionally, the calendar received awards at the 2018 Canada Printing Awards and 2018 Gala Gutenberg in Montreal.

By Lara Copeland, contributing editor
PostPress

UEI® Group Companies, Overland Park, Kansas, has worked with the University of Kansas’ Department of Design for nearly 20 years, having formed a symbiotic relationship to provide students with the opportunity to learn how their designs can develop into a finished product. “It is a unique, special program where students receive invaluable printing production knowledge and use with a practical application in a design of their own creation,” expressed Jim Hutchison, senior vice president of the UEI® Group Companies.

Each year the students are tasked with designing the corporate UEI Group holiday card, keeping in mind the enhancements offered by UEI Group, including engraved foil and embossing dies as well as decorative foils and glitter to create the final piece. Once students make their submissions, the UEI® Group chooses corporate staff from various departments to judge the students’ designs. Once the winner is selected, the holiday card is produced and distributed worldwide to companies of all sizes, and the student is given samples of the card for their portfolio. The 2018 winner was designed by Abra Shirley.

Brightmarks, LLC, a print and packaging enhancement company, brought Shirley’s design to life. On the front of the card and spread across the opening of the gate fold is the globe. Depicted as an ornament, the globe features land masses that are stamped in gold foil. A red foil stamped ribbon is looped through and tied around the ornament hanger and drapes down the sides of the globe-shaped ornament. Stamped in gold below the globe, the card says “Joy to your world.” Several world-famous landmarks are printed in 4-color process against a dark sky and snow-covered ground on the inside of the three-paneled card. These landmarks include the Kremlin, London Tower, Sydney Opera House and Statue of Liberty, to name a few. Strewn about the peaks of these landmarks is a string of gold lights stamped in a gold holographic foil. The greeting on the center panel inside is stamped in gold metallic.

A total of five Kluge EHD presses were used to complete the project. The multi-level emboss die was set-up on one machine in register with the printed elements of the design. The first four applications of foil were stamped on each of four separate Kluge EHD presses. Each application was set-up using the machine that was embossing as a check for register of the position. Sheets were taken from one machine to the next until the first four foils were applied. Periodic pulls were done and fully embossed to ensure registration was maintained. A spot UV soft touch was applied following the fourth foil pass, and a fifth final foil pass was completed after the UV was applied. Then, the final embossing of the sheets was performed.

According to David Hutchison, CEO of Brightmarks, the print format selected was 14×20 running one up on a Heidelberg SM52-5 color press with AQ coater. “All of the foil stamp passes were performed using Universal Engraving heat-compensated copper flat stamp dies, some with Unifraxion® pattern details,” he said. He explained that the compensation was to match the operating temperatures of the respective foils.

Next, the spot UV soft touch was screen coated over the entire front and inside of the cards. Hutchison said, “The screen was created using a distorted film output internally, matched to the printed sheet.” Then the embossing was completed on a 14×22 Kluge EHD, and the embossing die was heat-compensated to the expected embossing temperature. “The embossing counter was a precast counter,” he added.

All foils for the project were provided by Infinity Foils, Inc., a UEI Group Company. “Choosing several different foils to further enhance the card and design aspects was key,” said Nicole Mercer, marketing for the UEI® Group Companies. The grades of foil were then selected by the application and what they were stamping. “A gloss green pigment foil (PG360) was chosen for the greenery sprinkled throughout the card, and it was paired with a beautiful metallic (45 shade) in all of the right spots. To get the special twinkle, Infinity® Foils, Inc., included the perfect gold holographic foil (41-97) next to a rich-black foil (99). It then was topped off by a gold that brought out all of the Unifraxion® excellence and text detail (867).”

Finally, the cards were folded and glued. The panels were intentionally duplexed to hide the reverse image of the emboss. The choice to duplex the panels made the print and processing one-sided, which also assisted in maintaining register and matchups. The face panels were diecut loose to facilitate the gate fold hinge on the front of the card. Hutchison said the design could be folded automated or by hand.

The card features tight registration in several areas where the foil registers to the print. Hutchison said tight register projects start with a good, well-maintained printing press. The small format offset presses minimize sheet distortion and offer the most control of sheet-to-sheet print placement. “The printing press operator must practice good process procedures,” he stated. “This includes ensuring that the travel of the sheet into the grip and guide are consistent and true.” He also noted that it is important to understand the foil selection to properly call out the heat compensations for the hot stamp. The paper selection will define the embossing temperature, and thus, the heat compensation rate of the embossing tooling. Likewise, the hot stamp and emboss press operator must ensure good practices and operation of side guide mechanisms.

A card that is created through collaborative efforts from various companies could create challenges in design and production; however, despite the complexity of UEI’s holiday card, there were very few challenges with its production. “Pre-planning eliminated any issues, and it was produced according to plan,” said David Hutchison. Jim Hutchison added, “Our UEI® Group team immensely enjoys the process of helping the students, and they continue to impress us year-over-year with their enthusiasm and creativity.”

by Dianna Brodine, assistant director
FSEA

Each year, the staff at the Foil & Specialty Effects Association (FSEA) begin tossing design ideas around for the organization’s Sourcebook. As the association representing those who excel in enhancing print products, the FSEA’s annual directory of members and suppliers must reach a high bar when it comes to cover appeal. In 2018, taking cues from the association’s conference location near Nashville, Tennessee, the FSEA Sourcebook invited others to Spur Imagination by working with one of the association members listed within its pages.

FSEA Sourcebook: Annual project with big implications

The Sourcebook isn’t only distributed to FSEA active and supplier members – it also serves as a reference to printers and designers looking for a partner for print finishing work, such as foil stamping, diecutting and embossing. The FSEA distributes several hundred copies of the Sourcebook at tradeshows and other events throughout the year. Supplier partners are able to insert samples of their own intricate work into the Sourcebook, making it even more important that the cover design is spectacular – both to attract attention and to measure up to the high standards already set by the work featured within the directory.

In 2018, the FSEA was taking its national conference to the Nashville area, so a cover design that complemented Tennessee’s country music roots seemed like a natural. A red cowboy boot with brown leather details and silver spurs provided the inspiration.

Sourcebook features work from association members

Foil stamping and multi-level embossing work for the Sourcebook cover was performed by Superior Graphic Finishing in Doraville, Georgia. Originally established in 1972 as a steel rule die company, Superior Graphic Finishing added die-cutting, foil and embossing, folding/gluing and specialty bindery services in the 1980s. The company has won more than 400 awards over the last 45 years from the Printing Industry Association of Georgia, Printing Industries of America and FSEA.

The brass multi-level embossing die and copper flat foil stamping dies were supplied by Phoenix, Arizona-based Metal Magic, engravers of premium brass and copper dies for everything from stationery to wine labels, commercial packaging to annual reports, trading cards to book covers. Paper stock utilized for the cover was 15.6 pt Invercoste CIS from Iggesund Paperboard, Inc.

The Sourcebook design called for fine-line embossing on the threaded feather detail and other decorative elements meant to bring out the texture of the leather, including stitching around the toe and on the shaft of the boot. The spur received special attention through the application of silver foil and an additional decorative embossing. The FSEA logo was added as a subtle branding detail for the association.

“The foil stamping and sculptured embossing processes were performed on a Kluge EHD,” said Guy Dupree, president of Superior Graphic Finishing. “The flat silver pass was laid down first on the Kluge. Then, to achieve maximum detail on the intricate areas, we ran the embossing in two passes. The first pass was done to see how much pressure we could use without over-pressure, which would cause cracking or damage to the counter. On the second pass, we adjusted the counter with more spot tape, mostly on the fine detail, until we achieved the desired result.”

“I blocked out the areas for which flat dies needed to be created before sending the files to our partners,” said Becky Arensdorf, art director for FSEA. “The craftsmen at Metal Magic took things from there to add more detail to the entire boot and spurs, based on their knowledge and creativity.”

Because of the intricacy of the foil stamping and embossing passes, the covers were trimmed to the correct size early in the process, but preparations were made in case adjustments were necessary. Dupree explained, “Since the sheets were printed multiple-up, we had to back-trim the sheets and keep the Polar paper cutter set up throughout the entire run of the foil/emboss process to adjust if necessary. We final-trimmed the covers before we ran the job, but we did so in small lifts as we ran so that we could check for any cutter draw that would affect the register.”

The final result was well worth it, and the incredible detail was so realistic that it fooled the press operator! “When the first finished piece came off the press, I took a picture of it and sent it to Jeff Peterson at the FSEA,” said Dupree. “Then I showed the picture to the press operator who was running the job. He asked me if that was a picture of the boots that were used for the artwork. It took me a moment or two to convince him that it was a picture of the job that he was running. He thought that I was kidding! We have never seen a picture of a piece that looked that realistic. The design, printing, dies and finishing all had to be spot on to create such a great piece, and we were glad to be a part of it.”

The sentiment was echoed by the company that created the embossing dies. “Metal Magic always considers it a high honor to provide dies for an FSEA project, especially one that is seen by so many, as the Sourcebook is,” said Mark Schumacher, vice president, sales for Metal Magic/Liberty Foil/GC Dies. “Our team takes great pride in the work we do for all our customers but seeing how perfectly every facet of this job came together, on such a marquee piece, only heightened that feeling.”

Award-winning effort

The 2018 FSEA Sourcebook has been a hit not only with those searching for print finishing providers, but also with judges. The sourcebook took Gold in the Directories category of the 2018 Gold Ink Awards, presented by Printing Impressions. The competition encompasses nearly 50 categories within commercial printing, magazines, books, catalogs, digital printing and packaging.

“It’s always excited to be recognized for the great work we do,” said Jeff Peterson, FSEA’s executive director, “but it’s even more rewarding when we receive that recognition for a project we’ve worked on with our members. Our association represents the most talented print finishers in the world, and we’re proud to collaborate with them each year on the FSEA Sourcebook.”