Silk Screen Printing and Offset Printing on Glass Wine Bottles

Screen printing, also known as silk screen printing, is an ancient yet practical printing method. The basic principle is to use a screen printing plate. Some of the mesh holes can pass through the ink and be printed onto the surface of the glass wine bottle. The mesh on the rest of the printing plate is blocked and the ink cannot pass through, thus creating blank areas on the bottle body. Traditional plate-making relied on manual labor, but nowadays photochemical plate-making is more common. First, tighten the screen on the screen frame, apply photosensitive glue to form a plate film, then tightly press the positive plate base plate onto the plate film to expose it. After exposure and development, the parts that do not need to be inked are cured by light and the mesh holes are sealed. The mesh holes of the parts that need to be inked remain open. During printing, the ink passes through the mesh holes and leaves marks on the bottle body.

Offset printing belongs to the indirect transfer method. It first transfers the graphics and text on the printing plate to the rubber blanket, and then the rubber blanket transfers them to the printing surface of the glass wine bottle. Offset printing takes advantage of the principle that water and oil do not mix. Through offset printing technology, the printing process is completed with the help of an intermediate transfer rubber roller. With the development of technology, waterless offset printing plates emerged. They do not require water-ink balance and have a fine plate structure, further enhancing the quality and efficiency of printing.

Many differences arise from the variations in process principles. The ink layer of screen printing is relatively thick, with rich and vivid colors and strong three-dimensional effect. However, its precision is relatively low. Limited by the screen printing process and raw materials, the image precision is generally between 80 and 120 lines per inch, and the reproduction range of dot tonal gradation is 10% to 85%. Offset printing has a thin ink layer and a slightly inferior three-dimensional effect. However, the reproduction effect of printed graphics and text is excellent, with small dot distortion. The line count of waterless offset printing can reach 175-200 lines per inch, and the printed patterns are clear, with strong texture and high color reproduction.

When choosing a printing process, if you are pursuing a unique three-dimensional effect, large solid areas or simple text patterns, screen printing is a good choice. If one pays attention to the fineness and layering of the pattern and has high requirements for color reproduction, offset printing can better meet the demands. It is hoped that this article can help you make a wise decision in choosing the printing process for glass wine bottles, allowing the wine bottle packaging to add luster to your products.