Print Solutions

At Calev Systems, we have one-simple objective — to provide you with strategic marketing solutions that save you time and money while enhancing quality.

 

Working on your behalf, our team scrutinizes your workflow, documentation, technology, production and distribution. Our extensive direct-buying power and production expertise equips us to develop the most efficient, cost-effective print management system to meet your needs… and more.

Print Management

Since 2000, we have fulfilled our promise to deliver results for our clients — building collaborative, long-term partnerships and expanding the scope of our services to facilitate every stage of the print supply chain. Through our vast network of vendor partners, Calev Systems navigates the complex world of the print-buying process. From concept to print, global paper sourcing, fulfillment, logistics, and beyond, we work as an extension of our clients' businesses to produce award-winning quality on time and on budget.

Paper Sourcing

Paper can represent as much as 60% of the total cost of your job. Our team of paper experts assist in choosing the grades, basis weights, brightness, opacity and finish to secure the perfect paper for the product, leading to quality improvements and cost savings for our clients.

Calev Systems provides:

 

  • Control of the job’s most significant cost component – paper
  • Direct mill access, which eliminates printer’s mark-up
  • Unique international access to a wide variety of paper grades
  • Inventory managed on the client’s behalf
  • Consumption reporting
  • Carryover of unused paper balance for subsequent press runs
  • Billing based on paper consumption
  • Continual evaluation of new products on the market and cost saving alternatives
  • Forest Stewardship Council sustainable products

 

Specialty Finishes

A printed piece with a unique finish is physically and emotionally appealing to the consumer. At Calev Systems, we enable our clients to stand out in the crowd by utilizing unique print techniques, coatings and off-press finishes. These techniques occur during different stages of production: inline/on-press and offline/off-press.

Below are some of our specialty finish capabilities:

 

  • UV Coatings
  • Glitter Coating
  • Cold Foil (inline)
  • Hot Foil Stamping (offline)
  • Reticulation
  • Varnish
  • Embossing and Debossing
  • Metallic Inks
  • Iriodin
  • Grit Coatings
  • Textured Printing

 

UV Coatings (Spot UV & Raised Spot UV)

UV coating, or ultraviolet coating, is a glossy, shiny liquid coating applied to the printed sheet and cured on a printing press or specialty equipment using ultraviolet light. The coating hardens or cures when exposed to the ultraviolet radiation. Spot UV is a shiny layer that goes on the exact spot where you would like your printed piece to have an area of a high-gloss coating. Raised Spot UV is the same process, except that it accentuates the area where it is applied from the rest of the page.

Glitter Coating

Glitter Coating can be added to colored inks or as colored glitter to clear inks. The method is based on your desired effect, and each will give your printed piece a sparkle effect.

Cold Foil

Cold Foil (Inline Process) is a cost-effective process that can be produced in most printing techniques to mimic the effect of hot foil stamping. The foil, usually a silver material, is affixed using a standard printing plate before the application of printing inks. In addition to cost-effectiveness is the registration precision of the foil, inks, and varnish.

Hot Foil Stamping

Hot Foil Stamping (Offline Process) uses heat and pressure to apply foil to a printed sheet.

Reticulation

Reticulation is a tactile effect that can be created on the press by combining spot varnish and an overall UV Coating. The mix causes a chemical reaction that results in a tactile and visual effect.

Varnish (Gloss, Dull, Satin, Soft Touch or Matte Finish)

Varnish is a liquid coating containing resins, drying oil, and drier solvents that hardens to a transparent film on a printed sheet. Varnish protects and enhances the appearance of the printed sheet and can be UV- or Aqueous-based. The varnish is available with a gloss, dull, satin, soft touch or matte finish.

Embossing and Debossing

Embossing and Debossing creates a raised or recessed image on paper using a metal die. The two metal-plate dies, a front and a back, sandwich a sheet of paper to create a 3D effect. An embossed image is raised against the background, and the debossed image is sunk into the surface of the material. The die can create a single or multi-level effect depending on the amount of detail desired. (Small type is not recommended.) Both techniques enhance your project and draw attention to the specific elements of your design.

Metallic Inks

Metallic inks contain metallic particles. Some common metals used to manufacture metallic ink include copper, aluminum, bronze, and zinc. During the drying process, the metallic particles in ink rise to the surface, reflecting light and creating a metallic sheen.

Iriodin

Iriodin is a pearly luster pigment-containing mica and metal oxide that is used during the pre- or post-printing process. The particles create an iridescent, subtle shimmer and a vibrant luster that has the appearance of a natural pearl sheen.

Grit Coatings

Grit Coatings create a coarse tactile effect emulating a sheet of sandpaper.

Textured Printing

Textured Printing is a technique in which a polymer is applied to desired areas of a printed piece to highlight features or to create a glossy texture. The result is a raised effect that resembles a combination of UV coating and embossing.