ARTWORK GUIDELINES - Offset Litho Printing

We recommend a graphic resolution of at least 250 dpi (preferably 300 dpi) for grey scale and colour graphics
(in the original size) to ensure an optimal printed result.

For posters, a resolution of 200 dpi (in the original size) is sufficient, so that the amount of data is
reduced, or can be kept to a minimum.

Line art (e.g. text with a small point size and symbols) should be laid out with a resolution of 1200 dpi to
avoid a “saw tooth“ effect. This occurs because line art, in contrast to other images with fluid transitions,
shows hard colour edges and high contrast.

Business Card Layout Guide

Fonts

Do not place text, logos and other elements too close to the edge of the page, otherwise they may be
cut off. We recommend a distance of ca. 3 mm from the edge of the page, 5mm for outer bleed cropping area.

The font size should be at least 6 pt to ensure readability. Please keep in mind that the general reading
font size is 12 pt. The larger your product, the larger the optimal font size should be. That means, for example,
that 6 pt, while a reasonable size on a business card, would be essentially unreadable on a poster, leaflet
or flyer.

Fonts must be converted into curves or embedded in the document in order to avoid problems
with the text size. These problems can arise if the printer does not have the font you used available.
You may not use mixed colors (CMYK) for designing black texts, but 100% black (K-channel).

Lines

Do not use hairlines. They are too thin to be properly printed. Lines should be at least 0.25 mm thick (0.75 pt).

We recommend not to use frames that shall act as border for the whole document (end size) as these may
be cut due to the industry standard cutting tolerances.

IMPORTANT

Lines that are laid out with an insufficient thickness will be automatically thickened by our editing program.
Please make sure that no lines of 0 pt thickness are hiding in your document, as they may appear in the final product as a result of the automatic thickening.

Multiple side products

Please transfer these individual pages or sides to us in a multi-page PDF document.

Saving Print-Ready Artwork

Please only use closed, read-only formats such as PDF, JPG, TIFF, EPS, PS (PostScript) to save
your print data.

Please do not use any special or space characters.

Files in PDF-Format are both for you and us the most secure way to produce a high-quality printed
product, because this format has been especially developed for the exchange of data between two
professional prepress organisations.

The free Acrobat Reader program is not sufficient for the creation of printable PDF files. For this the Acrobat Full Version is available, although it does cost. You can also use the capabilities of your layout program, as long as you pay attention to a few adjustments that will facilitate the creation of a perfect PDF file.

When creating a PDF file directly from the layout program, please use the PDF/XStandard
(PDF/X3-Standard or PDF/X1a-Standard). We recommend picking the additional setting “compatibility 1.3”
when saving your artwork files. Like that you can prevent problems with layers or transparencies that may
arise during further work on your files in our workflow. This especially pertains to programs that do not
support PDF/X- Standards for PDF creation suck as WORD, POWERPOINT etc.

PDF files that have been created in CorelDRAW may have an incorrect colour display.

Only create JPEG files as output from CorelDRAW.

Checklist

Is the document laid out in CMYK?

If spot HKS colours are to be included, you will need to contact us for pricing for spot colours ?

If you have ordered one colour printing (black), is your artwork provided as greyscale?

Is the file laid out in open end size, with the additional 2mm bleed allowance?

Are the elements that must not be cut off placed far enough away from the edge (minimum 3mm)?

Does the side number of the document match the side number given in the order?

Have all superfluous sides been deleted? Are all sides clearly marked?)

Correct file format? PDF (PDF/X3 or PDF/ X1a), JPG, TIFF, EPS, PS

Are the fonts embedded or converted into strings or curves?

Is the image resolution sufficient (at least 250 dpi, posters at least 200 dpi, line art 1,200 dpi)?

Are the lines thick enough?

Could any thin lines that would become visible through automatic scaling be hiding in the file?

Have all auxiliary lines and layers been deleted?

Please send your files as attachments to data@xxionprint.co.uk