Glossary

The PRINTING United Alliance Glossary serves as an excellent industry terminology resource. It is the language by which we all communicate. Without it, universal understanding would be impossible.

To keep our constituents well informed about changes to the increasingly complex industry terminology, PRINTING United Alliance has developed this glossary of terms. Definitions are for general reference only. Usage may vary between companies, individuals, or national and country customs. The information presented is as accurate as the authors and editors can ascertain and PRINTING United Alliance assumes no responsibility for the use of information presented herein.
  • Grommet and washer with teeth
    A metal ring that is permanently attached by means of teeth in the washer.
  • Grommeting
    The process of applying metal reinforcements (grommets) into holes punched in edges or corners of a banner, display, or sign unit for the purpose of hanging.
  • Ground glass
    A sheet of glass that is translucent at the back of a camera that can be moved into the focal plane in place of the film holder and used to assist in focusing the image.
  • Grounding
    The creation of a connection capable of transferring a static or electrical charge to earth ground.
  • Growth
    (1) Expansion of graphic out of register due to screen stretch; (2) expansion of material due to mechanical embossing.
  • Guide edge
    The side of a substrate that is at a right angle to the gripper edge.
  • Guide pin
    A pin that aligns closing mold halves.
  • Guillotine
    (cutter) A manual or electronic paper cutter with a straight blade that raises and lowers with the downward action being the cutting portion of the cycle.
  • Guillotine cutting
    The cutting of stacked sheet stock by straight line cutting with a suspended blade.
  • Gum
    A water soluble substance that hardens when exposed to air that is used as a resinous binder in ink and varnish formulations.
  • Gum arabic
    A water soluble organic gum of various species of acacia used as a binder in ceramic glazes and colors and other ink formulations.
  • Gum tragacanth
    (1) An organic material of vegetable origin used as a binder in glazes and enamels; (2) an organic substance of vegetable origin used as a binder in water vehicle solutions, particularly those containing gelatins used in making photoscreen stencils; similar to gum arabic.
  • Gum turpentine
    A volatile oil obtained by distilling the resin extracted by tapping living pine trees, and who’s main constituent is pinene.
  • Gusset
    An added structure used to strengthen a formed plastic object.
  • Gutter
    (1) The taped interior edges of the screen parallel to the direction of the squeegee; (2) the white space along the inside margins of facing pages.
  • Heat release decal
    A decal printed face down on a special release paper to be transferred from the carrier paper to the substrate by the application of heat and pressure.
  • Hiding power (dry opacity)
    (1) Opacity; the relative ability of a coating material to hide or obscure a surface to which it has been uniformly applied; (2) The contrast ratio of a gallon of ink or a pound of pigment.
  • High performance plastic
    A plastic suitable for product designs requiring stability above 175°C (347°F).
  • High temperature adhesive
    An adhesive that will induce a bond to a hot substrate.
  • Imperial fluid ounce
    A unit of measure of capacity equal to 1/40th of an imperial quart or 1,0408 fluid ounces, US.
  • Imperial gallon (imp gal)
    A unit of volume in the British Imperial System used in liquid and dry measure equal to 4,546 liters.
  • Imperial quart
    A unit of volume or capacity equal to 40 Imperial fluid ounces, 1/4 Imperial gallon, 69.35 cubic inches or 1.2 quarts, US.
  • Inks and Matched Component Systems

    Matched Components

    Solvent and UV curable inks will generally have about the same life span for a vehicle or fleet application, when you use a matched over laminate protection system. The company 3M does make inks for solvent, latex and UV curable inkjet printers that are known as MCS, or Matched Component System inks. When products are manufactured using 3M media, inks and over laminates, they are then eligible to be covered under the 3M™ MCS™ Warranty for up to 5 years of coverage. You can look up the specifics of the program at the 3M graphics site. And yes, there are clients that specify jobs that must be covered by this program, so you must have all of the necessary ingredients to be able to bid on these projects. [[{"fid":"1003","view_mode":"default","fields":{"format":"default","field_file_image_alt_text[und][0][value]":"","field_file_image_title_text[und][0][value]":""},"type":"media","attributes":{"class":"media-element file-default"}}]]
  • Instrument metamerism
    The phenomenon in a scanner where two colors that look the same to an observer look different to the scanner, or two colors that look different to an observer look the same to the scanner.
  • Intercoat adhesion
    1) The ability of inks and coatings to adhere to one another 2) The ability of an ink or coating to maintain its integrity without separating or layering.