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.
  • Brilliance
    Apparent color strength; the combined effect of brightness, strength, and/or purity of color tone.
  • Bristol board
    A fine kind of pasteboard smooth, and sometimes glazed on the surface, solid or laminated heavyweight paper having a thickness of 6 ml or greater (0.006 inch). (The name is derived from the original rag board made in Bristol, England).
  • Bristol glaze
    A raw glaze containing zinc oxide often used in terra cotta.
  • British Thermal Unit (Btu)
    A measure of generated heat; the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit at or near its point of maximum density.
  • Brittleness
    An undesirable characteristic of a material or ink film that causes it to break or otherwise fail when bent or creased.
  • Broadcloth
    A plain weave fabric of cotton or poly-cotton blends with a slight ridge effect in one direction.
  • Broken end
    A defect in woven mesh due to a break in a warp thread.
  • Bronze
    An appearance characteristic of some printed films where the apparent color of the print depends upon the angle of view and illumination, giving the appearance of metal.
  • Bronze paper
    A paper board coated with a composition consisting of a finely divided metallic powder and a binder such as pyroxylin.
  • Bronze powder
    A metallic pigment added to printing inks consisting mainly of copper alloys in very fine flakes.
  • Bronze screen
    A printing screen made of fine, phosphor bronze wire mesh, used mainly for printing wallpaper.
  • Bronzing (bronze dusting)
    Printing with a tacky size or adhesive and then dusting with finely powdered metal particles to give the appearance of metallic printing, usually applied using a special bronzing machine.
  • Bronzing adhesive
    A varnish-like clear material or coating on which dry metallic bronze powder is applied.
  • Bronzing liquid
    A wet liquid application of bronze powders to a substrate.
  • Brush
    A special effect filter that performs a specific function such as smoothing selective edges.
  • BS
    Acceptable abbreviation for British Standard.
  • BSI
    Acceptable acronym for the British Standards Institute, a standardization organization in Great Britain.
  • Btu/sec
    A unit of power which denotes the number of British Thermal Units per second consumed; one BTU/second is equivalent to 1.06 kilowatts.
  • Bubbles
    Trapped air, gas, or water vapor in an ink or coating or under a solidified film.
  • Buckle lock
    A display part used for locking two elements of light weight stock.
  • Buffer
    Any substance or combination of substances, when dissolved in water, produce a solution that resists a change in its hydrogen ion concentration from the addition of an acid or alkali.
  • Buffer capacity
    The ability of a solution to resist pH changes when a strong acid or base is added.
  • Build
    The thickness, either real or apparent, of a dry ink or varnish film.
  • Build-up layer
    (1) A layer or sheet of material such as glass, sheet of card stock, or thin wood panel smaller than the inside dimensions of the printing frame, but larger than the stencil area on which the finished stencil film is placed for adhering, used to ensure pressurized contact with the mesh; (2) Ink that sticks to the bottom of the screen while printing wet-on-wet (textiles).
  • Bulk
    (1) Denotes the degree of paper thickness; (2) A measure of the thickness of a pile of a specified number of sheets of paper stock under a specified pressure expressed in thousandths of an inch or pages per inch (ppi).