Printing technology has evolved with time, but here we will discuss an old printing method that still holds a lot of importance. We are talking about screen printing. This technique first evolved in China in 950 AD. It has considerably evolved over the period of time and now screen printing is used as an artistic medium, and also for the commercial printing process.

Overview: 

In this type of printing, the same design is produced repeatedly using a stencil. This technique now finds application across the different segments of the industry. It is sometimes also called serigraphy or silkscreen printing. You may hear different words for it but the method of printing remains the same.

It finds application in creating artworks, posters, printing on fabrics, and has proven to be a useful technology for creating customized products. This printing creates effective impressions on different surfaces like metal, plastic, wood, paper, or glass. The screen or the mesh plays an important role in it. In this method, a screen or mesh is created on a surface, and then the ink is passed through to it to create an imprint of the design.

The Various Materials Used For Screen Printing Are: 

1. Masking tape to cover the chosen area of the screen.
2. Painting the stencil on the mesh using screen blockers like glue or lacquer.
3. A light-sensitive emulsion is used to create a stencil.
4. You can use either a single shade or multiple shades of pink. In the case of multiple colors, the coating of color is done in individual layers, and a different stencil is used for each shade.

Key Applications Of Screen Printing: 

As we have mentioned above, screen printing is used for printing on different substrates like paper, metal, or plastic. Based on it, we have different forms of printing like:

Glass and Ceramic 

This form of printing is used to create different designs on glass and ceramic products with industrial and consumer applications. 

Electronics Printing 

The impact of the printing industry is seen on other segments, and electronics printing is one of them. The demand for printed electronics is growing, and screen printing technology plays an important role. 

Textile Printing 

Screenprint technology finds application in textile printing. In the case of textile printing, an emulsion solution is used, and this lowers the cost while increasing the efficiency of the printing.

Graphic Printing 

In graphic screen printing, we can use it to create imprints on different surfaces or even 3D objects. Choosing the right emulsion plays an important role in this case.

These are some of the key applications of screen printing that make it the perfect method to create designs and customized products.

Benefits Of Screen Print Technology: 

1. The key benefit of this printing method is that it is used to create imprints on a wide array of substrates ranging from plastics to metals.
2. It provides strong coverage of the ink layer.
3. You can use different types of ink in this form of printing.
4. Good for creating imprints for outdoor advertisement.
5. It is cheaper, quicker, and simpler printing technology.
6. Accurate transfer of image, which creates a good quality image.
7. Ease of customization. This printing method makes it easy for you to customize the products.

Concluding Thoughts 

This basic informative guide on-screen print technology would have given you a fair insight into the technology and its key attributes. Nowadays, screenprint technology has a fair share in the market, but it is receiving competition from digital printing because of the higher cost of screen printing.