Sample & Quotation Request Guide for Gravure Printing

Artwork Files: What to Send and Why Format Errors Are the Most Common Delay #

Start with your press-ready PDF or AI file at a minimum resolution of 300 dpi for raster elements, with all fonts outlined and bleed set to 3–5mm on all edges. For gravure specifically, also supply a separated file showing each ink color on its own layer — gravure is a single-station-per-color process, so your prepress team needs to evaluate trap width and overprint behavior before cylinder separation begins.

Color references must be provided as Pantone codes (Pantone Matching System, currently Pantone 2024 edition), not as hex values or on-screen RGB screenshots. Hex and RGB are screen references; our press operators calibrate ink mixes to Pantone or approved drawdown swatches. If your brand has approved CMYK breakdowns verified against ISO 12647-2 proofing standards, include those too — we can target them on proof validation.

One thing that routinely causes a first sample rejection: metallic or spot colors referenced as “gold” without a Pantone specification. We receive briefs that say “gold foil effect” when the intent is actually a gravure-printed metallic ink, which behaves differently from hot foil and requires a separate ink formulation decision. Specify whether the metallic is printed ink, cold foil lamination, or hot stamping — each has a different cylinder and substrate requirement.

What Structural Information We Need Before We Can Quote #

Accurate dimensions are non-negotiable for a gravure job. Provide finished flat dimensions (width × height for flexible pouches and labels) or finished folded dimensions for laminated carton structures. For flexible packaging specifically, also state the gusset depth and seal margin — typically 10–15mm on three-side seals and 8–12mm on bottom gusset pouches.

Material preference should be stated as specifically as possible: “BOPP” is not enough — state biaxially oriented polypropylene, 20 micron, matte surface, or glossy, depending on your application. If you’re unsure, describe the end-use (retort? ambient? frozen?) and we’ll recommend from our qualified substrate list, which includes grades from our approved vendor list (AVL-03) validated for ink adhesion per ASTM F904 testing.

Quantity tiers matter more in gravure than in any other print process because cylinder amortization drives unit cost. Submit at least three tiers — for example, 10,000 / 30,000 / 100,000 units — so we can show you how cylinder cost dilutes across volume. The crossover point where gravure becomes cost-competitive with flexo typically sits between 30,000 and 50,000 linear meters depending on the number of colors.

Also state: number of SKUs sharing the same structure, whether any copy will change between SKUs (which affects cylinder reuse), target retail price point (this informs finishing decisions such as matte lamination vs. gloss), and whether food-contact compliance is required. For food-contact flexible packaging, we require a declaration against EU 10/2011 or FDA 21 CFR 175.300 before committing any substrate or ink formulation.

Sample Types: What Each Stage Costs You in Time #

Not every project needs all three sample stages, but knowing what each delivers helps you decide where to compress.

For a first-time gravure job with a new substrate, we recommend not skipping the printed proof stage. Registration tolerance on a production press run is ±0.2mm on our 10-color Windmoeller & Hoelscher line — that’s tight enough that a misaligned artwork file will show as visible text bleed on final samples. Catching this at the proof stage avoids a full cylinder re-engrave.

White samples make sense when you’re comparing structural formats between suppliers and don’t yet need color confirmation. If you need to evaluate seal strength per ASTM F88, a white sample run on your actual film specification is sufficient for that test.

Technical Deep-Dive: How to Evaluate a Received Gravure Sample Without a Lab #

This is where brand managers lose time — not in production, but in sample evaluation. A gravure sample arriving at your office carries several testable parameters that don’t require laboratory equipment.

Color check: Use a physical Pantone fan deck under D50 illuminant (5000K daylight lamp) to compare each spot color. If the match is outside one Pantone step (roughly ΔE > 3.0 under CIE 2000), flag it before approving. Don’t evaluate color under an LED office light — the metamerism effect between solvent inks and coated substrates is significant enough to cause false approvals that become production disputes.

Registration: Hold the printed sample up to a light source and look through the reverse side. Misregistration above 0.3mm will be visible as a shadow or color fringe around fine text. Our QC-11 sample release form includes a mandatory registration measurement at three points on the printed panel using a 10× loupe with scale.

Lamination adhesion: For laminated structures, attempt a manual peel at the edge seal. Delamination at less than 1.5 N/15mm force (per ASTM F904) on a sample you can peel by hand without tools indicates an adhesion issue worth questioning before bulk production.

Ink adhesion on flexible substrates: Run a tape pull test (3M 610 or equivalent) on the printed panel. Color transfer to the tape indicates insufficient cure or incorrect primer selection for that substrate. This is a pass/fail test we run on 100% of incoming substrates and on production samples at press start and end of run.

Seal integrity on pouches: Fill the sample pouch with water (or pressurize with air to 15–20 kPa) and check for seam weep. This is a fast functional check that doesn’t require a formal burst tester but will surface gross seal failures before you approve bulk. For formal burst strength requirements, reference ASTM F1929 to your supplier as the test method.

One limitation in our current sample evaluation data: we track tape pull adhesion failures by substrate family, but our dataset for water-based gravure inks on biodegradable PLA films covers only 11 production lots to date. We’ll have more reliable adhesion benchmarks for PLA once we complete the 2025 substrate qualification cycle.

Specification Notes for Brand Partners #

When you brief us on a gravure print job, the information that determines whether we can quote accurately in one round is: finished flat dimensions, substrate type and thickness (in microns), number of colors, Pantone references, food-contact status, target quantity tiers, and whether the job includes lamination or coating.

The most common gap in incoming briefs is missing lamination structure detail. A brief that says “printed pouch” without specifying whether it’s a printed BOPP laminated to PE, or a printed PET laminated to AL and PE, means we’re quoting two structurally different jobs — the cylinder cell depth specification, ink system, and lamination adhesive all change. One round of back-and-forth on this adds 3–5 working days to quote turnaround.

Our standard sampling timeline for a gravure flexible packaging job runs 18–22 working days from brief approval to production sample shipment, assuming artwork is approved within 3 working days of receiving. Timeline extends when artwork requires color separation rework, when substrate requires qualification against our AVL-03 list, or when food-contact compliance documentation is outstanding.

How do I compare quotes from two gravure suppliers when the prices look very different?

Confirm that both quotes use the same substrate specification, same number of colors, and same cylinder cost treatment — some suppliers amortize cylinder cost into unit price, others quote it separately. A $0.08 per unit difference on a 50,000-unit run can disappear entirely once cylinder cost allocation is normalized.

What artwork format does your team prefer for gravure jobs?

Press-ready PDF with separated layers and 3–5mm bleed, with Pantone solid coated references for all spot colors. AI (Adobe Illustrator) native files are acceptable as a backup, but all linked images must be embedded at 300 dpi minimum.

Can I skip the production sample and go straight to bulk after a printed proof?

For repeat substrates with previously validated ink adhesion, yes — we’ve done this on reorder jobs where only copy is changing. For any new substrate or new color combination, we recommend against it. The production press introduces heat, tension, and speed variables that a proof does not replicate, and a lamination failure discovered in bulk costs significantly more than a 15–25 working day sample run.

Does the cylinder engraving cost apply every order, or is it a one-time charge?

Cylinders are yours after the first order and can be stored in our facility for reorders. Storage is typically complimentary for 12 months for active accounts. If the design changes by more than minor text revision, new engraving is required — partial re-engrave on a modified cylinder is possible for copy-only changes within the same color area, which costs roughly 40–60% of a new cylinder depending on the extent of the change.

What quantity makes gravure the right choice over flexo for my job?

It depends on print quality requirements as much as volume. For photographic gradients and fine dot work below 20 microns, gravure holds quality at any volume. Purely from a cost-efficiency standpoint, gravure cylinder amortization typically equalizes with flexo plate cost somewhere between 30,000 and 50,000 linear meters. Below that threshold, flexo or digital is often the better economic fit — and we’d say that directly rather than take on a job that doesn’t suit the process.

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Planning a packaging project? Contact our team to request a complimentary specification review and sample quote.