Screen-printing is an industrial and commercial printing technique, which involves the passage of a printing medium, such as ink, through a taut fabric to which a refined form of stencil has been applied. The stencil openings determine the form and dimensions of the imprint thus produced.

Screen printing also called silk screen print also called serigraph was invented in the Far East around 2000 years ago. No one knows exactly when or where. Originally silk was used to make the screen printer's screen. A paper stencil was stitched onto the screen to control the print area. Around a hundred years ago screen-printing was reinvented in the west and it has become a common method of printing on textiles.

The screens used for screen-printing are made with a monofilament mesh. Photopolymer emulsion is used to make the stencil. The silk screen is coated with the liquid emulsion, and allowed to dry and harden. The emulsion is light sensitive. The stencil is made in the "silk screen" by placing a positive of the print over the coated silk screen then exposing the screen to light. The areas of the screen shielded from the light remain water-soluble and can be washed out of the screen.

Screen print films are cast or calendered PVC film with permanent or removable adhesives for solvent based inkjet printing. It is a specialty media for signage and display.

Features

• High resolution
• High reduction capabilities
• Quick and accurate
• Exceptional print quality
• Offers durability
• Available in various thickness
• An actinic light source is needed for exposure of the film
• Easy to operate
• Widely used in printing and publishing industry