Warning: Creating default object from empty value in /home2/finalart/plasticcardonline.com/blog/wp-content/themes/salient/nectar/redux-framework/ReduxCore/inc/class.redux_filesystem.php on line 29
2009 - Page 3 of 24 - Plastic card
Yearly Archives

2009

Aug 21
0

Your Plastic Card Printing Tools!

By | News | No Comments
Plastic card is necessary for your school or for a small business you own. If you have been paying another company to print your ID cards, then you probably understand how costly this procedure can be. It’s also demanding to obtain the cards printed precisely based on your desire. It can be an exasperating process if the cards turn out to be inappropriate or with even a small flaw. Although you correct the mistakes free of charge, you should be patient enough to wait to have them reprinted and to be send out.Learning to print your own plastic card is truly an advantage. You can have a great deal of this anxiety and stress out of the printing process. If you print them yourself, you can control over your cards directly, according to your desire styles, their size and more. If you print one and it meet your expectations, you can go instantly to your machine and simply try again.

Printing ID cards with your own card printer is a simple task. It just simply connects your printer to your computer and it will print out the same way like your paper printing machine. Plastic card printer prints your image on plastic instead of printing it on a piece of paper.

If you want to print your own plastic cards, there are certain pieces of tool which are capable of doing the job correctly. Here is some of that useful hardware for your plastic card printing project:

Ribbons

It is the same as your paper printer needs ink ribbons or ink cartridges, and so your card printers as well. Ribbons for your card printers are created uniquely for printing on cards, and help you obtain the job done in a precise manner. In this way, you can have professional quality cards, printed right in your own home or office.

Laminates

Laminating is very essential in protecting your card, especially with ID cards or badges that are used on a regular basis. There are different ways to achieve lamination however one of the simplest is buying laminates which is appropriate for the cards like sleeves and help to protect them and make them lasting.

Cleaning Kits

Proper maintenance is very important to keep your card printer working accurately and help to last for a long time. To achieve the best from your machine, you should purchase cleaning kits that will help to keep it operating at utmost performance.

PVC Cards

You can buy PVC cards for printing on. There are many different designs, colors and qualities to choose from, but you have the liberty to find the perfect ones for your demands. These are just some of the main pieces of card printer hardware you will need for printing your own ideal cards. However, this is not a comprehensive list and there are many other products that can help you reach your desire output in a simpler and easier process. It can also help you add other varieties of fashion and details to your printed cards.

So, grab your own plastic card printing tools for your perfect plastic cards! Do your own thing and style and be more creative and stylish through your own plastic printing equipments.

Aug 19
0

Go Green with ID Card Printing

By | ID Cards | No Comments
There are a number of ways to keep the environment in mind when you are planning your ID supply and equipment purchases. A little research can turn up interesting details about advances in sustainability throughout this industry. We will start with a look at consumables for use with your existing card printer and finish up with a brief overview of what to look for when you are buying a new machine.The easiest way to make earth friendly upgrades is by changing what type of card stock you purchase. 100% recycled PVC is available in a standard 30 mil thickness and can be used for any application you would normally use virgin PVC for. Purchasing this type of item supports the recycling industry and makes it more affordable for recyclers to continue to provide these products. An even more popular option is eco-friendly corn based material. The particular variety of corn used is not diverted from our food chain and manufacturing requires up to 50% less fossil fuel than standard PVC production. These biodegradable cards offer the same high quality printing surface you are accustomed to, so you don’t have to “settle for less” to reduce your environmental impact.

More Tips: 1. Look for clear badge holders manufactured from recycled PVC and lanyards woven from bamboo fiber or post-consumer PET for your accessories.

2. Organizations like Earth911 can help you find a recycler for your obsolete plastic ID products, so make a point of collecting any badges that are no longer needed so the materials can be sent to a reclamation facility. Remember to cut up any items that have identifying information on them.

3. Laminate or apply a topcoat to all your cards to increase their longevity.

Industry Leaders: When it comes to environmental commitment, there are a couple of companies that stand out from the rest.

Evolis offers the Tattoo Rewrite printers, which allow you to reuse materials over and over again by erasing and reprinting the thermo-sensitive surface of specially designed cards. Their Pebble units incorporate “ribbon saver” technology, which conserves monochrome ribbon by using the minimum length necessary for each print job. This European company complies with strict guidelines regarding the use of hazardous substances in its products (RoHS compliance). They are also up to speed with the related Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment directive (WEEE) for managing the safe disposal of used electronic devices. Evolis boasts solar energy and rainwater harvesting at its headquarters and daily selective waste sorting in both manufacturing and administrative departments.

Zebra (formerly Eltron) practices full disclosure with its 12 page Corporate Product Material Content Policy. End users will be glad to know that they can check to see the full list of hazardous substances excluded from use in the manufacturing process. Zebra holds suppliers of parts and raw materials to the same exacting standards in an effort to keep their supply chain free of pollutants such as ozone depleting substances and heavy metals. Packaging materials from this company are also marked with appropriate recycling symbols to make it easy for you to keep up the good work by reducing waste at your office. The corporation has its own recycling program in place to accept used Zebra cartridges at its Illinois facility if you are willing to pay the postage.

Aug 16
0

ID Badges & Cards: Understanding Printing Technology

By | ID Cards | No Comments

ID Badge and Card Printers are easy to use devices, which compare well with consumer printers in their ability to be used straight out of the box. However, as most card printers work quite differently from ink-jet and laser printers, it’s worth understanding a bit about their technology.

Dye Sublimation

Dye sublimation or dye-sub, is the most common technology used.Thermal printing is used to place layers of dye into the ID badge surface. In dye sublimation printing, colors are not laid down as individual dots, as is done in inkjet printers. Dye sublimation makes photos in particular look more realistic.

Inside a dye sublimation printer is a roll of transparent film that resembles sheets of red, blue, yellow, and gray colored cellophane stuck together end to end. Embedded in this film are solid dyes corresponding to the four basic colors used in printing: cyan, magenta, yellow and black. The print head heats up as it passes over the film, causing the dyes to vaporize and permeate the glossy surface of the card before they return to solid form. The vaporized colors permeate the surface of the card, creating a gentle gradation at the edges of each pixel, instead of the conspicuous border between dye and card produced by inkjets. And because the color infuses the card, it is also less vulnerable to fading and distortion over time.

YMCKO

The printer creates the ID badges by placing layers of dye in the following order: Yellow: (Y) Magenta: (M) Cyan: (C) Black: (K) or Resin black Clear: (O) or Overcoat The colored image is a combination of the Y, M, & C layers which also produce a form of black. The K Resin layer allows very sharp defined black text, barcodes etc. to be added. The Overcoat layer acts as a protective film against wear and fading and can also carry a secure image, which cannot be photocopied – e.g. the Magicard Holokote security watermark.

Reverse Transfer With reverse transfer, the printer prints on the reverse of a transparent PVC re-transfer film, which is then laminated onto the ID Cards & Photo Badges. This protects the image from handling damage and produces a brilliant edge-to-edge image. The quality and durability of the finished card is similar to that achieved by an off-set printing process but with the advantage that every card can be different. Because the re-transfer film is laminated onto the face of the card, it is possible to print right to the edge, unlike dye sublimation printers which print almost to the edge leaving a small (less than 0.5mm) white border. Lamination ID badge and card lamination involves putting a clear layer of PVC over the card surface. Lamination is used to protect the card image, particularly where the card is regularly swiped through a magnetic stripe reader, where lamination will allow 10,000’s of swipes before any visible wear of the image occurs. ID card Lamination is either done at the same time as printing (with reverse transfer printers) or separately with a dedicated laminator. For added security, laminate films containing an optical security logo or hologram are available.

Aug 13
0

Secrets of the Plastic ID Card Industry

By | ID Cards | No Comments
We all carry around plastic ID cards of one type or another but most people don’t know a lot about them. If you like to find out how stuff works you may wonder what ID cards are made of and how the pictures are printed on them so they don’t rub off. Also, how does that black stripe on the back work? Here are some basic answers.Card Materials

The majority of plastic cards in circulation today are made of poly vinyl chloride. PVC is the second most commonly manufactured plastic worldwide and is very cost effective to produce. The substance is made by exposing vinyl chloride to a polymerization process that allows the molecules to create long networks or chains that are very strong. The resulting powdered PVC resin is heated and rolled into sheets which are then die punched into individual cards. Pigments can be added to the mix during the heating process to create different colored cards.

Card Varieties

Layers of Mylar, paper, or adhesive may be added as a final step for use in different applications. Cards can also feature either a matte or slick finish to suit different printing styles. Composite cards have a polyester core layered between PVC sheets to give them added strength. These are more expensive than regular cards but can withstand more abuse. Earth friendly cards made of recycled PVC are now available from environmentally conscious distributors. In addition to choosing this option you can also increase sustainability by collecting your company’s obsolete cards and turning them in for recycling. Just don’t mix them with other types of plastic since PVC needs to undergo a different reclamation process.

Thermal Printing

The most common type of ID card printing is simple thermal transfer using some type of resin based ink. The ink coated ribbons run through a card printer and are pressed against the surface of each card or transfer sheet. The print head is heated to release the ink from the ribbon onto the printable area where it bonds tightly with the surface creating a smudge proof result. Ribbons are typically formatted in a reel to reel design and the ink is laid out in repeating segments of yellow, magenta, cyan, and black. These colors are applied in layers one after the other to create a high quality replica of a photograph or other complex image. Plain black ribbons are available for simple jobs that don’t require color.

Magnetic Stripe Encoding

The black or “HiCo” magnetic stripe on the back of many cards is made of plastic with an admixture of powdered iron oxide. A powerful electromagnet locks the particles of metal in opposing orientations and varying sequences within the plastic stripe. This creates a binary code – the same type that computers use to function. When the card is swiped through a reader these particles are briefly reactivated so that the encoded information can be retrieved. “LoCo” magnet stripes that don’t require a very strong magnetic field to program are also available, but this variety is more susceptible to being accidentally erased.

Aug 09
0

Plastic Card Production

By | News | No Comments

Affordable, attractive, full colour quality plastic cards for any, and every, occasion.

Our state of the art card machines allow us to print colour or monochrome, edge to edge, on single or double sided cards, as well as encoding them to full ISO specification.

We can print full photograph ID cards just like your photo driving license.

We also offer bespoke specialist encoding (placing the data within the black magnetic stripe found on the back of a card) based on your own specifications and requirements, something that many of the larger card bureaus can struggle with.

Whether you are looking for impressive and professional membership or business cards, or invitations which are innovative and a bit different from the norm and will get people talking, we’ve got just the thing, tailored especially for you.

Here are just a few examples of the different types Plastic Card Production we can do:-

  • Membership Cards
  • Moving house/Premises Cards
  • Business Cards
  • Staff ID Cards (with or without photo)
  • Convention and Exhibitor badges
  • Visitor Badges
  • Access Cards
Aug 09
0

Card Printing Solutions to Consider For Your Organization

By | News | No Comments

Technology now offers you many printing ID systems and just as many card printing solutions. Whether you need to print photo ID or some other form of identification, there are many card printing solutions to consider.

There are several different types of printable plastic cards. Companies like Fargo, Datacard, Zebra, and Magicard all have a reputation for quality plastic cards. With more than 3 million identification cards printed every day, you can quickly see that this is really a new way of doing business.

Bank Cards

You can print on-demand bank cards right at your branch providing improved customer service. You can improve it even more by producing debit cards, credit cards, and ATM cards, then making them available for immediate use.

Driver’s Licenses

Government agencies around the world must print driver’s licenses, as they want a top notch product. This is why there are printers designed specifically for driver’s license printing.

Employee ID

Organizations require employee ID to help identify people, monitor production, and control access to areas. You want your employees as secure as your intellectual property. You can create personalized ID cards for your employees, the professional teams in your organization, for access control, and a host of other reasons.

Loyalty Cards

Loyalty cards have become very popular with businesses that want to reward their regular customers for their continued business. It’s a great way to set you apart from the competition. There are many different types of loyalty cards and you can decide what type you’d like to offer.

Membership Cards

Your members are your best asset and just as you want to set your business apart from the rest you should make sure your membership cards set you apart from the rest too. In-house card printing makes it easy for you to do just that. You can add security and value to your membership by printing cards that are personalized have the member’s name, and even a photo of your members. By printing barcodes you can keep the members personal information confidential. And if you want you can have expiration dates and balances in the printed barcode.

Government ID

There are all kinds of Government divisions with some that require some type of photo ID for most employees and others which require security identification cards for their security systems. Governments also provide all kinds of identification to citizens such as with healthcare cards or social security cards.

High Level Security ID

All high level security printed photo IDs are protected from counterfeiting, duplication, forgery, and alteration. And you can add the type of security that’s required from microchips for identification to systems that will open secure doors. There are many corporations that require high level security such as Homeland Security, research facilities, and hospitals.

Student Identification

The campus of today is far more secure than the past. Today’s student ID card can do a whole lot more than just identify a student. It can be encoded with all kinds of student information including medical conditions, library cards, and even class registrations.

Smart Cards

This type of card can be used by many different companies and organizations and it offers a great deal of functionality and security. Smart cards provide security, convenience, and portability. For example, ATM cards are an excellent example of a smart card.

With so many different card printing solutions there’s something to meet the needs of all companies and organizations. While deciding on the right solution for your organization you should consider the following.

Security – What type of security do you need? Different types of organizations and events require different security levels. Each business has their own unique needs so you will need to determine what it is you require in this area.

Integration – You will need to determine how you will need to integrate your new card printing system into other areas of your company or organization. You can always get the experts in the field of integration to give your organization a hand in providing a seamless system.

Functionality – There are several different card printers on the market and you will need to evaluate for the functionality you require. The professionals that offer these products to the market are experts in their product line so be sure to utilize this expertise.

Card Issuance – Issuing cards in-house is great but the security of these cards is only as good as the card printing system you implement which is why it’s important for you to know and understand the various levels of security associated with the equipment.

There are many different card printing solutions available. That means your organization should consider what it is they want to do, and how they would like to do it. Only then they can make the right choice.

Check out plasticcardonline for low prices on card printing. Or print your id cards yourself with a plastic card printer. Also shop for id accessories such as badge holders, badge reels and lanyards.
Aug 08
0

6 Questions To Ask Before Purchasing Plastic Card Printers

By | News | No Comments
Everyday business owners decide that the time is right to implement their own internal ID card printing system; and each time the same question arises – what is the right ID card printer? Here are 6 Questions you should have the answers to before purchasing an ID card printer.1. Do you need to print on both sides of your photo ID card?

If you answered yes, you will need to purchase a dual-sided printer. This will allow you to add information on both the front and the back of the card. There are all kinds of excellent dual ID card printers on the market. The disadvantage to this type of printer is it costs more and this type of printing takes more time.

2. Do you need to print monochrome or color cards?

Monochrome printing uses only black ink, so it is much cheaper. It’s also a lot faster, taking only around 5 seconds per card. Color printing lets you create eye catching color cards, and it also allows for very realistic photos on you photo ID cards. The disadvantage is that color printing costs more.

3. Do you need your cards to be smart?

Today’s market provides you with all kinds of different photo ID cards to choose from, including smart ones. The smart card is able to store all kinds of information on the magnetic strip or bar code. The information is encoded on smart chips, making them popular in situations where security is an issue. For example, smart cards are a good choice if you need your employees to sign in or sign out of secure facilities.

4. Do your cards need to be secure?

There is a great deal of effort that goes into making a card as secure as possible. A members card for a local retail store might not have to be very secure, but a restricted area in a laboratory will likely require a great deal of security. You’ll need to take inventory of what it is you need your cards to do, and then you’ll know what features to look for in a printer. All the top manufacturers offer mag stripe encoders, and smart card encoders. If you need to laminate your card you need a photo ID printer with a special station. So consider this when you are looking

5. How many cards do you need to print every year?

The average printer can print around 30,000 cards per year, which is adequate for most. If you need to print more cards you will need to choose a printer that is designed for higher volume.

6. What is the life expectancy you want from your photo ID cards?

Abrasive activities from swiping the card in high usage situations, can wear them out quickly. Average usage will see a PVC card last 1 to 2 years, while high use could easily cut the life expectancy of these cards in half.

You can extend the life of your cards using overlays or lamination. An overlay is an additional panel on the printer ribbon, which gets laid down on the top of the card. This extends card life by a year. Lamination applies a vinyl coating on both sides of the card. It is applied using heat and pressure. There are different thicknesses of lamination to choose from. In general, laminating adds 4 to 5 years to the life of your card. These options might increase your initial costs, but overall are more likely to reduce your costs in situations of high use.

Once you know the answer to these 6 questions, you will have a much better understanding of the type of ID card printer you need. There are many excellent printers on the market, making choosing right printer that much easier. Successful businesses recognize opportunities that will reduce costs and increase profits. Printing your own photo ID cards will do just that.