March 2016 – The CD Printing and Packaging Project

Jane works as part of the design team for a well-known interior design company that specializes in designing and decorating large public buildings. In addition to design work, she also takes responsibility for marketing the company at trade shows, conferences, and business-to-business events. You’ve found that more and more potential customers are asking for information about your company’s past work and experience on a CD, and you’ve also noticed that many of your competitors are handing out CDs at trade shows and similar events, as well as distributing printed copies. information. As the business has grown, the shows they attend and the positions they hold are also growing, and to sustain that growth, Jane needs to reach more potential customers. During a meeting with her team, she decides that they will produce a document that will work within a web browser that can be placed on a CD. The CD, when inserted into the drive of a laptop or desktop computer, will automatically open the document showing the company’s work and capabilities.

Your competitors are distributing CDs in attractive, high-quality jewel cases that contain informational booklets with instructions on how to use the disc, and are also further advertising their businesses. Jane volunteers to work on getting the CDs printed and the CD packaging, as she has some experience producing artwork for print.

Finding the Right CD Printing and Packaging Supplier

Jane has previously worked with a local printing company that produces high-quality promotional material for her on an as-needed basis. She talks to her contact at the print shop and asks if they can recommend someone who offers a CD printing and packaging service. Jane is given some contact details for a potential provider, but she also researches the internet to find a provider of these services in the UK. She finds several suitable companies with good websites and positive customer feedback, so she consults and requests quotes for a 500 CD run.

A project manager from the CD printing and packaging company contacts Jane on the recommendation of her contact at the printer. She also provided a quote for a print run of 500 CDs that is competitive compared to the other quotes, so she begins trying to set up a meeting with him to further discuss the project. Jane has allowed herself 3 weeks to complete the CD project in order to have the CDs available for her next big show. Unfortunately, she discovers that her new contact is not returning phone calls or emails in a timely manner and she begins to run out of time.

Jane decides to contact one of the other potential vendors on her list who have a reputation for good customer service and high-quality products. Your listing was a bit higher than the competition, but better service is a good trade off. She talks with Greg, who is a project manager and designer, and he recommends a meeting the next day at his manufacturing unit, as time is running out on the project.

Meeting with the Project Manager to discuss the packaging of the CD

Jane meets Greg the next morning at the company where she works, which has a CD printing and packaging facility on the same site. Greg knows there isn’t much time left for the project, so he gets to work, discussing CD printing options with Jane. She has had small batch CDs produced before by another local supplier that specializes in very small runs, so she has some experience with available CD printing methods. She quickly decides on a 3-color silkscreen for the CDs with the company logo on a colored background with the silver surface of the disc peeking out in some areas to create a striking effect for the disc.

CD packaging options

Jane has previously only been supplied with CDs in plastic jewel cases, but this time she needs something much more substantial and impressive to catch the eye of potential customers.

The options discussed are the following:

Paper or plastic wallets – These provide only rudimentary protection for the printed and recorded surfaces of CDs and are the cheapest packaging option available. It is possible to place a printed insert in the plastic wallet if required, but again, it could only be used to hold the minimum of information required.

Clamshell and Trigger Cases – These cases are made from a durable and flexible polypropylene material that offers good protection for discs and can be made in various translucent colours. They’re flashy and fancy, but they don’t offer an ideal way to store printed information.

jewelers – They are made of a rigid polycarbonate material and are usually transparent. They are the type of case used for mass-produced music albums and most will be familiar with these after having purchased a music album in a retail setting. Jewel cases hold the CD in a tray that has a center peg to secure the disc in place. This tray can be either black or clear depending on whether the printed rear tray card is printed on both sides. The rigid material used to make CD cases can be prone to cracking or breaking under pressure, but they do have a provision for a front booklet to contain information about the disc’s contents or as a backing for the contents. A well-designed front booklet and rear tray can produce an impressive final product. Jewelery cases are also available in a slim format that is approximately half the width of a standard jewelery case, and in a double or multi-disc format that can accommodate 2-6 disks if required.

DVD-style cases – These boxes are made from a polypropylene material that is more malleable and less rigid than the polycarbonate material used to make previous jewelry boxes. They are usually widely available in a black or transparent material, but can also be had in a range of bright, bold colors if required, although the cost tends to be higher. A DVD style case is the type of case you would normally expect to find a DVD movie in, in a retail setting, but they are just as capable of holding a CD with the advantage of being able to hold a large information booklet and printed wrapper. which slides into a clear plastic cover glued to the outside of the box. These cases come in a slimline format if required and also in a multi-disc format capable of holding 2-10 discs.

Jakeboxes and presentation tins – These are the types of premium packaging offered. Jakeboxes are made of cardboard that can be gloss or matt laminated. They have a clever mechanism that presents the disc to the user when the package is opened, much like the “pop-up” mechanisms found in some children’s books. Presentation tins can be made as needed with a custom design or standard round tins can be sourced and printed with spot colours.

CD packaging design

Jane decides to go for the DVD-style case after realizing that she needs her CD packaging to hold an informational booklet on how to use the CD, which also contains more information about the company.

The bleed zone and brochure design

Greg provides you with templates to design your brochure and wrapper that show an allowance for ink “bleed” and page positions. The “bleed” area is usually 3mm around the outside of the printed sheet and the printer will ask that any background images used on the sheet extend into the “bleed” area so there are no small white edges visible if the clipping is slightly incorrect. It only takes a fraction of a millimeter discrepancy to produce a small white border if the image does not extend to the “bleed” area.

Page positions are marked on each template. Jane needs a 16 page booklet and these must be printed a certain way to allow the book to be assembled. For example, the book cover has the front image on the right side with the back image on the left side. Inside the cover, page 1 is printed on the left side and page 15 is printed on the right side. It is important to pay attention to how the book should be printed for a correct assembly in order to save time with the correction of possible errors.

Use of photographic images

Greg talks about the photographic images that Jane wants to use in the booklet and on the DVD-style packaging, since some of them are quite dark. Dark photos can be difficult to print digitally, as they can come out darker than they appear on a PC screen, which can spoil the required effect. Test prints are essential so that you can determine how an image will look when professionally printed and exposure adjustments can be made to the photo if lightening or colors need to be enhanced.

Work in CMYK mode for printing

Another important consideration that Greg discusses with Jane is the print format required to follow their process. Many illustration software packages allow the user to work in either RGB or CMYK modes. RGB mode is generally used when the image is intended for a website or screen display. CMYK mode is the mode required for printing. Users should be aware that sometimes colors can look quite different when viewed in RGB mode and then changed to CMYK mode. Block colors can be given a Pantone reference code, which is a color standard used by printers that allows clients and the printer to be sure of an accurate end result, especially when using a company logo name and a specific color is part of that logo. .

The conclusion and summary of the project

Once Jane has her artwork in order, the CDs and paper parts are printed, then the CDs are duplicated, and the CD packaging assembly takes place. The process takes 4 business days, so she has her request 2 days in advance of the request. The project has gone well for Jane and the following points should be followed to allow similar projects to work just as well:

Research your vendors online or by word of mouth: Find a vendor with a reputation for good customer service and prompt communication. The lowest price should not always be the primary consideration. A cheap, poor quality product delivered late is unnecessarily stressful.

allow plenty of time – Discuss any time issues first with your vendor, so they can check if they can deliver your work on time. Jane’s run of 500 CDs in DVD-style jewel cases with printed booklets took 4 business days from receipt of master CD and artwork approval, and this is typical in the industry. Any mistake or delay in a short notice order can be catastrophic and, again, very stressful for both parties.

CD packaging design – Please discuss this with your supplier so that you are clear in which format the artwork is required. A good supplier will work with you to ensure that the design is correct and that the final product is of a high quality. Most vendors will have a design team that can produce the design for you if required. Please review any text in the artwork and make sure there is no potential copyright infringement with the images used.

CD packaging selection – Consider exactly what your requirements are for the packaging and, if possible, create a mockup to ensure the final product fits your purpose.