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Rathgeber extends the service for you:
 
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+49 89 613007 99
info@rathgeber.eu

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions about RATHGEBER

One very simple reason would be our experience gleaned from over 15,000 orders per year. With us, you get a supplier that has a unique and broad portfolio of products. We supply everything from a single source and make everything ourselves. So you can look forward to a considerable reduction in costs and effort in terms of supplier support.

As well as our expert consultation at your premises, why not also benefit from new, well thought-out ideas, constantly updated product variations and ongoing product development? Take us at our word and place a trial order with us today. We know you'll be impressed.

Have you received our information brochure or samples, and would like to place an order?
You now have two choices:

Either request a no-obligation, free quote from one of our expert field sales partners, who will help you match the product to your application's needs. Or simply give us a call! Through a one-to-one conversation with you, we'll be happy to assist you further and get you to your goal.
Tel.: +49 89 613007 0

Have your needs already been met, but you'd still like to save money on your next order?

We'll help you optimise your product and would be pleased to issue a no-obligation quotation. Send us your product specification, ideally along with an original sample.

The most efficient savings are usually made through a new approach. Sometimes, a cheap adhesive or a different type of material are all it takes. Profit from our team's considerable experience.

We will send your design template in around 2 to 3 working days. We then manufacture your order on a customer-specific basis, so a standardised original sample is not available in advance. We would, however, be pleased to produce a sample series for you in advance at a favourable price.

Your personal contact in Oberhaching would be pleased to assist you at any time. Their contact details (tel., fax, e-mail) are listed at the top of the letterhead or in the RATHGEBER e-mail signature.

For first production, we need between 10 and 25 working days (depending on whether tools are needed or not) after you have approved the draft.

You will find the exact timing in your order confirmation. For follow-on orders, the lead time is usually between 8 and 15 days.

RATHGEBER dispatches deliveries from its factory via DHL. Larger shipments are sent via haulage companies. Changes to this are of course possible on request.

We do not have a standard express service, since our customers' wishes are too individual and diverse for this. However, we've often made the impossible possible in the past. Feasible lead times depend on the type of product and of course our production facilities' availability.

Apple: Freehand, Illustrator (current or earlier versions) and PDF.                                                Please note: Fonts must be converted into character paths. If this is not possible, please save the original fonts too.

PC: CorelDraw (current or earlier versions) and PDF.                                                                 
EPS                                                                                                                                        
Please note: Please remember to convert the fonts into curves. For graphics, use only vector data - no bitmap images.

For digital printing:                                                                                                                  CMYK files, resolution: min. 300 dpi and min. 1 mm bleed for images with margins.

If you have DXF data available for technical drawings, please send this to us as well.

If your data can be processed without problems, we can reduce the ancillary costs by up to 30%.

Once an order is placed, we transform your concepts, ideas or files into printable graphics that can actually be produced.

Files provided by customers often have to be reworked. To help us do this, we use the latest IT and software and our many years of expertise. After around 2 to 3 working days, we'll send you a draft template.

Once you give us the go-ahead to start production, we create a proof (digital printing) or a screen printing film for each colour (often in large formats with many "utilisizes"). We list the cost of this separately in the quote or in the order confirmation. This are not hidden away in the unit price. You thereby save on recurring costs that would otherwise be incurred with each further order.

We can archive the file and all of the printed films for you and guarantee their safekeeping for ten years. So within this period, you can re-order your product without incurring any further ancillary costs.

SIGNATURE is the exclusive web magazine of the RATHGEBER Group. It offers quarterly personal and high-quality reports from the world of RATHGEBER with excellent attention to detail.

RATHGEBER is the first climate-neutral company in the industry. "Climate-neutral" is the term used to refer to companies, processes or products whose greenhouse gas emissions have been calculated and offset through the purchase of emissions certificates. In other words, the CO2 equilibrium of the atmosphere has not been changed.

With every purchase from the RATHGEBER Group you are supporting a climate protection project like this. You can request a certificate detailing the volume of CO2 that has been offset for your order.

You can learn more about our climate protection activities and the various CO2 compensation projects here.

Printing data requirements

Digital printing

  • 300 dpi for colour and greyscale images
  • 600 dpi for line art
  • Images from the internet are usually unsuitable because their resolution is often just 72 dpi.

Line thicknesses

  • Positive lines (dark line on light background) require a minimum thickness of 0.15 mm.
  • Negative lines (light line on dark background) require a minimum thickness of 0.2 mm.
  • Font sizes below 5 point should be avoided.

Recommended file formats (PC/Mac)

  • Ai
  • PDF
  • EPS

Image files:

Image formats (e.g. .tiff, .jpg) are generally unsuitable for screen printing, but can be used for digital printing under certain conditions. A correspondingly high resolution is necessary and embedded images must be available. Please clarify this in advance with your contact partner.

Data from Microsoft Office applications:

This software is unsuitable for creating high-quality printing data. Nevertheless, you are welcome to provide us with such data. This data requires additional preparation, so additional costs for layout and data preparation will be incurred.

Other file formats:

If you have DXF data available for technical drawings, please send this to us as well.

In the following, we will explain the difference between vector and pixel graphics.

  • Vector data (screen printing)

Vector graphics consist of individual lines, curves, circles and rectangles. The appearance of all these elements can be changed (including colour, shape, line thickness and contour). They are primarily used for logos, illustrations, technical drawings and lettering.

The advantage of vectors is that they are infinitely scalable without losing quality.The disadvantage, on the other hand, is that they cannot depict colour gradients or photo-realistic details.

  • Pixel graphics/image files (digital printing)

Pixel graphics consist of individual pixels arranged in the form of a grid. Pixel graphics include, for example, images, colour gradients and more complex graphics.

The advantage of these is that they allow a detailed, more photo-realistic representation. However, when enlarged, the quality of pixel graphics is considerably reduced and the image becomes pixelated.

Bleed margin for bleed images

Due to production trimming discrepancies, a 1 mm bleed margin must be extended around the ordered format. This area is subsequently discarded when the order is further processed.

Safety margins

Important elements such as text, graphics and logos that are not to be cut off must have an appropriate safety margin to the edge:

  • Important content: 1 mm to the edge
  • Outer margins must have a thickness of at least 1 mm
  • Screen printing

Screen printing is a printing technique in which the ink is pressed through a fine-meshed fabric (screen) onto the print substrate using a rubber squeegee. A stencil – which matches the image motive – is used to make certain areas of the screen impervious to printing ink so the ink is blocked from passing through the screen.  Vector data is the most suitable for screen printing.

  • Digital printing

Digital printing describes a group of printing processes in which the image is transferred directly from a computer to a printing press without requiring a static printing form (e.g. a screen). Both vector and pixel graphics are suitable for digital printing.

In general, the resulting colours may vary depending on the substrate. Please ask your contact partner for advice on this.

Digital printing

  • Colour space: CMYK

If your data files have been created in RGB, they will be automatically converted to CMYK. Special colours such as HKS or Pantone are also converted to CMYK..

Please note that converted colours can never correspond 100% to the original colour shade, because their colour gamut is outside the range of four-colour printing.

Screen printing

Please save the exact colour specifications with your data or inform your contact partner.

  • Special colours: HKS/PANTONE/RAL

Special colours can be used to represent colours that lie outside the colour gamut of conventional four-colour printing (CMYK). Colour swatches are used to define the colours. These allow colours to be shared worldwide on the basis of unique numbering – independently of colour profiles and individual colour perceptions.

Fonts must be converted into paths. If this is not possible, please also send us the font used.