Price: 10.00
1. Introduction
The printing industry produces a wide range of items such as newspapers,
catalogues, brochures, books, etc. An important and specialised branch of the
industry is the production of business forms; in Western Europe in 1987 some
1,5 million tonnes of paper were converted to forms (ref. 1).
The advent of computers in the 1950's gave a tremendous boost to the industry
with requirements for continuous stationery, zig-zag folded, for use with
computer output printers. At that time the forms were relatively simple,
involving perhaps one or two colours.
However, more recently, the advent of laser printers has enabled the creation
of forms on the laser printer, .using graphics software packages; this technique
has replaced many applications where pre-printed formswere previously used,
although it is limited to monochrome at present.
In parallel with this development, there has been a rapid increase in the use
of forms for direct mail applications; of these forms have four colours
per side and are printed on high-quality coated paper stock.
Between these two extremes, there is a trend for companies to improve their
image through better design and the use of colour on their forms. These forms
can carry advertising slogans or information about the services offered by the
company (ref. I).
