C - Printing Terminology and Facts

C SIZES

Standard sizes for envelopes specifically designed to take items which are based on the A sizes, for example an A4 letterhead (297 x 210mm) fits a C4 envelope (324 x 229mm)

CMYK

Letters which stand for Cyan (C), Magenta (M), Yellow (Y) and Black (K) when producing full colour printing (four colour process).  (K is used for black to avoid confusion with Cyan which is the commonly used printing term for blue).

COATED PAPER

Paper which has received a coating to give it a smooth finish – either gloss or matt.  A generic classification to differentiate from uncoated papers.

COATER

A dedicated unit on printed presses used for applying varnishes and coatings to sheets.

COMB-BINDING

Method of binding loose leaves with a pre-formed plastic strip that is curled through rectangular holes punched on the binding edge of the leaves.