Here is a list of the most frequently asked questions and important things to know. If you have any further questions or have a question you cannot find below, please send us an email to support@ilx.txw.mybluehost.me or give us a call and we will be happy to assist you. For information about document sizes and specifications, bleeds, and files we accept visit our Templates page.
FAQs
If I have multiple orders, how do I submit the jobs?
It all depends on what the orders are. For example, if you have 3 orders with the same exact job specs (quantity, 4/_, paper, etc) then what you would do is put them all into one folder, compress that folder, and attach the compressed file into our website. When placing the order in this case, you would put the quantity x 3. If job specs are different, then you would have to place an order for each one individually.
What do I do if I need an order faster than what is on the website?
Whenever an order is needed at a faster turnaround time, give us a call and we will gladly give you a quote on what’s needed.
If I need to cancel an order, is this possible?
BPM Printers will TRY to cancel an order for you, if possible. Due to our fast turnaround times, most of the time orders cannot be canceled or in some cases may only be cancelled for a fee. We will make a great effort to cancel an order but remember once an order is placed it is sent directly to product queue and is basically final.
What are all the turnaround times for orders?
BPM Printers provides many different services: , Same Day Service, Next Working Day, 2-3 Working days, 3-5 Working Days and 5-7 Working days as well as 7-10 days for custom orders.
What are the payment terms?
All orders must be payed in full prior to printing and before they are ready for shipment.
Is my information secure?
YES. Your information is secure with BPM Printers. We have top of the line software integrations for protecting our customers information.
Will I always receive the exact amount and the exact size of what I order?
With BPM Printers most of the time you will receive more than what you ordered, however, we cannot promise exact amounts. Industry standards allow a 10% over/under for final counts. As far as the final size, the typical industry standards due to INEVITABLE tolerances in paper mills, on printing presses, and on cutters, etc, the final size of your may vary slightly. For example, if you submit a 4 x 6 the final size can really be as small as 3 7/8 x 5 7/8 (3.875 x 5.875) or as large as 4 1/8 x 6 1/8 (4.125 x 6.125). Typically, a 1/8th of an inch over/under. This is a printing industry standard and completely normal.
How many printing presses do you own? What are they?
BPM Printers currently owns 4 Printing presses. They are 1 Shinohara LED UV 75 Press 23″ x 29″, 2 Presstek 52DI presses 14″ x 20″ and a Ricoh 9110 Digital Press. We print all orders at 300LPI.
Why does the color on my monitor look different than what I received?
This is one of the most commonly asked questions in the printing industry. The answer is very simple. First of all, there are millions of different types of monitors and monitor settings. Some are very bright, some are dark, some are average quality, some are great quality, etc. Also monitors use RGB, Red, Green, Blue, to show colors. Taking this into consideration, the most important thing now is the fact that a monitor has the ability to create a more vivid and intense color than actually possible. The reflection of the light going into your eye from the monitor, will give you a different color and brightness than the light reflecting the paper then going into you eyes. The monitor creates a light, while as the paper relies on the reflection of the ambient light, which is also different from place to place, to reflect an image into your eyes causing a different appearance.
What is OVERPRINT? How does it effect my design when printed?
Leaving any particular object or text in overprint in which the color is not black, will dramatically effect the outcome of the printed artwork. What OVERPRINT tells the press to do (when enabled) is to print every color then print the desired on top. For example, when you have a solid red background of cyan 0%, magenta 100%, yellow 100%, and black 0%, and you wish to apply BLACK text on top, what will happen is the press will print the solid background then print the BLACK text on top. If you do the same but with GREEN text, the color will now change. See below.
What type of ink does BPM Printers print with?
BPM Printers prints with Real Offset ink, LED Offset ink, as well as, state-of-the-art PxP-EQ Toner Technology.
If I provide a color proof, will you match it on press?
No. We do not match any proofs on press. We print directly from your digital file.
At what resolution should I submit my files?
Files should be submitted at least at 300 DPI. Submitting a file less than 300 DPI might cause it to look bad. On the other hand, when submitting a file at a higher resolution than 300 DPI it generally will make the file much larger in size but it will not make it look any better.
Why does the text look pixelated?
When the text is pixelated it means the file is a bitmap file (TIFF, JPEG, PhotoShop File, etc.) In order for the text NOT to be pixelated it needs to be vector artwork (Illustrator, Quark, Corel, etc.) Sometimes bitmap files don’t look as pixelated as previous times or look more pixelated than previous times. This is due to color contrasts used to create the artwork and also file resolution might be a factor.
When I design with a border, is the border going to always be even all around?
When designing with a border, the more space you leave around the card, the better the card will look. If you leave very little room, any minor factor will cause the card to be slightly uneven either to bottom or left to right. This is completely normal in the printing industry. There are many reasons why this occurs. First of all, whenever you buy paper it comes cut to a size many times by a guillotine. If it is guillotine cut, there is a very good chance that the paper will be slightly smaller or uneven in some parts. After this, the paper is fed into printing machine. There is some tolerance also in the press. The next step is UV coating (if applicable). After, it gets either slit or again guillotine cut to get to the final size. Any minor movements thru out these processes may make a difference even as large as 1/16th of an inch in any type of printed piece. Ultimately, it is not recommended to design with borders, but if its necessary, we will make a great effort to try to keep the job as good as possible but always remember there is some inevitable tolerance that must be taken into consideration.
What is a Gang Run? Does BPM Printers do Gang Runs?
A gang run is basically a sheet with multiple orders of multiple clients being placed on it to divide the total cost of production among many different clients to offer very competitive pricing to our customers. The only down side is colors may vary from one time ordered to another because we cannot focus on any particular piece of art but instead we must focus on the entire sheet. Colors generally don’t vary more than about 3%-10%. BPM Printers does use this method of printing to offer competitive pricing. For example, on a 23″ x 29″ sheet we can produce up to 88 business card orders. On a run like this, up to 88 different clients will divide the cost making the price of business cards and other items very affordable.
What colors do you use to print? Can I use PMS colors?
BPM Printers ONLY prints in CMYK. No Pantone, PMS, RGB, etc. Very important, when sending colors that are not in CMYK the computer will often try to convert them to CMYK, but most of the time the computer conversion looks nothing like what the designer would physically try to make a CMYK combination out of it.
Why is printing heavy coverage or solids a problem?
Heavy coverage or solids is a pressman’s nightmare. Lots of banding, ghosting, hickeys, etc. With newer, modern printing technology it is less of a problem but nevertheless they are very difficult at times and also the price of the job may be significantly higher. Also, gang run printing makes it even more challenging.
What do I do if the size I want to print is not listed in the website?
When this happens what you should do is either email, chat message, or call. or just select a size that what you want will fit into that particular size. For example, if you want a 5 x 8 choose 8.5 x 5.5 or if you want a 5 x 4 choose a 4 x 6. Usually its not a problem just specify it at the end of order online in the special requests box. If you want to be 100% sure send us an email, chat message, or call.
Is there an extra charge for bleeds?
No. BPM Printers does not charge extra for bleeds. The artwork may or may not have bleed. It is up to you.
What is UV Gloss Coating?
UV Gloss coating is a liquid like a varnish with a lamination-like appearance used to instantly dry and shine printed paper. The liquid is applied with a coating tower on to the paper. After it passes through extremely intense Ultra Violet lights that instantly dry the ink on the paper. With the UV liquid BPM Printers uses, you well get extremely high gloss and shine as a standard for business cards and postcards. UV has many advantages. When UV coating is applied, the printed material will never fade off in someone’s wallet or hand or even the sun.
Can I write or print on UV Coating?
Although some customers have done this, BPM Printers does NOT recommend this at all!!! We do not recommend writing and/or printing on UV coating.
Does BPM Printers Allow Local Pick-up?
Unfortunately not at the moment, BPM Printers operates out of Atlanta, GA, but is completely digital for the present. This is helping us keep cost low. We are planning for locations starting in Atlanta for customer service and pick-ups in the near future.
What freight carrier do you use for shipping?
We currently use UPS/FedEx for shipping.
Can I use my shipping account for my order?
At Present no, we have developers working to integrate both ups and fedex account options for customer accounts; however it may not be available for some time after launch.
Can I use another carrier other than UPS/FedEx?
You can use another company but its not recommended. You must schedule pick ups, fill out paper work, and make all other necessary arrangements. Once again we do not recommend this.
Can I send a courier to pick up my job?
Yes you may. Once again you must do all the scheduling and be sure to give the courier your Job Id# and company name.
