UNIT 2 RAW MATERIALS FOR PRINTING
3.2 Paper
As discussed in an earlier unit, paper is now produced from wood, although it was initially developed from a plant that grew along the banks of River Nile in Egypt. Paper is vital to printing, and it comes in different shapes, sizes and colours. For our present purpose, we shall look at two different types of paper used in printing. We shall discuss them under two broad headings, namely the Briefly Calendered paper and the Super Calendered paper.
3.2.1 Briefly Calendered Paper
This refers to newsprint, the type of paper that is used in the production of most newspapers. It is one of the two paper products that do not pass through what is called ‘stock preparation’. The other paper product that does not pass through stock preparation is tissue paper. Take a piece of newsprint in your right hand, and a piece of tissue paper in your left, hand. Use your right thumb and your left thumb, as the case may be, to check the texture of the two types of paper in your hands, and you would realise how close they are, texture-wise. Thereafter, hold a piece of ‘normal’ printing paper in your hand and try to feel its texture. You would realise that in terms of texture or refinement, both newsprint and tissue paper are behind other types of paper. This is because both newsprint and tissue paper are only briefly calendered.
Newsprint is less glossy than other types of paper. Most other types of paper, during production, pass though a set of rollers called the
“calender stack”, to adjust their surface finish. Newsprint is only briefly calendered, making it cheaper and less refined than other types of paper.
Its surface is less fine and more absorbent than the surface of other types of paper.
Newsprint usually comes in large reels and is usually one of the main items on which media houses expend money. To a very large extent, Nigeria has failed to establish itself as a producer of newsprint, in spite of the large forests that we have. Under the regime of General Muhammed Buhari and Tunde Idiagbon (1984 – August 1985) there was a policy to reduce the importation of newsprint and concentrate on the local one that was produced at Jebba, Oku Iboku and Iwopin. The policy led to shortage in the supply of newsprint, and many media houses complained bitterly about it because they argued that the policy was meant to punish them since the locally produced one was not enough for all the users in terms of both quantity and quality.
Still under the military, one of the ways in which government fought some media houses was to confiscate their stock of newsprint, making it
difficult or impossible for those media houses to print their publications as and when due. But this was an unlawful, dictatorial practice, and many media houses cried out against it.
Printing is not possible without paper because most of the functional printing in mass communication is done on it.
3.2.2 Super Calendered Paper
This is a glossy form of newsprint. It goes through the calender stacks several times more than the newsprint and comes out more refined and with less absorbent surface. It is more expensive than the conventional newsprint, and most times, newspapers and magazines use them only for coloured pages such as those used for advertisements, advertorials, special projects, etc. It must be quickly added that some types of paper used for printing magazines are not in the category of super-calendered paper. They are chemically polished types of paper which are usually more refined and more expensive than the super-calendered type of paper.
On a general note, there have been calls by environmentalists that more of the paper used in printing should be recycled to reduce the impact of paper production on the environment. The production of paper involves the felling of trees, and it is believed that the rate of tree feeling is faster than that of tree planting. It has also been suggested that all nations should embark on afforestation programmes to ensure sustainable environmental development. In Nigeria, it is apparent that there is still much to be done in the area of tree planting, environment development and recycling of paper. All these need to be done to preserve the environment and ensure steady supply of paper in future generations.
Unless this is done early, there is no guarantee that future generations of Nigerians will continue to have access to the quality and quantity of low cost paper that we have today. And if the supply of paper is not guaranteed, it means that printing is threatened.
Printing is mostly associated with educational development. As any nation develops educationally, its need for printing increases. Similarly, large volumes of printed matter are usually identified with educationally progressive societies. This means that printing both facilitates educational development and is also an index of it. One of the ways in which any society can enjoy this two-way benefit is to ensure steady and uninterrupted supply of paper which we have identified as an important raw material for printing.
3.3 Ink
Ink is the second essential ingredient in printing. The kind of ink used in printing is not the water-based type used in pens and biros, but the vegetable oil-based type. It comes in cans, and when the cans are opened the ink is usually semi-solid.
The type of ink used in printing is made up of the pigment (which produces the finished work), the vehicle solvent (which spreads the pigment about and into the desired places) and the binder (which dries up the ink).
It is believed in some quarters that in future, there will be greater shift to the use of oil-based inks in the lower end of the print production industry.
Without ink printing cannot take place because, it is only when ink is stamped or impressed on paper that printing can be said to have taken place. As in the case of paper, a major challenge for Nigeria as a nation is to ensure the sustainable production of high quality ink for the print industry. If high quality paper is available at an affordable price and printing ink is not readily available at affordable price, the printing industry is still at a disadvantage. Unfortunately, Nigeria, being largely a consumer society, depends largely on imported ink for the print industry to survive. This trend needs to be reversed so that Nigeria’s printing industry will not depend on the vagaries of importation.
Self Assessment Exercise 2.1
Imagine and discuss at least five things that could happen if Nigeria cannot get enough paper and ink for the printing industry.
4.0 CONCLUSION
Paper and ink, till date, remain the two main ingredients in printing. As a regional power, Nigeria needs to be able to produce these two in abundant quantity and excellent quality so that it will not need to expend scarce foreign exchange on importing them. Nigeria, indeed, has the capacity to produce, both for local consumption and also for export. But the industry needs to be developed and nurtured to attain that height.
5.0 SUMMARY
Both paper and ink are required for printing. Paper comes in two main forms, namely the briefly calendered form (newsprint) and the super- calendered form (polished paper). The third category, which is not
machine glazed but chemically polished, is more expensive and not as commonly used in newspapers and magazines as the newsprint.
For Nigeria, which has one of the most vibrant media systems in Africa to maintain its leadership role, it is advisable to develop the local capacity in paper and ink production. It is also important to build large forests to ensure the steady supply of wood as well as sustainable environmental development.
6.0 TUTOR MARKED ASSIGNMENT (TMA)
Discuss the two main raw materials used in printing and their importance to national development.
7.0 REFERENCES/FURTHER READINGS
Barton, Frank (ed) (1975) The African Newsroom. Zurich: International Press Institute.
Dimkpa, Prince (1997) Media Management in Nigeria. Lagos: Org Communication Consultants.
Okunna, C.S.(1999) Introduction To Mass Communication. Enugu: New Generation Press.
UNIT 3 TYPE COMPOSITION