<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rotary printing press</span>

Rotary printing press

<p>A <b>rotary printing press</b> is a <a href="/en/Printing_press" title="Printing press" class="wl">printing press</a> in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on various substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuous roll through the press to be printed and further modified if required (e.g. die cut, overprint varnished, embossed). Printing presses that use continuous rolls are sometimes referred to as "web presses".</p>

<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt1">Printing method</div>
<figure class="wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Hoe's_six-cylinder_press.png" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Hoe's_six-cylinder_press.png"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png/300px-Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="2235" data-file-height="1318" data-file-type="bitmap" height="177" width="300" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png/450px-Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/03/Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png/600px-Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png 2x" alt="Hoe%27s_six-cylinder_press.png"></a><figcaption>Hoe's six-cylinder rotary press from the 1860s. The printing plates are located on the large cylinder in the middle.</figcaption></figure>
<figure class="mw-halign-right wiki-thumb"><a href="/en/File:Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press,_1905_drawing.png" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press,_1905_drawing.png"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png/300px-Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png" decoding="async" data-file-width="994" data-file-height="595" data-file-type="bitmap" height="180" width="300" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png/450px-Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png/600px-Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png 2x" alt="Goss_quadruple_straightline_printing_press%2C_1905_drawing.png"></a><figcaption>Goss quadruple straightline printing press, 1905</figcaption></figure>
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.sidebar{width:100%!important;clear:both;float:none!important;margin-left:0!important;margin-right:0!important}}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><table class="sidebar sidebar-collapse nomobile nowraplinks"><tbody><tr><td class="sidebar-pretitle">Part of a series on the</td></tr><tr><th class="sidebar-title-with-pretitle"><a href="/en/History_of_printing" title="History of printing" class="wl">History of printing</a></th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-image"><span class="mw-default-size"><a href="/en/File:Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg/220px-Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="1263" data-file-height="955" data-file-type="bitmap" height="166" width="220" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg/330px-Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/42/Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg/440px-Chodowiecki_Basedow_Tafel_21_c_Z.jpg 2x" 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<div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title">Techniques</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content"><table class="infobox" style="background-color: transparent; border-collapse:collapse; border-spacing:0px; border:none; width:100%; margin:0px; font-size:100%; clear:none; float:none"><tbody><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Woodblock_printing" title="Woodblock printing" class="wl">Woodblock printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">200</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Movable_type" title="Movable type" class="wl">Movable type</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1040</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Intaglio_(printmaking)" title="Intaglio (printmaking)" class="wl">Intaglio (printmaking)</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1430</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Printing_press" title="Printing press" class="wl">Printing press</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;"><abbr>c.</abbr><span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span> </span>1440</span></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Etching" title="Etching" class="wl">Etching</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;"><span>c.</span><span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span> </span>1515</span></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Mezzotint" title="Mezzotint" class="wl">Mezzotint</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1642</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Relief_printing" title="Relief printing" class="wl">Relief printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1690</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Aquatint" title="Aquatint" class="wl">Aquatint</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1772</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Lithography" title="Lithography" class="wl">Lithography</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1796</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Chromolithography" title="Chromolithography" class="wl">Chromolithography</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1837</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Rotary_printing_press" title="Rotary printing press" class="wl">Rotary press</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1843</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Hectograph" title="Hectograph" class="wl">Hectograph</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1860</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Offset_printing" title="Offset printing" class="wl">Offset printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1875</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Hot_metal_typesetting" title="Hot metal typesetting" class="wl">Hot metal typesetting</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1884</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Mimeograph" title="Mimeograph" class="wl">Mimeograph</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1885</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Daisy_wheel_printing" title="Daisy wheel printing" class="wl">Daisy wheel printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1889</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Photostat_machine" title="Photostat machine" class="wl">Photostat and rectigraph</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1907</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Screen_printing" title="Screen printing" class="wl">Screen printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1911</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Spirit_duplicator" title="Spirit duplicator" class="wl">Spirit duplicator</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1923</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Dot_matrix_printing" title="Dot matrix printing" class="wl">Dot matrix printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1925</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Xerography" title="Xerography" class="wl">Xerography</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1938</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Spark_printing" title="Spark printing" class="wl">Spark printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1940</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Phototypesetting" title="Phototypesetting" class="wl">Phototypesetting</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1949</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Inkjet_printing" title="Inkjet printing" class="wl">Inkjet printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1950</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Dye-sublimation_printing" title="Dye-sublimation printing" class="wl">Dye-sublimation</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1957</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Laser_printing" title="Laser printing" class="wl">Laser printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1969</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Thermal_printing" title="Thermal printing" class="wl">Thermal printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;"><span>c.</span><span style="white-space:nowrap;"><span> </span>1972</span></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Solid_ink" title="Solid ink" class="wl">Solid ink printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1972</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Thermal-transfer_printing" title="Thermal-transfer printing" class="wl">Thermal-transfer printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1981</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/3D_printing" title="3D printing" class="wl">3D printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1986</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label" style="font-weight:normal;padding-right:01:"><a href="/en/Digital_printing" title="Digital printing" class="wl">Digital printing</a></th><td class="infobox-data" style="text-align:right;white-space:nowrap;">1991</td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></td>
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A rotary printing press is a printing press in which the images to be printed are curved around a cylinder. Printing can be done on various substrates, including paper, cardboard, and plastic. Substrates can be sheet feed or unwound on a continuous roll through the press to be printed and further modified if required . Printing presses that use continuous rolls are sometimes referred to as "web presses". 