Before Martha Stewart, there was Ira Rubel

Domestic Diva Martha Stewart may be Nutley, New Jersey’s favorite daughter, but back in 1904, it was native son Ira Rubel and his son that created the big buzz. According to printing lore, it was Ira Rubel
who stumbled upon the concept of offset printing when his child accidentally misfed a press sheet. And,
as Martha might say, it was a “Good Thing.”

Normally, the impression cylinder of a stone lithographic press is wrapped in a rubber sheet (blanket) against which the press sheet is placed. When the press is running, it is the impression cylinder that presses the press sheet against an inked stone causing the image to transfer from the stone to the paper.

Occasionally, while running his press, the paper would misfeed and the inked stone would come into contact with the rubber blanket causing the image to transfer onto the rubber blanket instead of the
press sheet. After this occurred and paper was once again placed between the impression cylinder and the inked stone, Ira noticed that the inked image would transfer both from the stone and from the rubber blanket onto the paper. To Ira’s amazement, he noticed that not only had the sheet been printed on both sides, but the unintentional offsetting of ink from the rubber blanket to the press sheet had actually produced an image superior to that of the stone-to-paper transfer. From this realization, offset printing was born.

Today, while offset printing is still the most popular commercial printing method, increasingly more and more printing is becoming digital. At Printegration, we run both traditional offset presses and digital printing
presses. Whatever your printing needs, Printegration has the right equipment to produce your job. From printing to mailing, data base management to fulfillment, Printegration is your best choice for results-driven communications. How is it possible that one firm can offer such a complete range of marketing services?
As Martha might say, “Piece of Cake”. Contact your Printegration representative today by calling
804-358-3493 to find out how we can help you create a buzz for your organization.