While printing a document, deciding whether to use the collated or uncollated method is important.
This depends on how you intend to use the printed copies.
Before you decide, you must understand what collated means in printing.
So, here is a complete guide on collated and uncollated printing types. Have a look!
Also read: What Is A Printer Fuser? – Complete Guide
What Does Collated Printing Mean?
Collate means to collect, assemble or arrange in a specific sequence.
In printing, collating refers to arranging several printing sheets for creating a set.
Collated printing prints the pages in the correct reading order, so there is no need if extra work to rearrange the pages of the file after printing.
This collated technology is used to print manuals, magazines, booklets, catalogs, etc.
Collate printing is widely used for printing color copies as these can be collated without binding them together.
Are All Bound Printing Products Collated?
The answer is No. Not all the bound printing are collated. Notepads come in sets of 25, 50, or 100 paper sheets, but each printing sheet has a similar type of printing on it.
All the pages of the Notepad are bound together with a complex binding, and the sheets can be easily ripped away whenever needed. So, Notepads are not collated.
Collated VS Uncollated Printing
In collated printing, the sheets of paper are arranged in a specific manner to create a set.
Whereas in uncollated printing, multiple copies are printed separately, and the sheets of paper are not arranged in a specific manner.
To print a document having multiple numbers of pages, one must understand whether they should collate them or not.
For printing posters, brochures, business presentations, lectures, flyers, or any single printout, one should choose uncollated printing.
In this printing type, the file pages will be printed separately.
In collated printing, the file contains multiple pages and the text and information are printed in the exact order of the file.
For example, if you want to print 3-page file and want five copies of each, the collated copies will print in the order of 1,2,3,1,2,3.
The uncollated copies of the same file will be printed in the order of – 1,1,1,1,2,2,2,2,3,3,3,3.
What Is The Use Of Collated Printing?
You need to print collated copies to arrange the sheets while printing automatically.
Like in the case of books or booklets, if they were printed in an uncollated manner the printing company would have to arrange the sheets in order before binding.
So, choosing collated and uncollated method depends on the purpose of the print job.
What Is The Use Of Uncollated Printing?
You need uncollated copies of printing for brochures or flyers as each copy is meant to be handed to different people.
Or, while printing business cards, you need to print uncollated as these are to be handed to separate persons.
If you need to print multiple versions of similar forms saved in the same file, you should choose non-collated printing.
So, these copies need to be uncollated or unassembled together.
Manual Collating
There are various circumstances where one needs to collate by hand.
These are:
- Different sizes of sheets: In some printing jobs, there are different sheet sizes. In this case, the sheets should be trimmed separately and then manually collated.
- Mixed Bleed: Some books contained pictures or photo pages. These pages are scattered throughout the book.
This is called Bleed. The rest of the pages contain texts with blank margins.
The bleed trimming is done after printing, and then the photo pages need to be inserted manually after printing.
Frequently Asked Questions [FAQs]
- Should I collate while printing?
If you want to print several copies of a multiple-paged document that is meant to be read in a proper manner, then you should use collated printing.
- What happens when you print collated?
Collate printing means arranging several printing sheets for creating a set.
Collated printing prints the pages in the correct reading order. So, there is no need to rearrange the pages of the file after printing.
- How does collate work?
During collate printing, the printer arranges or assembles the documents in the perfect reading manner to create a complete set.
Final Words
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