Die!

Yesterday, our friend Dave Stock from Baltimore Color Plate came by to show us the die that is being used to create the die cut in the South River brochure. I have to admit, I had never seen an actual die before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. For some reason I pictured a machine with numerous robotic razorblades pertruding. My mind was blown…

What he showed us was a piece of laser-cut plywood with a precisely cut and formed piece of steel imbedded in it, all surrounded by a bunch of rubber pieces. This contraption is put into the die cut machine and with an enormous amount of pressure applied to it against the paper stock, makes an extremely precise cut. I’m way over-simplifying the process and butchering the description of the actual die, so here’s a picture:

It was not at all what I was expecting. I can’t wait to see how the South River brochures turn out. We’re all thinking they are award caliber, and I can’t wait to show everyone. Another week or so….

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 9th, 2008 at 5:55 am. It is filed under Blog Posts and tagged with Behind the OE Curtain. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.