Paper Never Forgets

There has been a lot written about digital archiving and moving records to digital storage. It is a legitimate practice and offers many benefits. However, if you think that the information stored on CDs, DVDs, jump drives or any other type of digital media will last as long as the printed word, think again.

 “Innovation in the computer hardware, storage, and software industries continues at a rapid pace, usually yielding greater storage and processing capacities at lower cost,” writes Margaret Hedstrom, associate professor in the School of Information and Library Studies at the University of Michigan, in her paper Digital Preservation: A Time Bomb for Digital Libraries. “Devices, processes, and software for recording and storing information are being replaced with new products and methods on a regular three- to five-year cycle, driven primarily by market forces.”

While there are 2,000 year old paper documents that are still plainly legible, digital media will simply never last that long. Images and archives stored digitally face two major threats: the deterioration of the media itself and the rapidly changing technology used for retrieval. Got any floppy discs lying around? Have you tried to access them lately?

USA Today ran an article in October decrying the unforeseen losses of recent historical documents that have been stored digitally, including recordings and documents relating to 9/11. Classic films, early television shows, and recordings once thought safe face declining quality and some have already been lost completely.

This wake-up call that is slowly being sounded sharply points out one of the most significant benefits of ink on paper. It lasts. And that’s where printers come into the equation.

Archivability is not really an issue for short-lived documents such as marketing materials. However, if your customers need to print materials that need to be kept for more than a few years, they would be well advised to keep physical, printed backups of everything they have stored digitally.

Legal, financial, government, and architectural concerns are prime examples of the types of businesses that create documents that need to be accessible over the long term. One can easily imagine a scenario in which a blueprint or legal document was needed and the only copy left was a digital image that was stored on obsolete digital media.

The same goes for your person records. Kodak ran a small PR campaign a few years ago urging customers to “Print Your Pictures.” The slogan was inspired by more than enlightened self-interest. Turns out all those neat JPEGs of your vacations, weddings, and graduations may not be around to share with your grandkids.

Every printer knows that in order for a document to last through the ages, it has to be printed on high quality, acid free paper, using good quality ink (not toner). Of course, you are unlikely to be called upon to print something that needs to last for a couple of millennia, but there is plenty of work out there that should be around for reference 50 or 100 years from now.

This very old market may well see a new surge in popularity as people become more cognizant of the transient nature of digital data and the media that stores it. Talk to your customers. Find out what their archival needs are and let them know that you can fulfill all their requirements.

Be sure to remind them that ink on paper never forgets.

SIDEBAR

6 Tips for Maintaining Moisture Equilibrium

You’ve all experienced “the curl,” characterized by wavy paper. Well, be frustrated no more. Here are some simple tips for preventing your digital substrates from curling to ensure optimal performance in your digital press.

1. Proper prepress storage of paper: Keeping paper in the same room as manufacturing is the best way to prevent moisture swings because the paper will become better acclimated to the room’s temperature. Keep paper wrapped and away from outside walls. Long term storage of paper in a non-controlled environment is acceptable, provided that adequate time is available for proper temperature acclimation prior to opening.

2. Acclimate paper prior to opening: Have the paper the same temperature as the air that is around it, before you remove the wrap. For a full pallet, acclimation time should be 10 hours for every 10 degrees. For a carton, 24 hours is adequate. Opening the carton and taking the individual reams out to warm up is okay. If you bring cold skids (say <48°) into a room with 50% relative humidity and a temperature of 72°, moisture from the air will condense and may form water on the wrap. Just like a cold glass of ice tea in the summertime. If the same paper is unwrapped, the moisture will collect and stick the sheets together.

3. Keep your pressroom at optimal climate conditions: Moisture content of a print shop is measured as Relative Humidity (RH). RH is the ratio of the amount of water in the air at a given temperature, expressed as a percent. Wausau Paper recommends the RH be between 45-55% at a room temperature of 72° F. The further away from these standardized conditions, the more “paper problems” will be created.

If the room temperature is 65° F, then the RH should be adjusted to 60% to obtain the same amount of moisture in the air. Likewise with a room temperature of 80° F, the humidity should be adjusted to 40% RH. All of these adjustments will keep the same amount of water in the air and be compatible with the amount of water in the sheet.

4. Keep temperatures constant: Turning up or down the temperature in a room at night or over the weekend is a bad idea. It is often done to save money, but when paper issues arise, the related downtime adds up fast and the cost savings are lost. Watch the outside doors for moisture loss/gain.

5. Acclimate the paper post-press: If a sheet has been excessively dried out, it will become brittle. As a result, the fibers will be crisp and tend to crack and separate. The moisture will come back eventually, even if you do not want it to. When it does, the paper will grow. So let the paper acclimate for a couple of days (at least hours) prior to binding, folding, shrink-wrapping, etc. If paper is to be stored in less than ideal conditions between processes, cover the paper with plastic bags to help control the moisture pick-up/loss.

6. Storage of printed product: Shrink wrap is the best way to lock in the optimized moisture from your print shop. But remember, if the paper is dry or damp when it’s wrapped, it will stay that way. Please help educate your customers on the importance of acclimation.

Kirk Frisinger is a Manager of Print & Color Technical Services for Wausau Paper. With more than 20 years of experience in the print business—including roles in press operation, bindery, letterpress, and job planning, today Kirk serves as a liaison between printers and papermakers, helping to bridge the gap.