CD Replication Services
A Description of the Replication Process
The main differences between Duplication and Replication
Pricing - Online Calculator
A Description of the Replication Process
Send your CD master disc to us (please make a copy first), along with your artwork (templates are available here). Your artwork will then be checked for fit, prior to submitting to the replication plant. You will then be sent a PDF proof before production is started. Typically production will take 10 working days to complete, but please do contact us to discuss any deadlines you have for your project.
CD Replication Production Stages
CD Mastering
- Premastering - Once your master is received at the factory, it is analysed and checked. On confirmation that the format is correct, the disc is sent for mastering.
- Glass Mastering - This is an automatic process which consists; cleaning of the glass with a de-ionised water; preparation of the substratum with a light sensitive element to provide photo-resistence.
- Centrifuging of the glass
- Heating of the glass - to harden the photo-sensitive layer.
- Recording - A Blue Solid Status Laser (BSSL) transfers the information to the photo-sensitive layer.
- Developing - The information that has been burnt to the photo-sensitive layer is then developed with a basic chemical based solution.
- Metalising the Glass Layer - creating the final glass master.
Electroplating Process
The glass master is placed in a electrolytic solution, made up mainly of Nickel Sulfamate. With the glass master acting as a cathode and the solid nickel as the anode, a layer of nickel is deposited on to the glass master. At a pre-defined thickness the nickel layer is lifted from the glass master, this will become the final "stamper" once cleaning and other preperations are completed.
Quality Controls
The finished stamper is subjected to a number of quality controls including; checking the thickness, the degree of roughness, and finally electronic control of all the parameters as set out by Philips and Sony in the book standards for compact discs.
The Printing Process
Two printing methods are available for CD and DVD Replication - Silkscreen and Offset.
Silkscreen printing is a four colour process (CMYK) where a photo-sensitive emulsion is applied to a special screen, a photo litho with the image to printed is placed on the screen and then exposed to UV light. It is then washed to remove the photo exposed areas and then dried ready for production. Four screens will make up the printing process for a conventional CMYK production run.
Pressing
The CD manufacturing process is known as pressing. The full process is as follows:
The stamper, obtained during the electroplating process, is placed in a press mold.
Polycarbonate is injected at a high temperature and pressure on to the stamper to reproduce the information included in the stamper creating a transparent CD.An Aluminium layer is then placed on the top of the poly carbonate. This creates a reflective surface to allow the laser in a computer disc reader to see the CD data.
To protect the Aluminium layer, a fine layer of varnish is coated and dried by ultra-violet light.
The disc is analysed by a scanner to detect any imperfection, a robot arm discarding the faulty ones.
Printing
The pressed discs are then printed by either Silk-screen or Offset.
Packaging
The finished discs are then packed to the customers desired packaging, depending on the type of packaging, this can be a manual or automated process. Typical types of packaging include:
CD Jewel Case
Digipak
DVD Case
C-Shells
Printed Card sleeves.
The main difference between Duplication and Replication?
Duplication is an in house CD copy service, via our automated duplication equipment we transfer or copy bit for bit the exact data on your CD master to a pre manufactured recordable CD-R disc, your artwork is then printed directly to the disc surface on our digital disc printers.
Media Matters Technology can easily print up to around 2000 discs in house in a fairly short space of time, and 500 discs is easily acheiveable for overnight production. But with any CD or DVD production over a 1000 discs, replication is the more cost effective (but slower) option, with a production turnaround of typically 10 working days.
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