The fifth colour is an extra toner station on top of the four standard colours (CMYK), printing with them in the same pass. With it you can print white on black paper, gold on an invitation card, or gloss on one part of a design.
The question every print shop owner asks: is that work really out there, for me to pay for it? The answer depends on your market, and this article helps you work it out.
What exactly does the fifth colour do?
| Colour | What it is used for | Model |
|---|---|---|
| White | Printing on coloured, black, kraft and clear stock, and as a base under colours so they show on dark paper | C7100X and C7200X |
| Clear | Spot gloss on a logo, a picture or a headline | C7100X and C7200X |
| Neon | Fluorescent colours for posters and stickers | C7100X; on the C7200X in two colours, yellow and pink |
| Gold and silver | Premium invitations, cards and covers | C7200X |
| Invisible red | Shows under ultraviolet light: tickets, coupons and print security | C7200X |
Who buys this work?
- Events: wedding and engagement invitations, thank-you cards, menus.
- Gifts and packaging: light boxes, tags, product stickers on kraft or clear stock.
- Advertising agencies: work for clients who want something eye-catching that does not look like the competitor’s.
- Restaurants and cafés: menus on dark paper in white.
- Venues and organisers: tickets and invitations with a hidden mark.
If you have customers of this kind now and you are turning them away, or sending their work to another print shop, then the demand exists and you are losing it.
Why is the margin higher?
For two reasons. First, not every print shop has a five-colour machine, so there is less competition. Second, the customer compares the price of a gold card with the price of foil stamping, not with the price of a plain card. And digital does it without dies and from the first copy, so you can accept the small quantities that stamping cannot cover the cost of.
The cost you have to count
The fifth colour is not free to run, and many people forget this:
- Fifth-colour toner is costed separately on top of CMYK, by its area in the design. Ricoh rates the white cartridge at about 17,500 A4 pages and the clear at about 27,000, at 15% coverage of that colour. If you print a full white base under the design, consumption is many times that.
- It has its own developer, replaced like the other colours.
- The design has to be prepared for it: the fifth colour goes into the file as a separate spot layer. If your designer does not know how to prepare it, you will need training.
So price fifth-colour work on its actual consumption, not at the four-colour price.
When is it not worth it?
- All your work is catalogues, brochures and flyers for companies. That customer is looking for price and delivery date.
- You have no designer who can prepare fifth-colour files, and do not plan to train one.
- You do not plan to market this work. The machine will not bring customers by itself; you have to show samples and show people.
In those cases a four-colour machine such as the C7100S or the C9100 will serve you better.
If you decide yes: C7100X or C7200X?
If what you need is white, clear and neon, the C7100X is enough. If you want gold and silver or a long banner, the C7200X. The full comparison is in C7100X or C7200X.
Before you decide
The best test is to take a real job from one of your customers and come and print it in white or gold on the paper they want. Show them the result and ask what they would pay for it. Then you will know whether the market is there before you buy.
