RRB JE Printing Technology Syllabus

The RRB JE Printing Technology discipline section tests knowledge of printing technology at the Diploma and Degree level across printing processes, pre-press operations, colour management, substrate science, finishing, and print quality control. It carries 100 questions and 100 marks in CBT 2. Printing Technology posts in Indian Railways relate to the Railway Press and Forms and Stationery departments, which produce official railway forms, tickets, timetables, publications, and security documents.

Quick Facts: JE Printing Technology

Detailed Printing Technology Syllabus

1. Introduction to Printing and Communication

•        History of Printing: Gutenberg press; movable type; industrial printing revolution; digital printing era

•        Printing as Communication: role of print media; types of publications (books, newspapers, magazines, packaging, security documents)

•        Classification of Printing Processes: relief printing; intaglio printing; planographic printing; screen printing; digital printing; comparison of processes (image area and non-image area distinction)

•        Printing Industry in India: structure; major segments; role of government presses (Security Printing Press, Railway Press, Government of India Press)

2. Pre-press Operations and Typesetting

•        Typography: typefaces and fonts; classification (serif, sans-serif, script, decorative); font metrics (em, en, point, pica, leading, kerning, tracking, baseline, x-height, ascender, descender)

•        Desktop Publishing (DTP): software (Adobe InDesign, QuarkXPress, CorelDraw, Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Acrobat); file formats (PDF, EPS, TIFF, JPEG, PNG, PSD, AI, SVG); colour modes (RGB, CMYK, LAB, Grayscale)

•        Image Scanning and Resolution: optical resolution; interpolated resolution; PPI vs DPI; scanning modes; image bit depth; file size calculation

•        Image Manipulation: photo retouching; masking; clipping paths; image correction (levels, curves, colour balance)

•        Imposition: page imposition; work-and-turn; work-and-tumble; sheetwise; signature imposition; imposing software

•        Trapping and Registration: colour trapping; overprint and knockout; registration marks; colour bars; trim marks; bleed and safety margin

•        Digital Proofing: soft proof; contract proof (FOGRA certified); hard copy proof; remote proofing; proof standards

•        Colour Separation: process colour separation (CMYK); under colour removal (UCR) and grey component replacement (GCR); ink limit; total ink coverage; colour gamut mapping

•        Computer-to-Plate (CtP): thermal and photopolymer plates; CtP workflow; plate processors; proofing in CtP workflow

•        Preflighting: checking files for printing errors; missing fonts; low-resolution images; incorrect colour modes; bleed; print specifications

3. Offset Lithographic Printing

•        Principle: planographic process; grease and water repel each other; image and non-image areas on same plane

•        Plates: types (presensitised, wipe-on, photopolymer, thermal CtP); aluminium base; plate processing; positive and negative working plates; plate storage

•        Offset Printing Machine: types (sheet-fed, web-fed, perfecting); main units (feeder, printing unit, delivery); printing unit components (plate cylinder, blanket cylinder, impression cylinder); single-colour to eight-colour presses; UV offset

•        Inks, Water, and Emulsification: ink-water balance; dampening systems (conventional, alcohol, waterless); emulsification; ink transfer chain; lithographic inks (composition, rheology, tack, viscosity); ink drying (oxidation, absorption, evaporation, UV curing)

•        Makeready: plate mounting; blanket selection and mounting; impression setting; register; colour sequence; ink feed setting; dampening adjustment

•        Web Offset Printing: heatset and coldset web offset; reel stand; infeed; printing units; dryer; chill rolls; folder and cutter; web path control; splice and web break

•        Waterless Offset: principle; silicone-coated plates; inks for waterless; advantages and disadvantages

•        Common Offset Printing Defects: hickeys; set-off; mottle; ghosting; ink trapping; misregister; blanket smash; piling; toning; scumming; chalking; bronzing

4. Relief Printing

•        Letterpress: principle; type-set letterpress; rotary letterpress; photopolymer plates for letterpress; applications (label printing, numbering, embossing)

•        Flexography: principle; plate types (rubber, photopolymer); anilox roller (screen ruling, cell volume); doctor blade; ink system; flexographic press configurations (stack, central impression, in-line); substrates (flexible packaging, corrugated, labels, newspapers)

•        Flexographic Inks: water-based, solvent-based, and UV-curable inks; ink viscosity and pH control; anilox roller cleaning

•        Common Flexographic Defects: dot gain; halo effect; dirty printing; pinholing; misregister; ink picking

5. Intaglio Printing

•        Gravure (Rotogravure): principle; image is recessed in the cylinder; ink filling and doctoring; substrate receiving ink from cells; gravure cylinder (copper plating, engraving -- electromechanical, laser; chrome plating); gravure press (sheet and web); ink and solvent; applications (packaging, publication, flooring, textiles)

•        Steel Die Engraving (Intaglio Security Printing): raised print; substrate embossing; inks with high viscosity; application in security documents (currency, passports, railway tickets, postage stamps)

•        Etching and Photogravure: traditional and modern photomechanical intaglio processes

•        Common Gravure Defects: missing dots; mottle; snap-off marks; doctor blade lines; ink crawling

6. Screen Printing

•        Principle: stencil process; ink forced through mesh openings; non-image areas blocked by stencil

•        Screen Making: mesh selection (material -- polyester, nylon, stainless steel; mesh count; thread diameter; mesh percentage open area); direct, indirect, and direct-indirect emulsions; exposure and processing; reclaiming

•        Screen Printing Equipment: flatbed and rotary; squeegee (type, durometer, profile); ink flooding; off-contact printing; substrate clamping

•        Screen Printing Inks: types (plastisol, solvent-based, water-based, UV-curable, specialty -- puff, metallic, photochromic, thermochromic, glow-in-dark)

•        Applications: textiles; printed circuit boards; flat panel displays; glass and ceramic decoration; signage; 3D printing substrate

•        Common Screen Printing Defects: bleeding; sawtooth edges; pinholes; incomplete ink transfer; image breakdown; mesh marks

7. Digital Printing

•        Electrophotography (Laser Printing / Xerography): principle (charge, expose, develop, transfer, fuse); photoreceptor drum; toner composition (polymer, pigment, CCA, wax); fuser; colour laser printer (CMYK toner cartridges); high-volume digital presses (Xerox iGen, HP Indigo, Konica Minolta AccurioPress)

•        Inkjet Printing: principle; types -- continuous inkjet (CIJ), drop-on-demand (DOD) -- thermal inkjet (TIJ, bubble jet), piezoelectric inkjet (PIJ); ink formulation (water-based, solvent, UV, latex, dye-based, pigment-based); print head technology; substrate wettability; print resolution; wide-format and narrow-format inkjet

•        Variable Data Printing (VDP): personalisation and versioning; PDF/VT; PPML; JDF workflow; applications (direct mail, transactional printing, packaging)

•        3D Printing Basics: FDM; SLA; SLS; material jetting; binder jetting; applications in packaging prototyping

•        Digital Workflow: JDF (Job Definition Format); PDF/X standards; colour management in digital printing; ICC profiles; RIP (Raster Image Processor)

•        Advantages and Limitations: short run feasibility; variable data capability; colour consistency; cost per page; substrate limitations

8. Colour Science and Colour Management

•        Colour Theory: additive (RGB) and subtractive (CMYK) colour mixing; CIE colour space (CIE XYZ, CIE Lab, CIE Lch); colour gamut; metamers

•        Colour Measurement: spectrophotometer; densitometer; colorimeter; ISO 13655 measurement geometry; D50 and D65 illuminants; observer (2 and 10 degree); colour difference (Delta E 1976, 2000)

•        ICC Colour Management: ICC profiles (input, output, abstract, device link); colour management module (CMM); rendering intents (perceptual, relative colorimetric, absolute colorimetric, saturation)

•        Process Colour Control: control strips; density targets (GATF, Fogra); dot gain; print contrast; trapping; ISO 12647 standards for offset, gravure, and flexography

•        Special Colours: Pantone Matching System (PMS); HKS; DIC; metallic inks; fluorescent inks; spot colours; Pantone-to-CMYK simulation

•        Colour Proofing: hard copy proofing (inkjet contract proof, FOGRA certified); soft proofing; remote proofing; colour gamut comparison

•        Colour Spaces in Design and Print Workflow: sRGB vs AdobeRGB vs ProPhoto RGB; CMYK profiles for different printing conditions (coated, uncoated, newsprint)

9. Paper and Substrate Science

•        Papermaking: raw materials (wood pulp, recycled fibre); mechanical, chemical (kraft, sulphite), and semichemical pulping; bleaching; stock preparation; Fourdrinier machine; cylinder mould machine; calendering; coating

•        Paper Properties: grammage (GSM); caliper (thickness); bulk; smoothness (Bekk, Sheffield, PPS); whiteness and brightness (ISO 2470); opacity; absorptivity; sizing; burst strength; tensile strength; tear resistance; fold endurance; moisture content; fibre direction (grain direction)

•        Paper Testing: all standard tests; instruments (burst tester, tensile tester, Bekk smoothness tester, Gurley porosity tester, spectrophotometer)

•        Coated Papers: types of coatings (kaolin clay, calcium carbonate, titanium dioxide, binders); coating weight; gloss vs matte coated; blade and curtain coating

•        Specialty Papers: security paper (watermark, security fibre, fluorescent fibres, chemical sensitiser); carbonless paper (NCR); thermal paper; self-adhesive paper (release liner, adhesive, face stock); synthetic paper (PP, PET)

•        Boards and Carton Materials: duplex board; triplex board; kraft board; GD and GT boards; corrugated board (flute types: A, B, C, E, F); grey board

•        Flexible Packaging Substrates: BOPP; BOPET; BOPA; PE; PP; aluminium foil; metallised films; laminates; barrier properties

•        Other Substrates: textiles (for screen printing); glass; ceramics; metal sheets; plastic labels

10. Print Finishing and Bindery

•        Cutting: guillotine cutter (operation, safety); programmatic cutting; rotary cutter; die cutting

•        Folding: types of folds (parallel, right-angle, gatefold, accordion); folding machine types (knife folder, buckle folder, combination folder)

•        Binding Methods: saddle stitching; perfect binding; PUR binding; sewn binding (Smyth-sewn); case binding (hardcover); spiral and comb binding; wire-o binding; loose-leaf binding; Singer-sewn

•        Lamination: wet, dry, and thermal lamination; BOPP lamination (gloss, matte, soft-touch); vinyl lamination; UV laminate; anti-scratch laminate

•        Varnishing and Coating: spot UV coating; flood UV coating; water-based varnish; oil varnish; IR/UV curing; overprint varnish

•        Embellishment Processes: hot foil stamping (metallic, holographic); cold foil; embossing and debossing; die cutting; laser cutting; sculptured embossing; combination tooling

•        Numbering and Perforating: sequential numbering; ticket numbering; straight, tear, and micro perforations

•        Quality Control in Finishing: squareness; fold accuracy; binding strength; lamination adhesion; foil stamping quality

11. Ink Technology

•        Ink Composition: vehicle (resin, oil, solvent); pigment; additives (driers, anti-skinning, wax, anti-setoff); types of vehicles

•        Ink Properties: viscosity; tack; yield value; thixotropy; flow; tack value range for different printing processes

•        Ink Drying Mechanisms: oxidative polymerisation; absorption; evaporation; precipitation; UV curing (photo-initiators, free radical polymerisation); electron beam (EB) curing

•        Specialty Inks: conductive inks; magnetic inks (MICR -- Magnetic Ink Character Recognition for cheques and railway documents); fluorescent inks; phosphorescent inks; thermochromic inks; photochromic inks; metallic inks; food-safe inks; invisible inks (UV fluorescent)

•        Ink Mixing and Matching: Pantone spot colour mixing; tinting (white add); pigment properties; rub resistance; chemical resistance; food migration

12. Security Printing

•        Security Features: substrates (security paper with watermark, security thread, planchettes); printing features (fine-line patterns, microprinting, guilloche patterns, rainbow printing, latent image, OVI); post-printing features (holograms, embossing, serial numbering)

•        Anti-Counterfeiting: multiple levels of security (overt, covert, forensic); authentication devices; machine-readable features

•        Railway Security Documents: passenger tickets (passenger reservation slips, platform tickets); season tickets; warrant cards; travel authorities; forms and stationery

•        RBI and Government Printing: currency notes; passport; stamp paper; judicial stamps; postal security printing (postage stamps, aerogrammes)

•        Digital Security: QR codes; data matrix; barcodes (1D and 2D); digital watermarking; RFID tags

Physics and Chemistry (15 Questions -- Class 12 / Diploma Level)

This section tests applied science knowledge at Class 12 and engineering diploma level. Key topics include:

•        Physics: Units and Measurement; Scalars and Vectors; Kinematics; Laws of Motion; Work, Energy and Power; Circular Motion; Gravitation; Properties of Matter (Elasticity, Viscosity, Surface Tension); Thermodynamics and Heat Transfer; Wave Motion and Sound; Electrostatics (Coulomb's Law, Electric Field, Potential); Current Electricity (Ohm's Law, Kirchhoff's Laws, Wheatstone Bridge); Magnetic Effects of Current; Electromagnetic Induction (Faraday's Law, Lenz's Law); Optics (Laws of Reflection and Refraction, Lenses, Mirrors, Optical Instruments); Modern Physics (Photoelectric Effect, Radioactivity, Nuclear Reactions)

•        Chemistry: Atomic Structure and Periodic Table; Chemical Bonding (Ionic, Covalent, Metallic); States of Matter and Gas Laws; Chemical Equilibrium and Le Chatelier's Principle; Acids, Bases, Salts and pH; Electrochemistry (Electrolysis, Galvanic Cells, Faraday's Laws); Thermochemistry; Chemical Kinetics; Corrosion and Prevention; Polymers (Natural and Synthetic); Fuels and Combustion; Environmental Chemistry

Basics of Computer Applications (10 Questions)

•        Computer Organisation: CPU, memory types (RAM, ROM, Cache), storage devices, input-output devices

•        Operating Systems: functions, types (Windows, Linux, Unix), file systems, process management

•        MS Office: Word (document formatting, tables, mail merge), Excel (formulae, charts, functions), PowerPoint (slide design, transitions)

•        Internet and Networking: types of networks (LAN, WAN, MAN), protocols (TCP/IP, HTTP, FTP, SMTP), IP addressing, DNS, cloud computing basics

•        Database Fundamentals: concept of database, RDBMS, SQL basics (SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE), keys and relationships

•        Programming Concepts: flowcharts and algorithms, pseudocode, basic C language concepts (data types, control structures, functions, arrays)

•        Cybersecurity Basics: common threats (virus, malware, phishing), firewall, antivirus, data encryption basics

•        Digital Logic: binary, octal, hexadecimal number systems; logic gates (AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR, XOR); Boolean algebra basics

Environment and Pollution Control (10 Questions)

•        Environment: ecosystem components (biotic and abiotic), food chains and food webs, biogeochemical cycles (carbon, nitrogen, water)

•        Air Pollution: pollutants (SOx, NOx, CO, PM2.5, PM10, VOCs), sources, health effects, standards and control measures; vehicular emission norms (BS VI)

•        Water Pollution: sources, pollutants, effects on aquatic life and human health; treatment methods (primary, secondary, tertiary); BOD, COD, DO concepts

•        Soil Pollution: sources, effects, remediation techniques; land degradation and restoration

•        Noise Pollution: sources, health effects, standards (WHO and CPCB), control measures

•        Solid Waste Management: types of waste, 3R principle (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), composting, sanitary landfill, incineration

•        Radioactive Waste: types of radiation, health effects, AERB regulations, storage and disposal

•        Environmental Legislation: Environment Protection Act 1986; Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981; Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974; National Green Tribunal (NGT); Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

•        Indian Railways and Environment: ISO 14001 certification in railways, green initiatives, bio-toilets, solar energy on railways, plastic-free stations

•        Climate Change: greenhouse gases, global warming, Kyoto Protocol, Paris Agreement, India's NDC commitments