Get a Printing Quote — Send the Spec, Get a Per-Piece Band
Eight lines on a spec sheet is all we need. Below that is the full minimum-order table, so you can check whether your quantity is worth either of our time before you send anything.
In short
To quote exactly we need eight things: product, quantity, finished size, paper GSM or board, colour count, finishing, delivery pincode and deadline. We reply with a per-piece band within 1 working day. Minimums run from 500 pieces for calendars, diaries and books to 10,000 for labels.
Reviewed 20 September 2026 · MOQ table mirrors the home page and is re-checked each August with the rate bands
What we need to quote accurately
The eight lines
- Product — calendar, diary, notebook, label, monocarton, brochure, book, wedding card, paper bag
- Quantity — a number, or the two tiers you are choosing between
- Finished size — in millimetres or inches, or a trade name such as Super or Day-Month
- Paper or board — type and GSM. If you do not know, say what the product must do and we will propose
- Colours — 4-colour process, or 4 plus a named Pantone spot
- Finishing — lamination, spot UV, foil, emboss, die-cut, binding method
- Delivery pincode — or the list of destinations if it splits
- Deadline — the date the goods must be with you, not the date you would like to order
Helpful but not required
- Artwork, in any state. A rough layout is enough to price; print-ready files can follow
- A physical sample of what you bought last time, which answers ten questions at once
- What you paid last time and at what quantity — we would rather see it than guess around it
- Whether this is a one-off or a repeat, because a standing job is priced differently
- Whether you need a hard proof or a paper dummy, which adds 2–3 days
- For export: destination port, Incoterm and whether you need a pre-production sample
Minimum order quantities — check before you enquire
Almost no press in Sivakasi publishes this, which means every enquiry starts with a question we would rather answer here. If your quantity is below the number in this table, tell us anyway — but expect us to point you at a digital printer rather than quote you something that wastes your money.
| Product | Base specification | MOQ | Lead time | Indicative band |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wall calendars | Twelve-sheet 15 × 20 in, 100 GSM art, 250 GSM backing | 500 | 12 – 18 days | ₹18 – ₹32 at 5,000 |
| Table calendars | A5 13-sheet, 210–300 GSM art card, wiro | 500 | 12 – 18 days | ₹28 – ₹45 at 5,000 |
| Daily sheet calendars | Super 10 × 15 in, 365 leaves, 250 GSM backing | 500 | 12 – 18 days | ₹22 – ₹34 at 5,000 |
| Diaries | A5 executive, PU cover, 80 GSM inner, sectional-sewn | 500 | 15 – 25 days | ₹95 – ₹180 at 1,000 |
| Notebooks | Long 172-page, 58–70 GSM maplitho, centre-pinned | 5,000 | 10 – 15 days | ₹14 – ₹24 at 25,000 |
| Labels & stickers | Self-adhesive chromo, sheet-fed offset | 10,000 | 7 – 12 days | ₹0.50 – ₹3 at 25,000 |
| Monocartons | Duplex 300 GSM, 4-colour, gloss lamination, die-cut | 2,000 | 12 – 18 days | ₹2.50 – ₹5 at 10,000 |
| Rigid gift boxes | Greyboard 1.5 mm, printed wrap, matt lamination | 1,000 | 18 – 25 days | ₹80 – ₹175 at 5,000 |
| Brochures | Four-page A4, 130–170 GSM art paper | 1,000 | 5 – 8 days | ₹4 – ₹7 at 5,000 |
| Books | Perfect-bound, 70 GSM maplitho, art card cover | 500 | 15 – 25 days | ₹0.30 – ₹2 per page at 5,000+ |
| Wedding cards | Wholesale, art card, foil or thermography | 1,000 | 7 – 12 days | ₹8 – ₹25 at 1,000 |
| Paper bags | Kraft or art card 150–250 GSM, handled | 2,000 | 10 – 15 days | ₹6.50 – ₹34 at 5,000 |
| Question papers & OMR | Four-page A4, 70 GSM, sealed packs | 2,000 | 8 – 14 days | ₹3.40 – ₹6 at 5,000 |
Below the minimum, we will say so
A plate-based press cannot beat digital printing under about 500 pieces, and stretching to quote it anyway helps nobody. If you need 200 calendars, 300 books, 100 desk diaries or 1,000 labels, a digital printer will be cheaper and faster, and we will tell you that in the reply rather than in the third email. It is also the reason the table above exists at all — a published minimum saves you a day and saves us one.
What happens after you send the spec
Day 0 — spec received
We read it, flag anything missing, and come back with a per-piece band at your quantity and at the next tier up, so you can see what the volume step is worth. Within 1 working day.
Day 1–3 — artwork and proof
Send print-ready files and we preflight for bleed, resolution and colour, then issue a digital proof. A hard proof or an unprinted paper dummy goes by courier in 2–3 days if you want one, and on anything with images or a spine width, you should.
Day 3–4 — approval and advance
Written approval on the proof plus 50% advance. Thermal CTP plates are made the same day and paper is drawn from stock or ordered against your GSM.
Day 4–18 — production
Printing, then lamination, foil, die-cutting, binding and packing. Calendars and cartons 12–18 days; sewn diaries and perfect-bound books up to 25; simple sheet work 5–8.
Day 18–25 — dispatch
Balance 50% before loading. Transporter or courier across India in 2–7 days; export loads move to Tuticorin or Chennai port with packing list and commercial invoice.
Artwork file requirements
Send these and the proof comes back once. Send something else and it comes back three times, which costs days rather than money.
| Item | What we need | Why |
|---|---|---|
| File format | Print-ready PDF/X preferred; AI, CDR or layered PSD accepted | A flattened PDF/X leaves nothing to interpret at our end |
| Resolution | Three hundred dpi at final placed size | Anything less is visibly soft once it is on paper at full size |
| Colour space | CMYK, not RGB | An RGB file converted at the press shifts corporate blues and reds noticeably |
| Spot colours | Pantone references named in the file | Otherwise we build the colour from process inks and it will be close, not exact |
| Bleed | Three millimetres on every edge, with crop marks outside it | Trimming a stack is not accurate to zero; without bleed you get a white edge |
| Safe margin | Keep text 5 mm clear of the trim | Same reason, from the other direction |
| Fonts | Outlined or fully embedded, including inside placed files | Live Tamil and Devanagari fonts reflow on a different machine |
| Pagination | Multiple of four for bound work, supplied in reading order | So imposition does not have to guess |
| Spot UV artwork | Separate layer as a 100% black mask | A colour layer cannot be used to make a UV screen |
| Dielines | On their own layer, not merged into the artwork | The dieline drives the knife; it must not print |
Samples, payment and delivery
Samples
- A digital proof is free and comes within 1 working day of clean artwork
- An unprinted paper dummy — correct paper, correct extent, correct spine — is free and dispatched in 2–3 days
- A printed hard proof is chargeable at cost and dispatched in 2–3 days
- A pre-production physical sample is standard on export orders before a container is booked
- Existing product samples from our range can be couriered on request; freight is at cost
Payment and delivery
- Fifty per cent advance with the order, balance before dispatch
- GST invoice from a registered company, GST shown as a separate line, printed matter under HSN 4911
- Freight quoted per destination rather than averaged, because destinations do not cost the same
- Transport across India 2–7 days by transporter or courier, against a docket you receive
- Export on FOB Tuticorin or CIF destination, balance against shipping documents
- Multi-destination orders: one invoice, one packing list per destination, carton marks per address
Questions we answer daily
How quickly will I get a quote?
A per-piece band within 1 working day of receiving a spec with the eight lines filled in. If something is missing we tell you what, rather than sending a band built on an assumption. Export enquiries are answered within 1 business day on the same basis.
Do I need artwork to get a quote?
No. A rough layout, a description, or a photograph of the last one you bought is enough to price a job. Artwork only becomes necessary when we move to proofing. What we do need is quantity, size and paper — those three decide most of the price.
What if my quantity is below your minimum?
Tell us anyway and we will say so plainly and point you at a digital printer. Under 500 pieces for calendars, diaries and books, 1,000 for brochures, 2,000 for cartons, 5,000 for notebooks and 10,000 for labels, a plate-based press cannot beat digital and we will not pretend otherwise.
Will you give a single price rather than a band?
Yes, once we have the full specification. The bands on this site are published ranges because a number without a specification is meaningless; a quotation against your actual spec, quantity and delivery is a single figure with a validity date on it, usually 15 to 30 days depending on the paper.
Can I visit the press during the run?
Yes, and on a colour-critical job you should. A press check means standing at the machine as the first good sheets come off and approving the colour there. Tell us in advance so the run is scheduled in daylight hours and someone senior is on the floor.
What are the payment terms?
Fifty per cent advance with the order and the balance before dispatch, on a GST invoice showing GST as a separate line under HSN 4911. For repeat accounts with a track record, terms can be discussed. For a first order from a new buyer, the advance is not negotiable and we would be wary of any press for whom it is.
Do you deliver across India?
Yes, by transporter or courier depending on weight and destination, typically 2–7 days after dispatch. Freight is quoted per destination rather than averaged into the piece price, so you can see what you are paying. Multi-destination orders ship on one invoice with a packing list per address.
Which languages can I enquire in?
Tamil, English or Hindi, by phone or WhatsApp, between 6 am and 11 pm. Artwork and technical specifications are easiest in English simply because that is the language the trade terms exist in, but the conversation can be in whichever you prefer.
Before you send the spec
- Printing cost in India 2026 Check the band for your product and quantity first
- Paper & GSM guide Work out which paper and weight to name
- Offset vs digital printing Check whether your quantity belongs with us at all
- Minimum order quantities The same table, with the reason behind each number
- Calendar printing Formats, trade sizes and the season timeline
- Diary manufacturing Covers, binding and branding options
- Monocarton & box printing Send internal dimensions and we send a dieline
- Contact Phone, WhatsApp, email and where we are
- About the press Who you are dealing with
Send the spec. Get a per-piece band.
Product, quantity, size and GSM. A person who has stood at the press replies within 1 working day — WhatsApp or email, in Tamil, English or Hindi.