What the printing plates add per bag

Gravure printing needs one engraved cylinder per colour, charged once. On a small run that cost dominates the price; on a large one it disappears. This is why a printed bag has a minimum order — and why nobody should charge you for the same plates twice.

plate cost = colours × cost per cylinder
added cost per bag = plate cost ÷ order quantity
repeat run, artwork unchanged = 0

Worked example. A 6-colour job at ¥700 (CNY) per cylinder is ¥4,200 of plates. Over 5,000 bags that is ¥0.84 a bag; over 20,000 it is ¥0.21; on the repeat order it is nothing.

Range we work to: ¥400–1,000 (CNY) per colour on a standard web; a wide-web set reaches ¥8,000–12,000. Screen plates are far cheaper. Ask which process your job actually needs before you accept a plate charge for gravure.

Two things worth knowing. The charge is one-time — if the artwork does not change, a repeat run carries no new plate fee, so a second quote that repeats it is worth questioning. And whoever pays for the cylinder should own it: we pay every plate charge in our own name and take title, because a cylinder held by the printer is a switching cost pointed at you.