Impact of graphics on plastic cards

Twenty years ago printing a plastic gold card was considered a difficult print job. Printers would not (could not) guarantee the shade of gold or that the colour would'nt change on storage. With the mass market introduction of the gold plastic card in the mid 1980's by American Express, Visa and MasterCard - with it's myriad of marketing features - came the demand for a viable method of printing these plastic cards.

The development of Gold Eagle Pigment enabled the use of silk screen printing of a reproducible shade of gold that would not change colour upon lamination or exposure to human use. The marketing success of the gold plastic card is now history. It is aplastic card with only five colours that consumers visually perceived as having added value, and the plastic card issuers backed up with added value, but could be produced at a reasonable cost.

The high visual impact of the gold plastic card spurred the demand for other lustrous colours and special effects. Today high-end bank, affinity and casino plastic cards are printed with high impact silk screen metallic and pealrescent effects.