1. Input Media: (Any one) This is the content
which you want replicated, so that we can make an
exact copy, please note, we are not able to make
any changes in the masters given to us.
Format Sources accepted
ACD: Audio CD, CD-R
VCD: VCD, CDR
CDROM: CDROM, CD-R
DVD 5: DLT, DVD-R
DVD10: DLTs (One for each layer)
DVD9: DLT (one for each layer), DVD-R DL.
If using unbranded CDRs or other media, or for
rush/urgent jobs, we recommend having two copies
of the master given to us, just in case there are
read errors from these masters. (YES! We do have
such errors arising in some of the most urgent
orders! Murphy's Law is alive and can strike in
most cases)
2. Copyright letter: This is Basically needed to
ensure that you do make copies of the latest DVD
for distribution to your friends! This is to state
that you have the copyrights and/or are allowed to
make the CDs /DVDs. A format is downloadable here.
3. Purchase order: on your letterhead, which
states your Company name (or your name, in case of
personal orders) and Address. Please also mention
delivery details, in case you want us to hand this
over to your forwarder.
4. Positives for printing, (in case of screen
printing) or Negatives (for Offset printing) or if
you want us to make these, (at an additional
cost), a Corel v.11 file or Adobe Illustrator
format. Alternatively you can email these to us.
click here for the specifications for negatives,
positives. Please note, that for all 4 colour /CMYK
orders, we need a white base, and we need a screen
printing positive for this. Please also give us a
progressive proof for the printing, so that we
know what the printing looks like! Please also
note, that the printing will differ from the
inkjet/laser printouts or from JPEG files, and for
all orders without a white base, do consider the
reflective background of the CD. (The CD is silver
reflective, and not white, like most printouts!)
5. Please mention the number of tracks and the
duration, in the Purchase order, so that we can
cross check during the manufacturing process.
If you need exact quantities
for any reason, please specify this in writing at
the time of placing the order, so that we can
produce accordingly. There will be a additional
expense for this, since we will have to produce
extra discs and ship you the exact quantity.
How do you make the CDs? Burning process or
replication process?
There are two types of CD manufacturing processes:
Burning Process and the replication process: KRCD
offers both, depending on the order quantity.
Burning process is when one uses the CD Recordable
media and "burns" the information on the blank
media . This is typically done on a CD Burner or a
bank of CD Recorders. This is time consuming and
usually involves a person sitting and putting and
removing the blank media from the burners.
Futhermore, these discs then have to be checked,
if the data has been copied properly or not,
before being printed and packed normal CDs. One
can apply pre-printed stickers on these CDs or
print on them, we recommend that you print on
these, since stickers could come out from the CDs
in the long term.
These are generally ok for one-offs and time bound
critical small runs, but not recommended for long
term or rugged usage, as these may prove to have
issues with playability.
KRCD offers these CDs for small runs 100 to 300s,
and can offer prices based on these volumes. Above
300s, it may make sense to consider the
replication process. Please note, that the prices
are not cheap for this kind of small runs, since
we have to buy out the actual CDRs and then
process these, using the same machines which we
use for replication. Since this does involve
significant labor costs and scheduling
disruptions, we have to include this in our costs.
On the flip side, this is usually the best method
to get very small runs, very fast. The eventual
decision on which process to use, depends on the
customer preference, usage, time and cost factors.
Replication: this is the main process which KRCD
uses. This process involves making a stamper from
your source, then putting this stamper in an
Injection moulding machine, and then moulding the
CDs with the data on it, and then printing,
packing and shipping it to you. For more
details on the process, please see the
Knowledge
Base.
This process is a lot faster for larger runs, and
is used for most professional large orders for
Audio, Video and CDROMs.
KRCD recommends this for most orders and a bulk of
our business is from these kind of orders.
How do you print the CDs? Do you apply stickers on
them?
We use the screen printing process for 1,2,3 or
special/house colour, pantone colour orders where
as 4,5 colour, CMYK jobs and all large orders
(5000+) are offset printed. We can deviate from
this, but please let us know at the time of
placing the order and we can make note of this.
There may be cost considerations for this, so
please have a good reason for asking for this.
Where do you make your stampers? Glass masters?
For Security and Quality Issues, KRCD does not
outsource anything, and all operations are done
inhouse, under one roof. All glass masters,
stampers are made in house in our main factory at
Worli, Mumbai.
Can I have my stampers back? Do you return
stampers?
KRCD as a policy, does not return the stampers
back to the customer. While copyrights in the
stampers are those of the customer, we retain the
right and the title in the physical stamper at all
times. We also undertake not to take up production
without a written purchase order from the
customer.
What are the time Schedules for delivery?
These will vary depending on the order and our
production load. Usually, normal orders should
take about 5-6 working days time, depending on the
quality of the inputs. Typically, do take into
account one day each for the stamper making and
the label films, (if you are giving us a digital
file, and not the actual films)
What brand of Discs do you use? Can I supply my
own brand for my orders?
Since we are manufacturing CDs by the replication
process, the most straight forward answer would
be, we manufacture our own. But in case of
burning, we prefer to use our stocks since we know
how they behave, and what the rejection rates and
quality, is like. We can use your stocks but we do
not take any guarantees for the quality or yields.
Why don't you check the CD masters given to you
before you start the production?
We do not usually, check the contents for accuracy
or for errors, except for checking for any
copyright issues. These checks are not a
replacement for the content check at the customers
end, nor are a guarantee for accuracy of content
or playability of the discs. Customers are
strongly urged to do their own checks and
verification before handing over the masters to
us, since our responsibility is restricted to the
exact copying of the contents of the masters,
regardless of playability. We do not give any
assurances for playability or accuracy of content
except that the final replicated discs will be a
copy of the content given to us in the master.
Our manufacturing process involves making a
stamper from the master source given by the
customer. During this process, the mastering
machine reads the source while trying to copy it.
During this process, any reading errors, or
readability factors are brought out, and we could
reject the master source for this reason. But we
do not have any automated systems for checking or
verifying the accuracy or playability of the
content given to us.
I have a master, why do you have to make another
master?
The master which you have with you, is the source
master, which contains the data. We have to make a
separate mould/stamper from which the Discs are
moulded. This is the master that we are refering
to.
How good is your quality? Can I trust your
products over the "other persons" Discs?
Our processes and systems ensure that the products
we manufacture are consistently produced as per
the required specs. This ensures that all the
Discs that we make are compatible with all
standard Disc Players. While we do not make any
claims of competitors products, KRCD guarantees
the quality of the Discs made by it. In short, the
Discs we make are of good manufacturing quality,
if not, we will replace all of these, no questions
asked. This guarantee is not valid for any special
rate offers, or special price products, or
products where inputs are supplied by the
customer.
What quality control methods do you use?
All our Discs are checked according to the Philips
/Sony Standards for CDs and the various
international standards for DVDs. All our
processes are tightly monitored for deviations,
and this ensures that the final products are also
produced under very low variation and a high
degree of consistency.
The mastering system is the industry standard
Eclipse Image Encoder Suite, in a closed loop
system which verifies the contents at the time of
transfer to the glass mastering process. It is
also in a dedicated network so as not to allow any
external viruses or data to interfere with the
final masters. We do not play the content given to
us, but copy the entire image of the CD, so as to
protect the system from any inherent viruses in
any other masters received by us. Furthermore, we
check the stampers for electrical and physical
parameters at the time of manufacture.
The CD replication process: Here the process is
monitored and a sample test is done of each output
on a fixed basis, to check the consistency of the
output and the process.
Industry standardized testing equipment, which
compares the signals of the Discs to the
specifications is used and the order released only
if they are within spec. Also, every Disc is also
tested for surface defects by the scanners in the
replication machine.
During the printing process, the colours are
matched to the proofs given. After the CD has been
printed, each CD is checked for any printing or
manufacturing defects, and then released for
packing and shipping.
If at any stage, any defective CDs are rejected
and only the good Discs are allowed to go further
in the process.
What type of inputs you need for digital files for
printing?
We need offset negatives for offset printing,
color separated, and a screen printing positive
for the white base.
For Screen printing, we need screen printing
positives, one for each colour.
These should be as per our specs.
If you need to send digital files for making label
films, then we need these to be in Corel version
11 format or Adobe Illustrator format. (file
Extension .cdr or .ai) These can be emailed to us
or sent on a CDR/MO Disk/DVDR
Can you accept ftp or digital transfers?
Yes. Please contact us for more details.
Do you make, sell or distribute cd-rs, cd
recordables, blank cds, blank dvds, dvd-rs?
KRCD makes only pre-recorded discs, We do not make
or sell any blank media.
Why do you have to put the IFPI codes?
Manufacturers Name?
KRCD supports all legal copyright owners and
supports Intellectual Property Rights.
KRCD is a member of the IFPI and in line with
their guidance, puts the IFPI codes and
manufacturers codes, as a part of the anti-piracy
measures.
Why do I have to put the name of the Manufacturer
on the Packaging?
This is in compliance with the Packaging
Commodities Act, where the name of the
manufacturer, the MRP and the date of manufacture
has to be put on every package item which is
manufactured for sale. KRCD will not manufacture
any product which is not in compliance with this.
What are Shaped CDs?
Shaped CDs are normal cds which are cut in various
shapes. The typical shapes are 80mm, business
card, etc. The data area on the CDs will determine
the shape in which these can be cut.
What are the considerations that we have to take
for Shaped CDs?
These cds will not play on a jukebox player, CD
Car changer, or any other player which picks the
cds by the edges. One must have atleast three
edges of the CD as the regular shape to ensure
proper playability.
WE MUST EMPHASISE THAT THE SHAPED CDS ARE NOT
TROUBLE FREE AND CAN CAUSE PLAYABILITY ISSUES WITH
VARIOUS PLAYERS. KRCD DOES NOT GIVE ANY GUARANTEES
OR WARRANTIES FOR THE PEFORMANCE OF THESE CDS.
What is the life of a stamper?
This is difficult to forecast as these may get
damaged in operations, while putting or removing
the stamper from the machine etc. also the
condition of the stamper, type of manufacturing,
and usage conditions also determine its life. For
calculation purposes, we assume a normal life of
10000 pcs per stamper, though some literature does
mention a theoretical limit of 50,000 nos to
100,000cds per stamper.
What is the life of a CD?
The life theoretically is supposed to be endless,
but some literature mentions of about 30 years,
but the life of a CD typically depends on the
Manufacturing, handling, and care taken to
preserve the CD. All our discs are manufactured
under the strictest quality control standards so
they should last you a long long time!
Why
do I need a white base for printing?A cd has a reflective base, and
hence most light colours or process colours will
have a reflective, metallic type finish. It is
better for half tones, picture printing or light
coloured areas to consider a white base, for the
printing, to avoid this look.
