Pad print for corporate merch in Türkiye
Pad printing is the decoration method behind most corporate logos on pens, USB shells, water bottles, electronics enclosures and any curved hard good. This page covers the pad-printing process, the substrates it suits, and where pad print earns its place on a corporate merch brief.
What pad printing is and how it works on a curved surface
Pad printing — also called tampo printing or tampography — uses a silicone rubber pad to transfer ink from an etched printing plate (the cliché) onto a three-dimensional substrate. The pad presses down onto the inked cliché, picks up the ink image, then presses down onto the substrate, transferring the image onto a curved, recessed or irregular surface that other decoration methods can't reach.
Pad printing handles 1-4 spot colours per pass. Each colour requires its own cliché and its own pad pass. For multi-colour designs, the substrate is rotated through multiple print stations or returned to the operator for sequential passes. For corporate logos with 1-3 spot colours, pad printing is the most cost-effective decoration method on curved hard goods.
In Türkiye, pad printing capacity sits in our Levent studio with overflow at our İkitelli partner facility for large production runs. We run automated pad-printing machines for high-volume runs and manual pad-printing stations for short runs and prototypes. Clichés are produced in-house from European photopolymer and steel materials with 1-3 working day lead times.
Substrates and product fit
Plastic substrates are the classic pad-printing substrate. ABS, polypropylene, polyethylene, polycarbonate, acrylic, nylon and most engineering plastics pad-print cleanly with the right ink chemistry. Common applications: pen barrels, USB shells, phone cases, electronics enclosures, hard plastic packaging, promotional hard goods.
Coated metal substrates pad-print cleanly with metal-specific ink chemistry. Stainless steel, aluminium, brass and coated metals accept pad printing with appropriate pretreatment. Common applications: stainless water bottles, aluminium pen barrels, metal USB shells, metal awards.
Glass and ceramic substrates pad-print cleanly with the right ink chemistry and surface treatment. Wine glasses, ceramic mugs, glass awards and ceramic promotional items are common applications. The pad printing ink is cured in a conveyor dryer or UV-curing station.
Pad printing reaches curved, recessed and irregular surfaces that other methods can't — round bottles, tapered tumblers, recessed electronics panels, ball-point pen barrels with a curved clip area, key fobs with curved or textured surfaces.
Pad print colours and Pantone matching
Standard pad-printing inks cover the full Pantone PMS library. For corporate logos with brand-precise Pantone matching, we mix the ink to the supplied reference and measure Delta-E under 2 against the supplied swatch. Most Pantone references are achievable with stock inks; custom-mixed inks are available with 2-4 working day lead times.
Multi-colour pad printing requires careful registration between colour passes. Each colour cliché must be aligned to the substrate's geometry to within 0.1-0.2 mm for clean registration. We use a jig or fixture to hold the substrate in a consistent position across passes, which gives registration accuracy within tolerance.
Specialty pad-print inks — metallic, fluorescent, glow-in-the-dark, mirror-finish — are available from European ink manufacturers. Metallic pad-print ink reads as a less brilliant metallic than foil but works on curved surfaces where foil can't be applied. Specialty inks cost 30-100% more per piece than standard inks and add 2-3 working days to the lead time.
Run sizes, lead times and unit economics
Pad printing is most economical on runs of 50-5,000 pieces per design. Below 50 pieces we usually suggest laser engraving or UV printing for cost reasons. Above 5,000 pieces we run the fully automated pad-printing line at our İkitelli partner facility.
Lead time is 5-10 working days for a typical corporate program: 1-3 days for cliché production, 1 day for proofing, 3-5 days for production, 1-2 days for finishing and pack-out. Repeat orders with held clichés drop to 3-5 working days.
For corporate buyers pricing out a program, the practical question is run size and substrate geometry. Pad printing wins on curved hard surfaces for any run size above 50 pieces; laser engraving wins on small runs and on substrates where the mark must be dishwasher-safe.
Clichés: the per-design tooling
Each pad-printing colour requires a cliché — an etched printing plate that holds the ink image. Clichés are produced from photopolymer (for short runs and prototypes) or steel (for long runs and fine detail). Lead time on a new cliché is 1-3 working days for photopolymer and 3-5 working days for steel.
Cliché cost is amortised into the per-piece price on small runs and itemised separately on larger runs where the tooling becomes a meaningful share of the order value. We hold a cliché library for repeat corporate clients so repeat orders avoid the tooling fee.
Minimum detail on a cliché depends on the cliché material and the substrate. On photopolymer clichés, hairlines down to 0.2 mm and text down to 5 pt reproduce cleanly. On steel clichés, the minimum detail rises to about 0.1 mm and 4 pt for fine detail work. We test-print every new cliché on the production substrate before committing the bulk run.
Where we run pad print in Türkiye
Pad print production sits in our Levent studio with overflow at our İkitelli partner facility for large production runs. Cliché production is in-house for photopolymer clichés and outsourced to an İkitelli tool shop for steel clichés. Blanks come from Kayseri, Konya, İstanbul and Bursa partner manufacturers.
For corporate programs delivered to İstanbul offices, Ankara government and diplomatic addresses, İzmir trade-show venues, and Antalya resort venues, we run hand-delivery for high-value orders and tracked road freight for larger volumes.
Related decoration methods
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum order for pad print?
Pad printing is most economical on runs of 50-5,000 pieces per design. Below 50 pieces we usually suggest laser engraving or UV printing. Above 5,000 pieces the per-piece price drops meaningfully at our İkitelli partner facility.
How long does a pad print order take?
A typical corporate program takes 5-10 working days: 1-3 days for cliché production, 3-5 days for production. Repeat orders with held clichés drop to 3-5 working days.
Which substrates work with pad print?
Plastic substrates (ABS, polypropylene, polyethylene, polycarbonate, acrylic, nylon), coated metal substrates (stainless, aluminium, brass), glass and ceramic substrates. Pad printing reaches curved, recessed and irregular surfaces that other methods can't.
Can pad print match a corporate Pantone colour?
Yes. Standard pad-printing inks cover the full Pantone PMS library. We mix to the supplied reference and measure Delta-E under 2 against the supplied swatch.
Is pad print dishwasher-safe?
Pad printing is reasonably durable under normal use. For dishwasher durability on metal and ceramic drinkware, laser engraving or ceramic-fired decals are more durable. We flag this at the brief stage.
Is Corp-Merch a licensed pad printer or officially accredited by any ink manufacturer?
We are an independent corporate merch decoration provider in Türkiye. We are not licensed, endorsed or accredited by any pad-print equipment manufacturer, ink supplier or cliché supplier. Brand and product names are used to describe compatible substrates and decoration methods.
Request a quote
Send your substrate choice, design file with Pantone references, and quantities. We'll come back with TRY pricing, lead time and pad-print options within one working day.