- a) Contracts requiring the procurement of offset printing services shall specify the use of soybean oil-based ink or vegetable oil-based ink unless an SPO determines another type of ink is required to assure high quality and reasonable pricing of the printed product. [30 ILCS 500/45-15] The SPO will make this determination based on justification submitted by the State agency.
- b) This preference does not apply when an agency requires digital printing services. This printing method includes, but is not limited to, the electrostatic process of transferring ink or toner to a substrate and that may use photo imaging plates, photoreceptor drums, or belts that hold an electrostatic charge. Digital printing also includes the process of transferring ink through a print head directly to a substrate, such as ink-jet printers.
- c) Offset printing includes lithography, flexography, gravure or letterpress, and involves the process of transferring ink through static or fixed image plates using an impact method of pressing ink into a substrate.
(Source: Amended at 46 Ill. Reg. 10208, effective June 2, 2022)