If you have worked in an office within the past couple of decades, you have probably encountered some type of thermal paper.  The most common form of thermal paper that comes to mind is the older style of fax machine paper.  Probably everybody remembers those long rolls of slick paper that many fax machines used; this was most likely thermal paper.

But why is this paper called, Thermal Paper, and how does it work?  Thermal paper is a specialized form of paper that contains a chemical that is sensitive to heat.  This type of paper, when used in a compatible printer, will produce a document by being exposed to heat.  Typically the chemical used on the paper will produce black text, but sometimes chemicals that will produce blue or red text are used as well.  Some thermal paper also have a protective top coating that may protect the printed material from fading, which can happen when the printed material is exposed to ultraviolet light, water, or certain oils.  This protective top coating may also improve the functioning of the thermal printer itself.

Thermal printing is different from other types of printing because this type of printing does not require the use of any type of ink.  This can be very convenient, especially when you think of the high cost of many printer’s ink cartridges and the hassle of discovering that your printer is out of ink just as you are ready to print an important document.

Because thermal printers and thermal papers do not require ink, many commercial business segments find the thermal printing option to be very appealing.  While the outdated fax machine paper may be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of thermal paper, there are actually many applications for thermal printing and thermal paper that are still in very wide use today.  Many of the receipts you receive today are printed on thermal paper.  This includes retail store receipts, grocery store receipts,  restaurant receipts, automated gasoline station pump receipts, and automated teller machine (ATM) receipts, plus many others.

Using a printer that uses thermal paper rolls can be a smart choice for customer service oriented businesses because not only is it cost effective due to the lack of ink usage, but it can make printing receipts and such a much more user friendly process.  How many times have you been stuck waiting in line to pay for your goods or services because a cashier is fumbling around trying to change think ink ribbon on a receipt printer?  With a thermal printer this is obviously not a concern because you will never run out of ink if ink is not used!

Thermal paper rolls are also readily available, so business consumers do not have to worry about access to this specialized type of paper.  Many office supply stores and online retailers sell a wide variety of thermal paper rolls.  If your business uses a lot of thermal paper rolls, it would be wise to contact your online retailer for bulk pricing discounts.