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RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

How Australia’s Banknotes Are Made

Creating a new banknote is a complex and demanding task which seeks to marry different and often conflicting objectives. A banknote is primarily a security document, not just a work of art, but a blend of the two is sought. Long lead times are also frequently involved in the design and production of new banknotes. Traditionally, portraits and national symbols have been used as major design elements. Experience has shown that the public can more easily detect faults in counterfeit banknotes when these are part of the design.

Design

There are various approaches which can be followed in the design of banknotes. The following comments describe the process adopted for the design of the current series of Australian banknotes.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is responsible for the issue of Australia's banknotes, and this includes their design. The RBA is assisted by a panel of consultants, as well as suggestions from the public, as to the Australian men and women to be portrayed on banknotes. In deciding themes, the RBA, with the assistance of the design consultants, uses the opportunity of a new series to honour past Australians who have made an important contribution to Australia. Along with the portrait of the person, other design elements are included that relate to that person's particular achievements.

The role of a separate design consultant panel is to provide the RBA with independent advice on good design practice and assist the designers in realising the full potential of their ideas. The constraints placed on the designer for security reasons are considerable. They limit the degrees of freedom the designer has.

Also, each banknote has to have a predominant colour, to aid differentiation from other banknotes. But, for security, use of a broad range of colours in any given design is also important.

A design brief is prepared so that the design consultants and designer will be fully aware of features required in the banknote series by the issuer and printer. On the surface it is a simple brief: to design a banknote around the contributions of the people to be depicted on the banknote, within the constraints required for a high security document. In practice, it is quite complex.

Once themes have been established, designers are commissioned to develop the designs. Through collaboration, various common threads are established to create a 'family' feel to the series, yet still allow each design to have its own character. Examples of these common threads may be font for text and numerals, and signatures of the people portrayed. As the designer goes about the task of creating a banknote, there is an important role for the issuer, printer and the design consultants to oversee the project.

Miniature watercolour of Mary Reibey who features on the front of the twenty dollar banknote. The RBA released the Commemorative ten dollar polymer banknote on Australia Day 1988. It featured HMS Supply, the first ship to drop anchor in Sydney Cove. Line art of the Air Ambulance Victory flown by Reverend John Flynn, featured on the back of the twenty dollar banknote. Running Horses (Brumbies) featured on the front of the ten dollar banknote.
Photograph showing an artist working on the A$10 banknote design at four times normal size. Photograph showing a designer at work on the A$100 banknote.

As the process develops, advice can be sought, if necessary, from historians and special interest groups (e.g. representatives of people with impaired vision), and research carried out on various aspects of design detail.

The design project is split into various phases, and each must be completed and signed off before the next starts. These different phases include initial concepts, development of these concepts, development of portraiture, conversion of the developed artwork into a security document, and finally, proofing and printing. Progress at each stage is reviewed by the panel of consultants. The various designers themselves meet to review each others' work and discuss commonality issues. The designers are also in contact regularly with artists and technical experts from Note Printing Australia Limited (NPA) to ensure that what they are doing is consistent with the RBA's requirements and production capabilities.

Manufacture of Printing Plates

Once a designer's conceptual design has been accepted by the RBA, skilled artists and designers at NPA begin the process of developing a design around the theme selected and converting it into a banknote. Part of this involves transforming the design into large-scale line drawings.

These drawings become increasingly more complex as the design is developed to include security features. Computer aided design (CAD) technology is also used because of its flexibility and efficiency. During this process, the RBA continues to take advice from the panel of consultants. When the banknote design is complete, printing plates are made. Separate plates and printing processes are required for the background colours and patterns and the major design elements on each side of the banknote. The background is printed flat using an offset printing process, called simultan, producing an effect like painting with watercolours. Printing plates for the background colours and patterns are produced photographically.

Photograph showing an artist at work on the A$10 banknote. Photograph of a metal intaglio printing plate for the Australian A$20 banknote.

The major design elements have a raised print, called intaglio, which can be felt with the fingers. The large scale line drawings of the major design elements are transferred through a series of processes to a metal, intaglio printing plate which has multiple images of the banknote. The different size of banknotes results in between 32 and 45 banknotes being printed on a single sheet.

Production

Printing plates, polymer substrate and ink come together in a vast printing hall, some 80 metres long, 40 metres wide and 10 metres high.

Simultan printing machines print the background colours and patterns on polymer substrate. As the name suggests, both sides of the banknotes are printed at the same time, at speeds of up to 8,000 sheets per hour.

Printing of the major design elements is carried out on the intaglio printing machines, with ink being transferred to the substrate under great pressure. Separate print runs are required for each side of the banknote. The resulting raised print is one of the security features of banknotes.

Serial numbers are then added to the banknotes using a letterpress printing process. For information on how serial numbers are allocated view our Serial Numbering page.

In a final print run, the banknotes are given two coats of a protective overcoating ink using an offset printing press. This overcoat contributes to the extended durability of polymer banknotes as it protects the printing; it also helps to keep the banknotes clean.

Photograph of a technician testing ink used on banknotes. Photograph of designs of various background patterns used on Australia's banknotes. Photograph of the numbering boxes on a letterpress machine.
Photograph of the simultan banknote printing machine. Photograph of the intaglio printing plate installed on the intaglio machine.

Finishing Process

Printed sheets are guillotined into individual banknotes which are then placed into containers in alpha-numerical order and transported to computer controlled machines for final counting, removal of imperfect banknotes, and banding.

The finished banknotes are then shrink-wrapped, palletised and stored in the finished banknotes strongroom prior to distribution around the country.

The security of a banknote is importantly a function of the ingenuity of the designer in combining materials, many manufactured using equipment not commercially available, with a knowledge of visual perception.

Photograph of sheets of A$50 banknotes about to be guillotined. Photograph of the high speed banknote counting and sorting machine. Photograph of pallets of banknotes stored in the finished banknotes strongroom.