Author: Target Transfers
Date Published: 2009-11-01

Your Digital Printing Choices

Which digital printing system would best meet your commercial short-run requirements? Robin Bull,of Target Transfers, summarises the options, and explains why he believes print/cut to be the most rounded of all the digital print technologies currently available…

If you spend any time at all visiting industry related forums or chat rooms, you'll see that there are many threads out there asking the same questions: "What's the difference between direct-to-garment and print/cut…? Which one is better for my business…? What about sublimation…? What kind of paper should I use to make transfers with my inkjet printer…? How do I print photographs on T-shirts…? What about printing on dark garments…? The confusion and the questions go on and on!

Take heart, this article is here to help you become better informed about your choices when it comes to digital printing. Defining the technologies One thing everyone agrees on is that digital printing is ideal for short-run garment decoration, (although I do know of companies that use it to print jobs that run into the hundreds), and has opened up new markets and new profit opportunities for a lot of companies.

First of all, let's define the technologies availabletoday that are considered to be "digital". In no particular order they are: sublimation; direct-to-garment (also known as inkjet-to-garment, direct-on-garment, direct-to-product, direct-to-substrate, and d2g); inkjet transfers; CLC (colour laser copier) transfers; and print/cut. All have their advantages and their limitations.

Sublimation

This process is primarily designed for use on polyester or polyester-blend garments. Application on cotton is possible with some pretreating, but it won"t work on dark garments, "full stop". It is, however, an excellent method for customising hard goods, such as mugs, mouse pads,coasters and so on. There has been progress made in the development of sublimation systems that permit more flexibility, but the technology has a reputation as being difficult to perfect.

Direct-to-garment

There has also been a lot of excitement over direct-to garment printing and many people have invested in this inkjet-based system that prints directly on textiles. Direct-to-garment printers achieve the best results on cotton, and can also be used on silks, blends and some other fabrics. However, they can't really be used on polyester without a pretreatment. Some direct-to-garment printers are designed to print on promotional products, such as tiles, wood, golf balls and mouse pads, but not all of them.
Some limitations of direct-to-garment technology include: its cost; not all print successfully or easily on dark garments (so do your homework); the need for pre-treating on dark garments, and sometimes on light colours to make prints brighter; the lack of opacity and brightness; the length of time needed to complete a garment – especially dark garments; and the skill level needed to run the equipment. All that having been said, direct-to-garment is still one of the most popular digital printing methods on the market today.

Inkjet and CLC transfers

These are regarded as the least expensive, entry-level, "anyone-can-do-it" technology in the digital garment decoration arena. There are dozens of different papers available that can take artwork from your computer desktop to a T-shirt in minutes. Again, you are limited by the substrates to which the papers will apply, and it is still difficult to fi nd a paper that does a fantastic job of printing on darks, in my opinion.
There is also the issue of ghosting, unless one uses precise hand cutting to trim the excess paper or uses paper in combination with a cutter

that does it automatically.

Print/cut

No list of digital garment decorating methods would be complete without print/cuttechnology. While relatively unfamiliar (or even unknown) to many personalisation customers, this technology has had years of proven performance in the garment-manufacturing sector. You've probably encountered print/cut applications on brand name performancewear, shoes, nylon bags and more without even realising it.

I would go so far as to state that print/cut technology is probably the "most rounded" of all the digital technologies available today. It gives you all the advantages of the previously mentioned digital methods, with virtually none of the disadvantages. One of the biggest reasons for the excitement over print/cut technology is its versatility – not only can you print on a wide variety of garments with print/cut, you can also use it to print everything from helmet stickers and window clings to vehicle wraps and banners.

Print/cut incorporates technology originally designed for use in the sign industry; a wideformat, eco-solvent printer that instantly prints and then automatically contour cuts full-colour, photorealistic logos, designs and names in any quantity, "on demand". These images are printed on specially developed digital media that can be heat-applied to any fabric, of any colour. With a print/cut system, there is virtually no limit to the jobs you will be able to do. In the textile world, literally anything that can fit under a heat press can be decorated, from caps and nylon bags to performancewear and swimsuits.It even works on leather. There is no need to pretreat the garment, there are no limitations as to the type of textile that can be printed, and there are even speciality media available – such as puff and metallic – that allow you to create full-colour fashion effects that are not possible with any other digital printing method.

It is the recent development and availability of new digital media that is really propelling this previously unknown garment decoration method into the spotlight. Better yet, the technology has been tested for many years in the sign industry as being durable and easy to operate. It's just a matter of using the correct digital media for the job on hand. The greatest limitation of current print/cut systems would be the cost of the equipment, but with more and more business owners ready to invest in something that can be used as an alternative to screen printing and embroidery, print/cut is becoming an increasingly popular choice – thanks especially to the introduction of more media designed specifi cally for use with the print/cut system, as mentioned above.
It's probably only a matter of time before you invest in some type of digital garment decoration technology, if you haven't already. Whether you're a screen printer, embroiderer or plan to specialise solely in digital printing, there's a method available that meets your needs. And if you are still unsure about making a large investment, go online and join in an industry-user forum chat. Benefit from the experience of current users of the technology you are most interested in and weigh up all the facts and opinions. I'm not promising you still won"t feel confused, but at least you won't feel alone!

Product or printing need	PRINT/CUT	INKJET/CLC	SUBLIMATION	DIRECT-TO-GARMENT
Corporate and sports logos
Full-colour on darks		With limitations		Some systems
Fine detail
Opacity
Full-colour on nylons
Metallics
Mugs, awards & hard goods		Some items
Ad specialities	Some items	Some items		Some items
Pressure sensitive decals
Signs and banners

Target Transfers is a major UK supplier of equipment, materials, custom transfers, garments and accessories to the imprint market, and is a member of GroupeSTAHL, the "world's leading supplier of identity for textiles".
Web: www.targettransfers.com.

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